When the Pirates fired Oscar Marin, it was really difficult to envision what the plan was at pitching coach. Marin had done an excellent job with Pittsburgh's staff, leading and coaching up one of the best starting rotations in all of baseball. But, according to offseason rumors and exit interviews, the pitchers themselves believed they could be better, all but requesting a coaching change.
Earlier this week, it was reported that the Pirates had found their man, hiring Bill Murphy to become the new pitching coach in Pittsburgh. Right off first glance, it appears to be a really strong upgrade, as his staff in Houston has consistently been great every year since he joined the club in 2021 as an assistant and became the main coach in 2022, accounting for 91.