Pirates Hire Pitching Coach Brent Strom

The Pittsburgh Pirates hired Brent Strom to be their assistant pitching coach, as reported by Noah Hiles of the Post-Gazette. Strom is a highly regarded pitching coach, who has spent time with Houston and Arizona over the last decade.

The surprising part of the move is that Strom was hired to be an assistant pitching coach to Oscar Marin. The starting rotation was the most successful part of the 2024 Pirates. The bullpen struggled, especially during the ten game losing streak in late July and early August that sunk the season. The Pirates fired bullpen coach Justin Meccage, but Strom is not replacing that role.

Instead, the Pirates will still look for a bullpen coach, while having two…