The Clock Is Now Ticking on the Pirates’ Current Core

The 2026 season for the Pittsburgh Pirates was full of extreme highs and lows. At times, the Pirates looked like a glimmering contender that was capable of sticking with the best in the National League, but for every one exciting win, it seemed like the Pirates experienced multiple soul-crushing losses that put them right back at square one.

This emotional rollercoaster eventually became about the bigger picture: seeing the young Bucs perform and grow in the big leagues. From rookie stars like Konnor Griffin and Esmerlyn Valdez punching well above their weight to pitchers like Bubba Chandler coming into his own near the end of the season, this year served as a sign of what the near future could look like for the new-look Pirates.

When the season came to a close in Detroit, though, the picture shifted from focusing on the young pieces experiencing growth in the big leagues and what the next steps could look like to actually preparing to make moves that could alter the future of this squad.

This offseason features big decisions for the club, such as the Brandon Lowe free-agent decision, and this process grows even more complicated when you remember one important detail: The arbitration clock is officially ticking on multiple players, including none other than former Cy Young winner Paul Skenes.

This offseason, the Pirates are going to have 10 players on their roster eligible for arbitration, and there are multiple impact players in this group outside of Skenes. For example, Oneil Cruz, Jared Jones, Nick Gonzales, Spencer Horwitz, and multiple other key players are arbitration-eligible, which adds some real obstacles to this next chapter of Pirates baseball.

Let’s face it, for small market teams like the Pittsburgh Pirates, the second this arbitration clock starts ticking is the second the pressure to compete begins to fully sink in. The talent of this crop is undeniable, and it will only grow as time progresses and more players become arbitration-eligible.

The clock is ticking on this young core, and it’s time for the Pirates to build a contender in Pittsburgh before they miss a golden opportunity to return to the promised land.

The Impact of Arbitration on This Group

As mentioned above, the Pirates are going to see 10 players reach arbitration eligibility this offseason, and the financial impact is going to be pretty significant. The quality of the players in this group is hard to ignore, and unlike in many offseasons, it’s hard to justify cutting ties and non-tendering any of these 10 players.

The 10 players who will be arbitration-eligible this winter include: Skenes, Jones, Cruz, Gonzales, Horwitz, Yohan Ramirez, Endy Rodriguez, Henry Davis, Carmen Mlodzinski, and Jared Triolo. This group combined to total over 17 fWAR in 2026, which just goes to show how impactful they were.

Of these 10 players, only two of them aren’t in their first year of arbitration. Ramirez and Cruz are both set to receive raises this year, according to our projections, and hefty ones at that.

Cruz is expected to receive a raise of $2.5 million, which on its own is more than all but six players (excluding Cruz) on the roster made in 2026, according to Spotrac. If this estimate becomes a reality, he will become one of the highest-paid players on their 26-man roster.

Ramirez is expected to receive a raise of nearly $700k, which is almost double what he made this season. Granted, Ramirez was one of the more stable arms in the Pirates’ bullpen for most of the season, as he posted a 2.86 ERA through 85 innings, making him well worth this raise.

While these pay increases are notable, where things become truly eye-opening is in the estimated first-year arbitration totals.

For example, Skenes is expected to debut with an arbitration number of $7 million, which is a huge step up from his salary of $1.095 million in 2026. This is a number that will only keep climbing over the next few years, presumably eventually approaching Tarik Skubal’s record-setting $32 million arbitration victory prior to this season in due time.

While Skenes’ salary is the highest projected arbitration value here by a long shot, four other players are expected to debut with figures over $2 million, which will only keep climbing over the next few years. These contracts will get expensive, and quite frankly unaffordable very quickly, and the team needs to act fast to keep up with this core.

In total, this group is projected to receive just shy of $30 million through the arbitration process, which is about one-fourth of their entire payroll this past season alone. Again, for most of these players, this is their first time hitting arbitration, which means that these numbers are only going to keep growing year after year.

For a small market club like the Pirates, it’s quite difficult to take these yearly, steep increases in salary, which is why playoff windows close so quickly for teams of this nature. The Pirates will need to act quickly to keep up with this core before it’s too late, as the impact could be a huge missed opportunity.

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What Should Be the Next Steps?

After seeing how drastic an impact the ticking clock could have on this era of Pirates baseball, we’re left wondering: Where do the Pirates go from here? The answer is simple. They need to act aggressively and pursue real roster upgrades that could bring this club closer to reaching October, as the clock is ticking much faster than it seems.

This begins with the Pirates re-signing Brandon Lowe, which should be the top priority this winter. Lowe is coming off arguably the greatest second base season in franchise history and one of the best offensive seasons in recent Pirates memory, and his production would be nearly impossible to replace in this winter’s free agent market, as it’s quite weak.

Lowe slugged a position-leading 35 home runs in 2026, driving in 96 runs with a 121 wRC+ and a 4.9 fWAR in the process. His impact on the club both on and off the field cannot be overstated, and retaining him is an absolute must if the Pirates wish to continue with this current young core they’ve put together.

However, keeping Lowe in Pittsburgh shouldn’t be their only priority this winter, as real upgrades have to be made as well. While this winter features a notoriously weak crop of free agents and the challenges of an impending lockout, useful moves can be made, and the Pirates don’t have to break the bank to pull this off, either.

Assuming the club retains Lowe, the second highest priority this winter should be their bullpen, which arguably cost the Pirates a playoff berth if you account for their continuous struggles all season long. Luckily for the Pirates, the emergence of Mason Montgomery has shored up their closer situation, which makes this group a lot easier to refine.

Mid-tier relievers are always easy to come by on the free agent market, regardless of the quality of the class. Arms like JoJo Romero, A.J. Minter, Ryan Helsley, or others could be intriguing candidates that shouldn’t break the bank, and the club could get crafty via trading without spending a ton as well.

A reunion with Gregory Soto also makes a lot of sense, as he was a valuable innings eater and occasional higher-leverage arm for the club this season. His 3.63 ERA paired with solid strikeout numbers made him a trusted weapon for Don Kelly, one the Pirates likely wouldn’t want to lose.

On top of that, it would be wise for them to explore some right-handed power bats. Aside from their bullpen’s struggles in 2026, the club also really struggled to hit left-handed pitching (92 wRC+), and their left-handed-heavy approach is partially to blame.

Again, while the free agent market could be tough to make a splash in, the trade market is not. The perfect fit to increase their production against left-handers and assist them in the power department without breaking the bank could be Rangers third baseman Josh Jung.

He’s only expected to receive just under $6 million in arbitration according to our estimates, and he was excellent this season. Posting a 136 wRC+ with 12 homers in 104 games this season, he could be an intriguing candidate for this club. The fit becomes even more perfect when you see that he’s a lefty-killer, as Jung posted a 185 wRC+ against lefties in 2026.

With a talented young core hitting arbitration and a pivotal offseason ahead, the time for patience in Pittsburgh has officially expired. To capitalize on a narrow window of contention, the Pirates must act decisively this winter, starting by retaining Lowe and bolstering the bullpen and right-handed depth, before the financial realities of a small-market payroll bring this promising era to a premature end.