Pirates Remain Confident for 2027, Despite Playoff Elimination

The Pirates rookie has been incredible to watch with his blistering speed, fantastic glove work and defensive play, as well as a strong bat that hits with ease and developing power.

Griffin has missed a great deal of time through injury, as a right elbow strain knocked him out for 22 games from May 31 to June 26, and then a left ring finger sagittal band injury kept him out for two months from July 7 to Sept. 4.

Pittsburgh missed Griffin's production during that time, who has hit .271/.325/.393 for an OPS of .718 in 72 games, with 76 hits, 13 doubles, three triples, five home runs, 31 RBI and 22 stolen bases.

The 20-year-old, the future face of the Pirates, wants to see his team end the season the best way they can.

"Obviously, the goal was to try to finish strong and make the playoffs, but with the position we're in we want to set the tone," Griffin said. "We want to come out and win every game. I don't think anybody's gonna give up. We're gonna keep fighting and see what happens."

Griffin will be with the Pirates through the 2034 season, and his success, along with some other important pieces, could eventually end the 11-year postseason drought in the future.

He sees the importance of a strong finish, as he has 2027 and beyond on his mind.

"I feel like the way we finish this year could take us into next year with good momentum," Griffin said. "But like I said, we're still trying to make the playoffs. That's the goal. We're still in the fight. Until they say we can't make it, we're gonna keep trying to win every game. But it will help going into next year, finishing strong here."

Spencer Horwitz Sees Growth From 2025 to 2026

One player who had big hopes for 2026 was Pirates first baseman Spencer Horwitz, who was coming off a strong 2025 campaign.

Horwitz underwent right wrist surgery, which knocked him out until mid-May 2025, but ended up as the Pirates best hitter in a difficult 71-91 campaign.

The 2026 season started great for Horwitz, batting .280/.386/.455 for an OPS of .841 in the first half before suffering a left hamstring injury, that kept him out from June 25 to Aug. 2, missing 32 games.

Horwitz has struggled massively since returning, slashing .182/.261/.190 for an OPS of .451, with no home runs and 22 hits in 121 at-bats, with his lack of production a big letdown for the Pirates lineup that needed it.

He remains optimistic, despite the struggles, as he sees the improvement from last year to this year for this Pirates team and that they'll have almost all of their best players back for 2027.

"We've had a strong '26 I'd say," Horwitz said. "The wins and losses weren't always there, but for comparing from what I've seen in the past year, from last year to this year, it's tenfold. There's a lot better baseball being played, a lot better players, and a lot more desire to win. You can feel it in here, and that's why it hurts so much to lose, just because this team is very good."

Horwitz has grown over the past year and the Pirates can still finish with a winning record, which would be their first since 2018.

There's accountability for everyone in the Pirates clubhouse, but the improvements are something that Horwitz will focus on and try to help the team realize that potential next year.

"I think it's just playing good baseball," Horwitz said. "We had high expectations and high hopes for ourselves this year, and we've fallen short of that. And we've got to be better in every aspect of the game. But I think we also learned a lot and [have] shown that we have gotten better. Yeah, we're going to keep learning, just keep pushing, and just one game at a time. Just keep growing and becoming the best versions of ourselves that we can be. 

Paul Skenes and Don Kelly Expecting Same Fight

The Pirates can only wonder what would've been had starting pitcher Paul Skenes performed how he did his first two seasons.

The 2024 NL Rookie of the Year and 2025 NL Cy Young hasn't been near his best in 2026, working through a multitude of issues that stopped him from another great campaign.

Skenes has a 10-11 record and a 3.91 ERA, nearly twice that of the sub-2.00 ERA he posted in his first two seasons.

The Pirates' ace is still the clubhouse leader, and despite his own personal struggles, he expects everyone to give it their all over the last week of games.

"There's nothing else to do," Skenes said. "We've got, what, eight games left. Can't just not show up anymore. It's not in the character of this team to quit. You saw that today. So we're going to keep fighting, whatever, I mean, we can't control that. There were probably postseasons where a .500 team makes the playoffs. This is not going to be one of them. So all we can do is just keep fighting and keep playing every day."

Pirates manager Don Kelly, just like his players, had postseason ambitions and will also be disappointed with how the season's gone.

Pittsburgh was in the NL Wild Card race for most of the season, until a collapse through late July-mid August, 7-16 with seven straight series defeats, doomed them.

Kelly praised his team for their fight this season and expects much of the same through the end.

"That’s the expectation — to go out there and give that same effort every night," Kelly said. "It’s what we’ve done all year. We still have a lot to play for. Going out there every night, it’s still the same mindset of, ‘Win that game. Win the game that day.’ Guys have done a really good job focusing on that, continuing to grind through it. Regardless of what happened the night before, they show up and compete really well."