The Pirates Missed the Playoffs. The Worst Part? It Was Preventable

The Pirates entered 2026 with a clearly stated goal: make the playoffs. Now they are officially eliminated, and Alex Stumpf looks at why this season feels like such a missed opportunity. From the Marcell Ozuna signing and a bullpen that went too long without help to the handling of Carmen Mlodzinski and the Jacob Gonzalez/Brandon Eisert trade, many of the mistakes that hurt Pittsburgh were preventable. The Pirates had enough talent to stay in the race. They simply did not do enough with it. OffBeat is presented by FanDuel. Try Larine pouches and save up to 50%: https://buylarine.com/northshore Read Alex Stumpf’s Book-Rule Bucs: https://bookrulebucs.substack.com/ Download the NS9 app: https://northshorenine.com/get-app #PittsburghPirates #Pirates #MLB Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.