Pirates Gold Glover Staking His Claim for 2026

A poor performance at the plate necessitated that trip to Indianapolis on July 11. At that time, Triolo was hitting .158/.253/.266 in 55 games. He had seen much of his action as the right-handed half of a platoon at first base, where offense is paramount. At Indy, he hit .239/.397/.413 in 15 games. Somehow, that was enough to earn him a promotion back to the big leagues on August 1, after an infield spot opened up due to the trade of third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes to the Cincinnati Reds.

Pirates Infielder Jared Triolo Staking His Claim for 2026

Since his recall, Triolo, 27, is hitting .333/.422/.514 entering Tuesday’s schedule while playing regularly at shortstop or third base. Sometimes, he’s played third base alongside regular shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa. Most times, Triolo has played shortstop with “IKF” at third base. If you’re wondering what sense that makes, don’t. It’s clear that, once again, the Pirates are using August and September to conduct a tryout camp for next season.

In any event, it’s his sudden burst of offense that’s drawing the most attention to Triolo. He’s enticed the Pirates before with late-season offense. In 2023, he hit .350/.458/.567 in September and October. That all but guaranteed Triolo a place on the active roster when the Pirates broke camp in 2024. Unfortunately, by May 7, the combination of a .216/.303/.259 slash line and the return of Nick Gonzales from Indianapolis forced Triolo back into a Swiss Army knife role. Triolo’s offense continued to suffer. Finally, from September 11 to the end of the season, he hit a more palatable .268/.303/.366.

Is Triolo once again convincing the Pirates with a strong late-season performance, only to see him slump when the next season starts? There’s a song by the Who called “Won’t Get Fooled Again.” However, Pirates general manager Ben Cherington might be unfamiliar with that concept, as he happens to be one of the few people in the world who has never been a touring member of the Who during their many farewell tours since the deaths of Keith Moon and John Entwistle. Furthermore, unless this season is Cherington’s farewell tour as Pirates GM, it looks like shortstop belongs to Triolo in 2026. Make no mistake, this is Cherington’s call. Like all major league managers, Don Kelly is simply executing the front office’s game plan.

The People’s Choice

Pirates fans would love to see the 24-year-old Liover Peguero get a shot at the shortstop position. Peguero was acquired in Cherington’s first trade as Pirates GM back in January 2020. The supposed shortstop of the future hasn’t gotten much of a look since appearing in 59 games in 2023. In those games, he hit just .237/.280/.374 but showed surprising pop with seven home runs. This season at Indy, he was moved around the infield and outfield while being groomed for a utility role. Since joining the Pirates on July 18 after the Adam Frazier trade opened up a spot for him, Peguero has seen action in the middle infield while assuming Triolo’s former job as the right-handed half of a platoon at first base.

Peguero is hitting a woeful .206/.275/.413 with the Pirates this season, but the power is back. He has four home runs since his recall, including three on August 2 in a losing effort at Colorado.

The Last Word

Stubbornness is a quality found in many successful people. Cherington certainly has it, although he has yet to have any success since he joined the Pirates. He’s shown remarkable patience with struggling players whom the fans wanted sent to Siberia. Some, like David Bednar and Tommy Pham, have rewarded him. Others, like Colin Holderman and Jack Suwinski, have not. Henry Davis is in a gray area. His offense hasn’t lived up to the hype of being the first overall draft pick of 2021, but his defense has exceeded expectations so far.

As for the roles Triolo and Peguero play for the Pirates in 2026, it’s been etched in stone by Cherington. Triolo will be a regular in the infield in 2026. It seems that he’ll be the shortstop, but he may also be at third base. Peguero will be a backup all over the infield and outfield.

This is all subject to change if Cherington isn’t back in 2026. That, as we say in Pittsburgh, is “a whole ‘nother story.” For now, I’ll tell the story that’s in front of me. But we may find that what we thought was etched in stone was merely molded in clay.