Pirates grades at 2024 All-Star break
Editor’s note: This is only for Pirates on the 26-man roster as of the All-Star break, so no breakdowns for Bailey Falter (who I’d give a B+) and Jared Jones (A-).
The Pirates rode into the All-Star break on Sunday, securing a three-game road sweep of the Chicago White Sox, ensuring the club finished at .500 or better at the break for the first time since 2016.
The Pirates sit at 48–48, 6.5 games back of first-place Milwaukee and only 1.5 games back of the final Wild Card spot, currently held by the New York Mets.
So, with the team within striking distance despite a litany of injuries to the pitching staff (four out of five members in opening day rotation spent time on the injured list), I’m here to give my grades to each player. Keep in mind that these grades are given relative to that player’s general expectations at the start of the season.
OUTFIELDERS
Bryan Reynolds: A
Let’s start this out with the easy one, Bryan Reynolds has been the Pirates’ best and most consistent hitter in 2024, aided by a monster June (and now July).
At the break, Reynolds sports an impressive .284/.347/.487 slash line, paired with 18 home runs and 61 RBI. He also has a 3 bWAR and a 132 wRC+, good enough to put him in the All-Star game for the second time.
Michael A. Taylor: D
Alright, maybe I’m being a little too generous here, but Taylor’s defense has been stellar in centerfield, so I can’t give him an F.
However, he’s given the Pirates next to nothing at the plate with his .203/.258/.279 slash line. That’s only a 53 OPS+. He’s been good at stealing bags, swiping six in seven attempts, but he’s just on base enough to truly make an impact in that department.
He does have six defensive runs saved in centerfield though, which earns him a passing grade.
Jack Suwinski: D-
Suwinski has taken a massive step back at the plate in 2024, earning him a brief trip to Triple-A Indianapolis before he was eventually recalled due to injury.
Suwinski has been comparable to Taylor at the plate, only hitting for more power. His .174/.259/.319 slash line isn’t giving the team much, despite having nine home runs.
His defense also isn’t stellar in the outfield, and he’s sporting just a 61 wRC+ and a -2 bWAR. The Pirates need 2023 Suwinski to return, a year in which he had a 112 wRC+ and hit 26 home runs.
Andrew McCutchen: B+
McCutchen’s outfield days are mostly long gone, as he’s only made five starts in right field in 2024. However, he’s been pretty solid in the DH spot for the club.
At the break, McCutchen has a .226/.328/.387 slash line, hitting 12 home runs. His power has slightly dipped, but he’s still getting on base at an impressive clip with his 11.7% walk rate, which puts him in the 88th percentile.
Even at 37, Cutch is still kicking it, sporting an above average 103 wRC+. The Pirates can’t ask for much more from him.
*Joshua Palacios: A+
I mean, I get it, Palacios has only played in 10 games. And it’s extremely unlikely, if not straight up impossible, he keeps his 173 OPS+.
But . . . how can he be anything but an A+? He’s played in just 10 games, but the Pirates are 6–4 in those games. His energy is palpable, and oh by the way, he’s got a .286/.429/.536 slash line since he’s been up.
Not to mention he also has seven walks to just three strikeouts in 35 plate appearances. And a 0.3 bWAR already . . . are you kidding me?
INFIELDERS
Rowdy Tellez: B-
Tellez is perhaps the most fascinating one to grade. If you look at his April-May performance, I think giving him an F would be too generous. But his performance since June 1 has helped spark the Pirates to their .500 record.
Overall, Tellez has a .243/.297/.383 slash line with 8 home runs. His last 30 games, however, that slash line is .313/.355/.576 with seven home runs.
If Tellez plays more like June-present Tellez, it would be huge for the Pirates.
Connor Joe: B-
I’m lumping in Joe because he’s played more innings at first base than in the outfield. Overall, Joe hasn’t been bad, sporting a .242/.330/.390 slash line with seven home runs. The kicker with him, though, is he’s kind of trended in the opposite direction as Rowdy.
In April, Joe slashed .286/.359/.486 with three home runs. In May, he slashed .261/.324/.413 with three home runs. He’s faltered so far in the summer, hitting just .169/.280/.292 in June and a .167/.348/.167 clip so far in July.
Still, Joe’s been a net positive and a solid utility man for the Pirates, as noted by his 0.9 bWAR, 104 OPS+ and 104 wRC+.
Nick Gonzales: A-
For as disappointing as guys like Jack Suwinski and Henry Davis have been in 2024, Gonzales has been every bit as much of a pleasant surprise.
Gonzales sports a .265/.305/.409 slash line with five home runs. A substantial improvement over his .209/.268/.348 line in 35 games in 2023.
His development would be huge for the club, especially if and when they make a playoff push down the stretch.
Oneil Cruz: B+
Cruz is playing his first full season, and coming off a major injury, it’s hard to ask for much more from him. At the break, he’s got a .246/.299/.438 slash line and is second on the team with 14 home runs.
He’s toned down the aggressiveness on the base paths following his injury but has been a good base stealer, swiping seven bags in eight tries.
He chases a lot, and doesn’t walk a ton, but it’s hard to complain about a 107 OPS+, 1.6 bWAR and 102 wRC+ for a guy coming off an injury like that.
Jared Triolo: D
Listen, I think you’d be remiss to say you expected Triolo to continue or match the .298/.388/.398 slash line he put up in 54 games last year.
But . . . couldn’t he at least come close? Nope. Triolo is hitting just .205/.279/.276 in 74 games, good for just a 55 OPS+ and 59 wRC+.
He does play solid defense at multiple infield positions, though, sparing him from an F.
Ke’Bryan Hayes: C+
Somewhat similar to Triolo, I suppose expecting Hayes to build on a 2023 in which he slashed .271/.309/.453 (!) was a little premature.
And I know, Hayes spent some time on the injured list with a back problem, an injury that probably hasn’t gone away from a couple of seasons ago and probably won’t go away.
Nothing needs to be said about Hayes’ defense. It’s why he has a 1.5 bWAR despite just a 74 OPS+ and 72 wRC+.
He did seem to catch fire heading into the break, though, scoring three-straight multi-hit games against the White Sox, helping pace a .385/.385/.423 slash line in his last seven games.
CATCHERS
Yasmani Grandal: F
This shouldn’t be a controversial statement, but I’ll say it: Grandal is worse than Pirates Austin Hedges.
Never mind the lobbing the ball back to Jared Jones in Denver, allowing a runner to steal home, and plenty of other times where he looked like he didn’t care. His .178/.207/.295 slash line is abysmal.
He also has a 41 OPS+, a -0.5 bWAR and a 36 wRC+. Simply put, he shouldn’t be on the roster. But the Pirates won’t admit their mistake and cut ties (sounds familiar, doesn’t it?)
Joey Bart: A
Who would’ve thought before the season that Joey Bart would be the Pirates best and most steady guy behind the plate?
Bart sports a .236/.330/.472 slash line with six home runs in 33 games. He also has a 125 OPS+, a 0.9 bWAR and 123 wRC+. He should be the Pirates starting catcher until further notice.
STARTING PITCHERS
Paul Skenes: A+
The generational, best-since-Stephen-Strasburg pitcher has somehow exceeded everybody’s expectations his rookie year.
Don’t believe me? Just look at his sizzling 1.90 ERA and 2.57 FIP in 66.1 innings.
That’s not enough? I didn’t even mention his 0.92 WHIP, his 6–0 record (In his 11 starts, he’s never left a game trailing) or his 89 strikeouts to just 13 walks.
Those absurd, unreal numbers propelled him (along with his 2.1 fWAR) to not only be an All-Star as a rookie, but to start the game for the National League, an extremely rare feat. Enjoy him while we can, Pittsburgh.
Mitch Keller: A-
An All-Star in 2023, I think Keller was certainly deserving of another All-Star nod this year.
He’s paced the staff (the only member of the Opening Day rotation to not spend time on the injured list), throwing 114.1 innings en route to a 3.46 ERA and 3.79 FIP.
Not that wins and losses are super important for pitchers, but he’s got an impressive 10 wins. His WHIP is also solid at 1.25, and he’s got 105 strikeouts to 30 walks. Keller also sports a solid 1.8 fWAR.
Martin Perez: C-
Perez was supposed to be the big fish free agency signing for the starting rotation, but he’s been rather unimpressive to this point.
In 73.1 innings, he only has a 5.15 ERA and 4.66 FIP. He’s allowed 94 hits and has just 57 strikeouts to 25 walks, giving him a 1.62 WHIP.
Amazingly, his ERA actually deflates to just 3.98 if you take away his two starts against the Brewers, where he’s allowed 14 earned runs in 9.2 innings.
Still, the veteran of the staff, he’s got to improve upon his 0.4 fWAR.
Marco Gonzales: A
Listen, I know he’s only thrown 22 innings, but man, he’s been impressive in them. He’s got a 2.45 ERA and 3.07 FIP in four starts.
He doesn’t strike a ton of guys out, but he sports 15 strikeouts to just five walks, good for a 1.22 WHIP. He’s also got a 0.6 fWAR, which becomes crazier when you learn it’s higher than Perez’s, a guy he’s thrown 51 less innings than.
Luis Ortiz: A
Ortiz is another guy I just can’t say enough about. In 66.2 innings between the rotation and the pen, he’s got a 2.84 ERA and a 3.07 FIP.
He’s been impressive in every role he’s been in, whether it be allowing just two earned runs in 17.2 innings in his three starts, or in a high-leverage role out of the pen (he’s got a save this season).
Ortiz has a 1.2 fWAR, and there’s a good chance he could stay in the rotation once guys like Jared Jones and Bailey Falter return from injury.
Quinn Priester: C
Meh.
I think that basically sums up Priester’s time in the majors to this point. (Evidenced by his literal 0.0 fWAR in 39 innings). Nothing he’s done this year has been awful per se (4.54 ERA, 4.95 FIP) but he doesn’t appear to be a long-term option in the rotation.
And for now, I think the Pirates see it that way, too. His last two outings since returning from injury have been out of the bullpen.
And admittedly, he’s been solid, tossing eight innings and surrendering just three earned runs with two walks and eight strikeouts.
BULLPEN
Kyle Nicolas: B+
Nicolas, like a couple other guys I’m about to talk about, started off rocky, but he’s been pretty darn impressive lately.
In his last 15 outings, he’s got a 1.96 ERA in 18.1 innings with 19 strikeouts, nine walks and 11 hits. In his last seven outings, he’s allowed *zero* runs in 6.1 innings and just two hits and three walks with five strikeouts.
His coming out party was June 12 in St. Louis when he faced six batters, retiring all of them with five strikeouts. He’s only allowed two earned runs since then and has slowly worked into a high-leverage role.
Carmen Mlodzinski: B+
Mlodzinski is similar to Nicolas, another guy who got off to a slow start in both Triple-A and the majors after an injury put him on the injured list to start the season.
He’s pitched to a 1.31 ERA in his last 15 games, throwing 20.2 innings and allowing just 13 hits and five walks to 17 strikeouts.
He’s been even better his last seven games, throwing 9.1 innings and allowing just *checks notes* three hits and two walks with nine strikeouts.
Mlodzinski has also been versatile for the Pirates, making three starts in an opener role and in a high-leverage position.
Josh Fleming: C+
Fleming is a curious case. He was DFA’d in May after allowing seven total runs in two appearances against the Brewers and Cubs, raising his ERA to 5.68.
But since he cleared waivers and was recalled, he’s been . . . actually good? He’s pitched 10.1 innings and allowed eight hits and four walks. He does only have four strikeouts.
I also don’t remember the last time a guy was DFA’d and returned midseason to toss four scoreless innings at Coors Field, but that’s just what Fleming did.
No one’s mistaking him for Holderman or Bednar or any other high-leverage type of guy, but he’s been OK.
Aroldis Chapman: C+
Overall, Chapman has been alright. For $10.5 million, he’s been like Priester — meh. Chapman’s strikeout numbers are stupendous (56 in 34.2 innings).
But underneath that, there’s not very much for a guy making as much as he is. He only has four saves in seven opportunities, further showing he’s just not a 9th inning guy anymore.
He also has, to be nice, an annoying amount of walks (32 in 34.2 innings). He’s really just not what he once was, as his opponent batting average (.195) is the highest it’s been since 2017.
Dennis Santana: C+
We know, Santana got off to a horrid start in Pittsburgh (see six earned runs in one inning in Colorado).
But his last few outings, he’s actually been solid. In his last seven appearances, he’s thrown 8.2 innings allowing just one earned run and walking three while striking out 14.
Most of his work has been in mop-up duty, but somebody’s got to do it. And he’s done it. Again, no one’s mistaking him for Mlodzinski/Holderman/Bednar, but he hasn’t been bad lately.
Colin Holderman: A-
Holderman has been a steady presence in the back-end of the bullpen since he returned from the injured list. He doesn’t have a save in three opportunities, but he’s still been really good overall in the 7th and 8th innings.
He’s thrown 35.2 innings, allowing just 27 hits and walking 17 with 43 strikeouts. And we got him for Daniel Vogelbach!
David Bednar: B
David Bednar is back. It’s evidenced by his 1.20 ERA in his last 15 innings. And the fact he’s 16/16 on save opportunities since he hit rock bottom on April 9.
However, he was really bad to start the year, preventing him from earning an A. Like, really bad. He blew three of his first four saves. When he wasn’t pitching in save situations, he was allowing three runs in less than an inning to the Mets or three runs without recording an out to the Giants.
But that looks to be in the past, and I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt based on what he’s done since becoming healthy and what he’s done as a Pirate (two-time All-Star!). The Pirates need him good and healthy for the stretch run.
