The Pirates are running it back with Ben Cherington as GM, but don’t worry, Travis Williams told the media yesterday that they are building a playoff team for 2026. Period – full stop. The front office is making claims of ‘momentum’ going into next season. How? The Pirates have a good, young pitching staff – that is a fact. The offense was historically bad and it is the 6th year of a regime. Derek Shelton was the scapegoat, even though he was not good in his role, he was part of the issue.

Some calls on the Pirates following the 2025 season with plans to bring back the same GM they’ve seen fail for the last 6 years.

Pirates pre-post game host Dan Zangrilli joined the show. Dan said the benefit of the doubt has not been earned by the Pirates. Dan senses that the lockout in 2027 is a real thing that could bring big change to baseball. Dan defended the Pirates keeping the front office together because it could be tough to put someone in a one-year window with a lockout looming. Dan thinks 2026 is ‘it’ for the entire front office, outside of the owner. Dan expects the Pirates to be more aggressive and spend more money. Do the Pirates have a ‘young core’ of hitters? Dan believes we will see some coaching staff changes in the coming days/weeks.