Kelly’s Contract Extended by Pittsburgh Pirates

S. Samek

One of the questions for the incoming offseason for the Pittsburgh Pirates was t if interim manager Don Kelly would be back for 2026. However there won’t be much time for discussion or speculating about it as they have announced an extension for him.

The Pirates went 59-65 under Kelly this season with a 32-33 record after the all-star break. They did go 37-25 at home under Kelly and finished with a home record of 44-37.

Kelly also guided his team to sweeps over playoff teams Philadelphia, Detroit and the LA Dodgers.

The pitching staff had a 3.59 ERA sense Kelly took over, which was good enough to be the fourth best in Major League Baseball. However, they still had one of the worst offenses in all of baseball.

Honestly, it’s not a bad idea to bring back Kelly. I think he did well enough to earn more time as the manager. I think if they actually spend some money and give him a competent lineup the Pirates could make a run for the postseason in 2026. The question is though will they spend that money and make the lineup better?

We shall have to wait and see as the Pirates begin the offseason. Yet for the time being that won’t include a search for a new skipper.