Pirates Have Major Area to Improve On This Offseason

The Pittsburgh Pirates finished the 2026 season with a record of 82-80, showing more fight than they had in previous years.

While the Pirates didn't reach the playoffs, the 2026 season was still very successful for the organization. Not only did the Pirates show that they could stay competitive in a playoff race until the final few weeks of the season, but the team saw a jump in its young players development.

The Pirates have a solid young core in place, and this group believes that they can take the next step in 2027. Pittsburgh hasn't made the playoffs since the 2015 season, giving themselves a decade-plus dought to overcome.

But multiple players on this team believe that the future is bright as the franchise heads into a critical offseason. Whether or not the Pirates can break the long postseason drought will likely come down to how the front office works this winter.

And there is one area that the Pirates have to address if they want to get into the dance. This would be the lack of hitting against left-handed pitchers, which doomed the team this past season.

Pittsburgh hit an OPS of .701 as a team against lefties this season, coming in ranked No. 19 in the league. The Pirates hit .248 as a whole against lefties as well, which is fairly low for the season.

For a team that has postseason aspirations, this won't get the job done, and it's an area that the front office has to deal with. Pittsburgh addressing this problem could go a long way in getting this organization back to the playoffs.

The Pirates did well against right-handers, putting up the sixth-best OPS in baseball, coming in at .749. But the left-handed problems plagued this team throughout the entire season.

Luckily for the Pirates, there are a few options in free agency that could make sense for the team to go after. But it's all dependent on the Pirates' front office wanting to spend this offseason.

One name that could make sense is Seiya Suzuki of the Chicago Cubs, who will be entering free agency. Suzuki has hit .279 over his MLB career against left-handers, and the Pirates know him well from all the matchups over the years.

Pittsburgh may not want to spend what it will take to land Suzuki, but he is the type of player that the front office needs to target. Making sure to deal with this hitting problem could be the biggest difference in the Pirates making the playoffs next year or missing it again.