Pirates Second Half Preview: Playoff Chase is on

After a four days off, he Pirates open up the second half of their schedule on Friday night against the Guardians in Cleveland.

The Pirates entered the All-Star break with momentum by sweeping the National League Central-leading Brewers in three games to push their record to 50-47. It marked the first time since 2016 they entered the break above .500.

While the strong showing at PNC Park last weekend still has the Pirates in fourth place in the division and a distant 9.5 games behind the Brewers, Pittsburgh is only two games out of a wild card spot in a crowded race.

With 65 games to go on the regular season schedule, here are five things to watch as Pittsburgh finds itself in contention for the final two and a half months of the year.

The Pirates are currently tied with the Nationals for the most runs in baseball with 516. After being the worst offense in baseball a year ago, an argument could be made that the Pirates have the best offense in the league this season.

Pittsburgh has already combined to hit more home runs this year (125) than they did all last season (117). The Pirates rank first in MLB in batting average (.263) and hits (886), second in OBP (.342) and OPS (.768) and third in slugging percentage (.426).

The kicker? The Pirates haven’t had a full-strength lineup for most of the year. A trio of reinforcements could all return to the field by the end of the month in center fielder Oneil Cruz, first baseman Spencer Horwitz and catcher Endy Rodríguez. Rookie shortstop Konnor Griffin should be back in September.

How’s this lineup look?

1. Horwitz 1B
2. Lowe 2B
3. Reynolds LF
4. O’Hearn DH
5. Valdez RF
6. Cruz CF
7. Griffin SS
8. Rodríguez C
9. Gonzales 3B

The 1-2 punch of Paul Skenes and Braxton Ashcraft is strong, but there are questions surrounding both All-Stars heading into the second half.

Skenes is still pitching at a high level, but he hasn’t been as effective or efficient as he had been during his historic first two seasons in the big leagues. Can the reigning Cy Young winner return to that level and make the Pirates’ rotation even stronger?

As or Ashcraft, the right-hander has been excellent this season and arguably the top starter on the team. But he’s already at 113.1 innings, which is tied for seventh in MLB and leaves him fewer than five innings shy of last year’s total between time spent in the minors and majors.

The Pirates might have to get creative in how the handle Ashcraft’s workload. It will be tough to skip starts and/or limit innings considering how good he’s been and the position the Pirates are in.

Had it not been for a shaky bullpen in the first half, the Pirates could very well be in control of a wild card spot as they start the second half.

Pittsburgh’s relievers rank 23rd in MLB and 12th out of 15 National League teams with a 4.48 ERA. They’ve also managed to blow an alarming 17 saves in 36 opportunities.

Can the Pirates’ bullpen get better in the second half? Or will it continue to hinder this team’s efforts to contend for a playoff spot down the stretch?

Either way, the bullpen is an area the Pirates will be trying desperately to upgrade, which brings up the next point.

The Pirates aren’t often in position to buy at the trade deadline, but baring an epic collapse out of the gate in the second half, they will be adding leading up to the Aug. 3 deadline.

Pittsburgh is in the hunt for at least two relievers, even after swinging a trade with the White Sox for left-hander Brandon Eisert (and infielder Jacob Gonzalez) last weekend.

The good news for the Pirates is that relievers are usually the most cost-effective additions a team can make, and there should be plenty of bullpen arms available. The bad news is that there will be competition as every contender is looking for bullpen help this time of year.

Bullpen is the biggest need for the Pirates, and while they look set on the position-player side of things, don’t be surprised if general manager Ben Cherington also considers adding some rotation depth.

The Pirates haven’t been serious contenders entering the second half of a season in quite some time. They have most of the ingredients of a team capable of earning a playoff spot but will need to bolster the roster if they want to return to the postseason for the first time in 11 years.

But enjoy the race, Pirates fans. Enjoy the stresses of scoreboard watching and checking the standings on a daily basis. That doesn’t happen too much around these parts, but you have a team this season that’s capable of bringing you so much joy or breaking your heart when the dust settles on the regular season. That’s what makes being a fan fun.

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