Pirates Takeaways: Bucs End Year On Right Note, Look Towards Future (+)
PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates’ 2022 season was another rough one.
The club finished with a 62-100 record, making it two straight years with 100+ losses. That’s the first time that’s happened since 1953-54.
Despite the struggles, the Pirates ended the year on a good note with a 5-3 comeback win over the National League Central champion St. Louis Cardinals.
“We played well. We came back we were down. We played well this entire series so I’m proud of how our guys finished,” manager Derek Shelton said.
In all, the Bucs went 7-4 over their final 11 games.
A big reason for the strong finish was the contributions of a handful of young players.
The Pirates have been looking towards the future for years, but for the first time in a while, the future is starting to become the present.
“I think we’re in good shape,” Shelton said. “From, let’s look at Aug. 1 on with this group of young kids with the way they’re playing and how they’re doing it, it says that we put a process in place and it’s really starting to show.
The emergence this season from the younger core has caught the attention of more than just Shelton and the coaching staff.
“Just seeing the glimpses of what it’s going to look like when everything is put together and it’s going to be awesome and exciting to watch,” starter JT Brubaker said on the state of the Bucs moving forward.
Heading into the offseason, there seems to be more optimism following this 100-loss season as they head into next season.
Andújar Passes Test
Even though he has only been with Pittsburgh for a handful of games, Miguel Andújar has had a big impact at the plate for the Pirates.
A day after becoming just the seventh Pirate with nine or more RBIs in his first eight games with the club, Andújar had turned in his first three-hit performance since 2021.
The 27-year-old tripled, singled twice and scored a run for the Bucs.
“My focus is everyday to do my job and help my team to win,” Andújar said. “That’s the goal for me.”
After the Bucs claimed Andújar off waivers from the New York Yankees last month, he was immediately penciled into the heart of the Pirates’ lineup.
It’s not a coincidence that the Pirates performed better as a club in games Andújar played, finishing 6-3 in his nine games played with the team.
“He’s swung the bat extremely well,” Shelton said on his first stint with the Pirates. “It’s not just a guy who’s up there free swinging, controlling the zone, really positive.”
Andújar figures to play a significant role with the club next year.
Oviedo Has Upside As Starter
When the Pirates acquired Johan Oviedo from the Cardinals at the trade deadline, he had been working out out of the Redbirds’ bullpen.
From the beginning, the Bucs were adamant about getting Oviedo work as a starting pitcher.
After allowing three runs (two earned) against the Cardinals in the season finale, the move back to the rotation looks like it was a successful decision for the Bucs.
“Starter is all I want to be. There’s nothing more special to me than to be a starter and to give the team a chance to win,” Oviedo said.
Even though Oviedo only worked for innings, that was by design according to Shelton.
The Pirates had to like what they saw from Oviedo in his seven starts with the club. Despite some control issues early on, Oviedo finished the year with the Pirates with a 3.23 ERA and a .198 batting average against in those seven outings.
Maybe the most encouraging aspect of Oviedo’s final start of the year? No walks.
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