Weekly Report: Bucs Win 82, Shufflin' Arms To The End, K Records Met & Set, Oneil 20/30, B-Rey - 162 Gamer, Jared Big Finish, Kirby Retires

Say goodnight, Gracie…

Pirates Stuff:

• The Pirates reinstated RHP Kirby Yates off the 15-day IL; RHP Camilo Doval was DFA’ed (0-1/3.79). Doval had the tools, striking out 10.9/nine innings but also walking 6.6 per game. He was expected to be non-tendered with a $7M+ arb salary due next year. It worked out for him; he was claimed by the Giants, a former team of his that he closed for (107 saves/2021-25) and had an All-Star season for in 2023. A couple of days later, the Bucs called LHP Evan Sisk up after the Indy year was done and optioned RHP Khristian Curtis to the FCL Rookie club (the minor-league season is done). RHP Wilber Dotel met the same fate; he was optioned to Florida on Saturday (he pitched Friday) and was replaced by LHP Hunter Barco. Sisk was returned to the minors on Sunday after pitching and RHP Noah Murdock was called up.
• In Ben Cherington’s weekend presser, he seemed confident of returning, noting that his discussions with Bob Nutting all focused on 2027 moves, and he gave Don Kelly a pretty strong vote of confidence.

His full first year is in the books – photo 2026/Pirates

• The local BBWAA chapter picked their 2026 Pirates award winners: Brandon Lowe won the Roberto Clemente Award (Team MVP), Braxton Ashcraft won the Steve Blass Award (Team Cy Young) and Jake Mangum won the Chuck Tanner Award (Media Good Guy).
• When Lake Bachar fanned the Card’s Alec Burleson in the first inning of Wednesday’s game, the 2026 Pirates set a franchise season record of 1,444 strikeouts, breaking the 2019 mark. 
• Speaking of Ks, Paul Skenes became the first Pirates pitcher to post consecutive 200+ K seasons since Bob Veale did it three times, from 1964-1966. Out of the pen, Yohan Ramírez (66 appearances/102 strikeouts) and Mason Montgomery (70/105) joined Rich “Goose” Gossage (72/151-1977), Enrique Romo (84/106-1979) & Joel Hanrahan (72/100-2010) as the only Pirates relievers since 1901 with 65 outings/100 strikeouts in a year.
• Oneil Cruz repeated as a member of the 20/30 club with a swipe against the Tigers on Friday. He joins Andy Van Slyke in going 20/30 in consecutive years and trails Barry Bonds, who went 20/30 from 1990-92. In a little worse news, he left Saturday’s game after banging his knee after taking a divot in the outfield turf in Detroit. The Bucs checked it out, called it a contusion and sat him down Sunday for safety’s sake to end his season.

Bryan Reynolds – 2026 image/SportsNet Pittsburgh

• Bryan Reynolds became the first Bucco to have a 40-double season since Nate McLouth back in 2008. B-Rey is also the first switch-hitter since Bobby Bonilla in 1991 to have a 40-double season. Oh, and the first Bucco to appear in all 162 games (his previous high was 159 outings in 2021) since Jason Bay in 2005.
• Another wait til next year post: Will Leitch of MLB.com picked six teams that could make some noise next year; the Buccos are one of them.
• Indy 1B/DH Nick Cimillo and LHP Connor Wietgrefe were named the International League Player and Pitcher of the Week, a day after Ronny Simon won the IL batting crown and RHP Beau Burrows posted the most saves. Last week, Nick hit .381 with four doubles, two home runs, 13 RBI & seven runs while Connor spun six hitless shutout frames w/seven K, Ronny hit .334 over the campaign and Beau’s line was 7-4-14/3.55 w/62 K in 66 IP.
• 3B Murf Gray was named as the Pirates 2026 Minor League Player of the Year by Baseball America. Murf, 22, went from Bradenton to Greensboro to Altoona this year and slashed .305 BA /32 HR /97 RBI /100 runs.

Game Stuff:

• Man, Jared Jones – seven frames, no runs, one hit (a bloop), no walks, nine K… He left two innings and a 2-0 lead to the pen (the Bucs scored on a Ryan O’Hearn rap and a wild pitch), and that’s how it ended.
• Brandon Lowe’s bomb put the Bucs up early, but the bats stopped there and the Pirates lost the bullpen game 5-1. 
• Paul Skenes got the home finale on Thursday afternoon. He went into the seventh with a three-hit, eight K (200 Ks back-to-back, congrats) and one run effort – and yah, it was 1-1, the usual Skenes support. But the pen & Ronny Simon/Spence Horowitz came through and the Pirates took PNC’s ’26 closer 2-1. Mason Montgomery struck out the side for the save to post whiff #100 on the year. The Pirates won their 81st game, snapping a streak of seven consecutive losing seasons.

Paul Skenes – 2026 Pirates

• The Pirates reverted to their Klown Kar act by misplaying balls all night with seven walks added in, and Motown said “thank you kindly” as they held off the late-charging Bucs by an 8-7 count. Rafe Flores led the not-quite-enough comeback with a three-run dinger.
• A couple of contrasting vets: Kirby Yates got his first MLB start after 715 relief appearances against Justin Verlander, who is making his 556th (and final) outing, all as a starter in the last contest for both twirlers as Kirby announced his retirement after the game and JV’s retirement ceremony was held pre-game (he’s still not 100% committed to a pension). Yates left a scoreless game in the second to the crowd’s applause; good on the Tiger fans. The Pirates took a 3-1 lead into the ninth behind Brandon Lowe and Jacob Gonzalez homers and were a strike away from a dub, but it wasn’t to be. Mason Montgomery, who hadn’t given up an earned run since 7/26, was touched up for a three-spot and walkoff dinger to lose 4-3.
• Good start to the finale; Konnor Griffin led off with a homer. Jared Jones kept on keepin’ on, going four frames of scoreless, one-hit, five-K ball and leaving with a 4-0 lead. The Tigers cut it to 4-2, but Lake Bachar and Mason Montgomery shut it down after that to salvage a winning campaign for the Bucs, the first since 2018.

MLB Stuff:

And the playoffs are set; Milwaukee and Tampa Bay are the #1 seeds.