The Pirates walk into Citizens Bank Park with a clean shot at payback, and the burden lands squarely on the rotation.
Back in mid-May, Philadelphia swept Pittsburgh at PNC Park and put 13 earned runs on the Pirates’ starters over the three-game set. Now the same club gets another crack at the Phillies in a four-game series, and three of the arms from that rough weekend will see the same opponent again. Jared Jones is lined up for the finale.
If Pittsburgh is going to gain ground in the National League Wild Card race, it starts with getting better work from the guys on the mound.
Braxton Ashcraft draws the first assignment, and he’s been one of the biggest reasons the Pirates have had any lift at all in the rotation. In his first full season as a starter, he’s 7-3 with a 10 quality starts in 16 outings. He’s coming off one of his best performances of the year, too: on June 24 against the Seattle Mariners, he shook off three straight singles to open the game, then allowed only four hits over six innings while striking out 10 in an 11-1 win.
Ashcraft’s opponent is Aaron Nola, the same pitcher he faced on May 15. That night, Ashcraft gave up four earned runs over 6.2 innings in an 11-9 loss after the Pirates’ bullpen unraveled. Pittsburgh’s offense worked Nola over then, and it will need to do that again if Ashcraft is going to turn the first game in the Pirates’ favor.
Bubba Chandler gets another crack at Philadelphia in the second game, and his season has had plenty of bumps. He owns a 4.42 ERA across 16 starts and went through a brutal stretch from April 23-June 2, when he put up an 8.70 ERA over eight outings. One of those rough nights came against the Phillies on May 16, when he lasted just three innings - the shortest start of his career - and gave up three hits, four walks and five earned runs, including a three-run homer to Bryce Harper in a 6-0 loss.
That start also paired Chandler with Cristopher Sánchez, who threw a scoreless complete game and struck out a career-high 13 Pirates. They’ll match up again on June 30, and Sánchez is right in the thick of the National League Cy Young Award conversation.
Chandler doesn’t have to win the duel, but Pittsburgh needs him to keep building on the better version of himself that has shown up lately. Over his last four starts, he has a 2.82 ERA, and over his last three, that number drops to 2.65.
Against Seattle on June 26, he allowed five hits and three walks but gave up just one earned run over 5.1 innings in a 5-1 win.
Then comes Paul Skenes, and his recent skid traces back to his start against the Phillies on May 17. He allowed five earned runs over five innings in that game, with all five crossing in the fifth and sixth innings during a 6-0 loss.
Since then, he has a 4.40 ERA over his last eight starts, and his most recent outing against the Cincinnati Reds on June 26 brought more of the same. Skenes gave up four straight hits to begin the second inning, finished with four earned runs, and never got beyond five innings in a 6-4 loss.
Across the field will be Zack Wheeler, who was competing with Skenes for the 2025 NL Cy Young Award before an injury in August ended his season. Wheeler is back this year and has gone 8-1 with a 2.03 ERA over 12 starts as he looks to chase the award again in 2026.
Skenes has already shown he can dominate at Citizens Bank Park, where he once threw eight innings of one-run ball in a complete-game effort and still took a 1-0 loss. Pittsburgh just needs more from the offense when he’s on the mound.
Jones closes the series after finally returning from internal brace surgery and a long rehab stint on May 29. The results have been uneven: a 5.76 ERA over six starts and 25.0 innings, a .270 batting average allowed and a 1.44 WHIP. His latest turn, against the Reds on June 27, produced another rough line - four runs, three earned, in 4.2 innings, his fourth start with multiple runs allowed.
He’ll face Phillies right-hander Alan Rangel, who has never started a game in his MLB career. For Jones, this is a chance to deliver the kind of outing Pittsburgh has been waiting for. For the Pirates as a whole, it’s a chance to answer that ugly sweep from May and get something back from Philadelphia.
In Other News...
Pirates Rumored Catcher Swing Could Test Everything Fans Fear About This Deadline
The catching market is suddenly one of the more intriguing places for the Pirates to look as the deadline approaches, and it is easy to understand why. Pittsburgh has been linked in speculation to names such as Luis Arraez and Willson Contreras while also weighing whether it should lean into its current group or try to add a more proven bat behind the plate, all against the backdrop of a payroll that leaves little room for mistakes.
Endy Rodriguez has given the club a reason to think twice about chasing a big swing, especially now that he is healthy again and Joey Bart is out of the picture. The question for the front office is whether it wants to spend real prospect capital to solve a need that might already have an internal answer, or whether the smarter play is to stay patient and shop on the margins instead of forcing a move that could cost too much future value. [Read more 🡒]
Ben Cherington's Bullpen Comments Won't Calm Frustrated Pirates Fans
The Pirates bullpen has been one of the early-season sore spots dragging down a club that still wants to think it can stay in the playoff chase, and Ben Cherington did nothing to pretend otherwise during an appearance on The Pirates Insider Show. The general manager acknowledged the relief corps needs help, which at least matched what frustrated fans have been watching unfold, and he pointed to the teams one bullpen-related move so far, the trade that brought Hunter Stratton in from the Braves for catcher Joey Bart.
Cheringtons comments, though, also made clear that any larger fix is not going to arrive right away. He said bullpen trades are likely, but they may not come until after the July draft, pushing the meaningful reshaping of the relief mix closer to the trade deadline than to the present moment. For a fan base already anxious about how much damage the bullpen has done, that timetable is probably the least reassuring part of all. [Read more 🡒]
Pirates Injury Picture Just Took Another Frustrating Turn
Ben Cheringtons latest injury update offered one bit of progress and two reminders of how quickly the Pirates depth can get tested. Oneil Cruz is moving forward in his rehab from hand fractures, with the shortstop beginning gripping exercises and heading to Bradenton, Florida to continue the recovery process after having his cast removed. It is not a finish line, but it is at least a sign that one of Pittsburghs most important lineup pieces is turning a corner.
The rest of the picture was less encouraging. Wilber Dotel began a rehab assignment, but his recovery has already required a reassessment after he felt some discomfort, while Spencer Horwitz is facing a longer absence after suffering a left hamstring injury in late June. Horwitz had become a useful middle-order presence before getting hurt, and the Pirates now have to keep piecing together the infield and lineup while waiting for the injury count to settle down. [Read more 🡒]