This early-offseason window has quietly created one of the clearest competitive openings the Pittsburgh Pirates have seen in years — a rare moment where their rivals’ instability and self-inflicted uncertainty could align perfectly with their own emerging foundation.
Each of the Pirates’ division rivals is dealing with serious turbulence. The Cubs have temporarily lost their best starter by declining their mutual option with Shota Imanaga, signaling that they may be retooling their rotation. Unless they make an aggressive splash, that’s a step back in pitching reliability – which happens to be the area where Pittsburgh has quietly grown the most.