The Pirates may have enjoyed a breakout season from Brandon Lowe, but the finish line is starting to come into view.
Lowe is set to hit free agency after this season, and Jason Mackey of Pirates.com said Pittsburgh has not opened extension talks with the veteran second baseman. Mackey also expects Lowe to walk and land elsewhere for 2027 and beyond.
“Correct. Yeah, it’s about that.
I think he’s going to be one-and-done," Mackey said. "I do.
It’s unfortunate, but he’s earned the right to go to free agency, and he’s gonna be out there peddling, what, 34 home runs, maybe, I’m projecting, 32, whatever it is.
"He’s gonna, by the end of this thing, have a really nice resume. Still, in the prime of his career, I think somebody’s going to pay him, even if he’s probably more toward the end than the beginning of his prime, but he’s still going to get paid well."
Lowe is playing out the final stretch of the six-year, $24 million extension he signed in 2019 and is on an $11.5 million club option for 2026, which would be his first real shot at the open market. At 32, he’ll be looking for the kind of long-term deal that pays him like one of the best second basemen in baseball.
And right now, he’s making that case loudly.
Lowe leads all MLB second basemen with 31 home runs, 268 total bases, a .486 slugging percentage and an .818 OPS. He’s also second at the position with 89 RBI, tied for fourth with 29 doubles and tied for sixth with 144 hits.
The bat has always been the headline, but this season his glove has turned into a real selling point too. Lowe has made huge defensive gains with help from Pirates infield coach Chris Truby, piling up 14 outs above average and 14 defensive runs saved. That puts him second and third among second basemen in those categories.
That’s a dramatic turnaround from his 2025 season with the Tampa Bay Rays, when he finished at -14 OAA and -14 DRS, both near the bottom of the position.
A second baseman who can mash and defend is a rare commodity, and it’s going to make Lowe one of the more appealing names on the market this winter. The Pirates, though, may not be positioned to chase that kind of deal. Mackey said Pittsburgh likely won’t be competitive with what Lowe can get elsewhere, and the organization will probably take another route to find power in 2027.
“Do I think they’re going to match what he could get on the free agent market? No. I just don’t think they’re structured in a way that’s going to be doable for them," Mackey said.
"I think they probably backpedal with Nick Gonzales and then go try to, you got to get the home runs somewhere. You’re probably going to try to get the home runs out of third base, I imagine.”
If the Pirates do go the qualifying-offer route, Lowe would be in line for a one-year deal worth $22.025 million in 2026, based on the mean of the top 125 highest-paid players in baseball. The expectation is that he would decline it, and if he signs elsewhere, Pittsburgh would receive a compensatory pick in the 2027 MLB Draft.
A deal for Lowe would likely have to start around three years and $20 million, with the free-agent price tag climbing into the $25 million to $30 million range depending on length. For now, though, the signs point toward Lowe testing the market - and the Pirates preparing for life without one of their biggest bats.
In Other News...
Pirates Final Home Weekend Comes Down To One Rotation Decision
The Pirates final home weekend at PNC Park is taking shape with a familiar mix of promise and patchwork, as Kansas City comes to town Sept. 18-20. Paul Skenes gets the opener, Bubba Chandler follows on Sept. 19, and both right-handers arrive with some recent momentum after improved outings that have given Pittsburgh at least a little lift in an otherwise difficult stretch.
The finale is where the calendar and the rotation catch up to the Pirates, who are again leaning on a bullpen game because of season-ending injuries to Braxton Ashcraft and Mitch Keller. Lake Bachar is expected to draw the start Sunday unless he is needed earlier, leaving the club with one more late-season roster puzzle to solve before its home schedule closes out. [Read more 🡒]
Pirates Playoff Hopes Are Down To Their Final Thread
The Pirates have spent most of the season trying to climb back into the race, but the margin for error has long since disappeared. With nine games left, they sit eight games out of the final National League Wild Card spot, a gap that reflects just how damaging their mid-season slump was and how hard it has been to sustain any real momentum.
Pittsburghs path is now as narrow as it gets: win out and get a lot of help from elsewhere. Even then, the club would still need the San Diego Padres to lose all of their remaining games, which is why the postseason picture has shifted from a realistic chase to a long shot. The Pirates have not been able to keep a winning record, and the math has become the clearest sign of how much ground they have left to make up. [Read more 🡒]
Pirates Running Out Of Time To Lock Up Oneil Cruz
Oneil Cruz has given the Pirates a much better offensive version of himself in 2026, and it has come at a time when the club could really use a long-term answer in the middle of the lineup. After coming back from a hand injury, Cruz has kept producing, and the most notable step forward has been his work against left-handed pitching, where both his slugging percentage and OPS have climbed from a year ago. For a Pittsburgh offense that has leaned on him more and more, the development matters beyond the box score because it changes how the team can think about its future.
Cruzs progress also makes the contract conversation harder, not easier. A player who is showing more power, more consistency and a better overall offensive profile is naturally going to cost more, and that puts the Pirates in a familiar bind as they try to sort out how aggressive they can be on an extension. The timing is awkward, because the better he looks at the plate, the less likely he is to come cheaply, and that is the kind of leverage a rebuilding club would rather have on its side than against it. [Read more 🡒]