Turning a Corner? Bryan Reynolds Returning to Form After Subpar First Half
PITTSBURGH — Bryan Reynolds has been the model of consistency for most of his career with the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Outside of the pandemic-shortened 2020 season Reynolds has been the team’s best – and most consistent – hitter.
Entering the 2025 season, Reynolds owned a .276/.352/.470 batting line with 157 doubles, 26 triples, 122 home runs and 411 RBI across 794 games. He was twice named an All-Star, finished 11th in the MVP race in 2021 and fourth in the Rookie of the Year voting in 2019.
It’s why his season struggles were so hard to believe, but the normally-reliable Reynolds might finally be turning a corner.
“Bryan, he’s been so consistent for us over the years. He’s a pro,” manager Don Kelly said. “He goes after it every day, has had his ups and downs but he continues to work, continues to get after it and he’s starting to see success for that. I just want him to continue to work through it and continue to be the player he knows he can be and not put pressure on himself to be that and carry the load, just find a way to be consistent and be himself every single day.”
Reynolds entered Friday night’s game against the Cincinnati Reds with a .239/.298/.392 batting line, though better play in recent weeks has upped those numbers. In 17 games since the All-Star break, Reynolds was batting at a .294 clip entering Friday.
And on Friday night, Reynolds served as the hero.
The Pirates entered the eighth inning down 2-1 to the Reds, but after an Isiah Kiner-Falefa walk and a Tommy Pham single, Reynolds delivered with a two-run triple down the first base line off Tony Santillan. Dennis Santana preserved the 3-2 win with a spotless ninth inning.
“It feels good,” Reynolds said. “Feels good to come through tonight in that situation.”
Reynolds now has four multi-hit performances over his last eight games played. He’s batting .346 this month and is starting to once again look like the player the Pirates are used to seeing.
“Yeah, he’s been swinging the bat really well…It looks freer,” said Kelly. “He looks like he’s loose, fluid and seeing the ball well and squaring it up.”
It’s no coincidence that Reynolds’ struggles this season have coincided with the Pirates being at or near the bottom in most offensive categories. The Pirates have scored the fewest runs in baseball, have hit the fewest home runs and have the lowest OPS among the 30 teams.
Despite only scoring three runs in the win on Friday, the offense has been better of late. Only the Toronto Blue Jays and Milwaukee Brewers (56 runs each) have scored more runs than the Pirates’ 48 this month.
The better month from the Pirates’ offense has come as its anchor has started to heat up.
“He’s putting in a ton of work, man,” said Kelly. “Just the way that he gets after it, the early work he had the other day was electric – just the barrel, the fluidity, the whip was back. It’s hard when you’re going through that and you’re grinding and trying to figure things out, this game is hard. That’s the one thing I can say for Bryan and all these guys, they continue to battle every day, continue to grind and put the work in and we’re starting to see some fruits of that during the games.”
Given his track record, the confidence in Reynolds remains high. Mitch Keller, who started for the Pirates in Friday’s win, expects a strong finish from the two-time All-Star.
“Everyone knows he’s just one swing away from being the best hitter in baseball. We all have the confidence in him to do that,” Keller explained. “He had a really good night tonight. Very happy for him. Got no doubt in my mind that it’s gonna continue the rest of the year and for many more years to come.”
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