The Pittsburgh Pirates are heading into their final weekend at PNC Park with their rotation lined up for a three-game set against the Kansas City Royals, and the club is hoping its arms can help keep the playoff chase breathing a little longer.
Pittsburgh opens the series Sept. 18 with Paul Skenes on the mound, follows with Bubba Chandler on Sept. 19, and lists the Sept. 20 finale as “TBA.” Kansas City counters with Randy Dobnak in the opener, Noah Cameron against Chandler, and Michael Wacha in the series finale.
For Skenes, this start comes after a season that has fallen well short of his 2025 National League Cy Young Award campaign. He enters with a 10-11 record in 30 starts, a 3.78 ERA across 162.0 innings, 185 strikeouts against 46 walks, a .229 batting average allowed and a 1.13 WHIP.
Still, the right-hander has been trending the right way lately. Over his last four starts, Skenes owns a 2.74 ERA, and his most recent outing was another step forward. After allowing two early solo home runs, he settled in and went seven innings against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field on Sept. 12, giving up just four hits and a walk.
That wasn’t an isolated bright spot. Skenes also worked six scoreless innings against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park on Aug. 25 and 5.1 scoreless innings against the Los Angeles Angels at PNC Park on Sept.
- The common thread has been better control, less hard contact and quicker outs, which has allowed him to work deeper into games.
He has only two starts left in 2026, so a strong showing against Kansas City would fit the way he has closed this season.
Chandler, meanwhile, is in the thick of his rookie year and has already learned how much tougher the major leagues can be. He is set for his 29th start and 30th game in 2026, carrying an 8-9 record, a 4.28 ERA over 147.1 innings, 132 strikeouts, 75 walks, a .226 batting average allowed and a 1.35 WHIP.
His second half has been a clear step up. In 10 starts, Chandler is 5-1 with a 3.40 ERA over 53.0 innings, along with 47 strikeouts, 20 walks, a .219 batting average allowed and a 1.17 WHIP.
He comes into this one after back-to-back starts in Chicago. On Sept. 8 at Rate Field, he struck out eight over six innings against the White Sox.
Then on Sept. 13 against the Cubs, he allowed three runs over 5.1 innings. The four walks in that game weren’t ideal, but he also escaped some difficult situations, and his progress since the All-Star break has been obvious.
The Pirates’ final game of the series is expected to be a bullpen day because of season-ending injuries to Braxton Ashcraft and Mitch Keller. Right-hander Lake Bachar is the likely option to start that game unless Pittsburgh needs him earlier in the series.
Bachar has been used as a spot starter often lately, starting in each of his last four games and in six of his past eight outings. The Pirates have gotten strong results in that role, with Bachar allowing just three earned runs over 13.1 innings for a 2.03 ERA.
Brandon Eisert has also been part of that setup, working behind Bachar in his last two starts and throwing 4.2 scoreless innings in those appearances.
If Skenes and Chandler can work deep enough to take some pressure off the bullpen, Pittsburgh should have the relief help needed for a weekend that figures to demand plenty from its pitching staff.
In Other News...
Pirates Just Took Away Nuttings Easiest Offseason Excuse
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Don Kelly and several players framed it as evidence that Pittsburgh can compete with the divisions standard-bearer, even if the bigger picture is still a work in progress. The Brewers consistency is what made the matchup matter, and the Pirates ability to hang with them across the season gives the front office and clubhouse something real to point to. It also leaves an obvious next question hanging over the final stretch of development: how often can this team turn those kind of comparisons into something more lasting? [Read more 🡒]
Pirates Make Desperate Lineup Bet To Avoid Brewers Sweep
The Pirates are trying something different in Sundays series finale at PNC Park, reshuffling their lineup in hopes of finding a better answer for Brewers left-hander Kyle Harrison. Harrison has given Pittsburgh problems in earlier matchups this season, and the club responded by keeping left-handed hitter Oneil Cruz and switch-hitter Bryan Reynolds in the mix while also moving Nick Gonzales into the designated hitter spot.
It is the kind of lineup bet teams make when a series is slipping away and the opposing starter already has the upper hand. Pittsburgh has leaned on platoon thinking and a few personnel tweaks to give itself a better look against Harrison, with the goal of avoiding a sweep and getting something going before the day is over. [Read more 🡒]