BRADENTON, Fla. — Don Kelly was pumped to see the new All-Star additions to the Pittsburgh Pirates on the field together for the first time, as sluggers Brandon Lowe, Ryan O’Hearn and Marcell Ozuna made their Pirate City debuts in black and gold.
Only to be upstaged by Paul Skenes and Konnor Griffin.
The Pirates manager was even more enthusiastic about his team after batting practice in its first full-squad workout of spring training. After the 35-year-old Ozuna passed his physical exam and finalized his one-year, $12 million contract, the three-time All-Star designated hitter hit cars parked beyond the left-field fence at Roberto Clemente Field.
Across the way at Honus Wagner Field, 19-year-old shortstop Konnor Griffin — baseball’s consensus top prospect — blasted bombs that landed on the metal roof of the Ralph Kiner batting cages. What drew the biggest crowd was when two-time All-Star outfielder Bryan Reynolds stood in on both sides of the plate for a live bullpen session against unanimous National League Cy Young Award winner Paul Skenes.
“Seeing the whole team together, it’s extremely exciting, with the moves we made over the offseason and setting the team up the way Bob (Nutting), Ben (Cherington), Travis (Williams) and the front office has been able to,” Kelly said of the Pirates chairman, general manager and president, respectively. “To add to the group that we have here, you can feel the excitement. I don’t remember a time where there were that many fans here excited and watching spring training like that. That was really cool.”
The Pirates were aggressive this offseason in an effort to upgrade MLB’s worst offense, one that finished last in home runs, RBIs, slugging percentage and OPS. Swinging a three-team trade with Tampa Bay acquired Lowe, who is coming off a 31-home run season. The Pirates made their first multi-year deal in free agency in nine years by signing O’Hearn to a two-year, $29 million contract. And they added another free agent in Ozuna, who is a year removed from a 39-homer, 104-RBI season.
The trio combined for 5.9 WAR, 59 doubles, 69 home runs and 214 RBIs last season. Cherington said the offseason moves have the front office and coaching staff pumped, as the new-and-improved lineup was the subject of their first spring training meeting.
“I believe from a spring training perspective, just thinking about the players we have in camp, it’s probably the deepest, most talented group we’ve had,” Cherington said. “All that matters today and from today on is are we doing the things every day to give us the best chance to win games when we go to New York and beyond during the season. Belief in the players, yes and also clear to me, clear to us, whatever the roster says, whatever the projections say, the prognosticators say, we got to go out and do the work that leads to winning baseball games.”
O’Hearn couldn’t wait to get on the field with the Pirates and interact with fans Sunday at Pirate City, but Lowe appeared overwhelmed by the change of scenery. Of course, O’Hearn is playing for his third team since July, and Lowe left the only team he’s known as a pro.
“Yeah, it’s a lot of names and a lot of talking that I’m not used to doing,” Lowe said Sunday. “It’s a complete 180 from what I’m used to. I went from a place that I knew everybody — every face, every minor-league coach, everything in the world — to a completely new facility and new names. So I’m doing my best, trying to learn everything and the intricacies of Pirate City right now, but everything’s going well.”
Not only are they expected to provide protection for Oneil Cruz and Bryan Reynolds in the batting order but run support for a pitching staff anchored by Skenes.
“You look around the clubhouse, and it’s loaded with talent,” Lowe said. “Marcell’s been doing this for a long time. That’s why a lot of people know his name: He’s been very good for a long time. But there’s a lot of young guys that are very talented that are here to show what they have.
“When you look around and see the names, it does get you excited. A staff that doesn’t give up a whole lot of runs. A defense that’s really good that just needed a little bit of help offensively, and they went out and did that. They got some really good bats in free agency and traded for a couple more. It’s going to be a lot of fun here coming down the stretch and getting spring training started, seeing what everyone’s done in the offseason to improve themselves. Hopefully, it gets some Pirates fans excited.”
To make room for Ozuna, the Pirates designated outfielder Jack Suwinski for assignment Monday. The 27-year-old Suwinski led the Pirates with 26 homers in 2023 but hit .182 with a .588 OPS in 88 games in 2024 and .147 with a .534 OPS in 59 games last season.
“I think the world of Jack and he’s put a lot of work in. He looks better this spring compared to last year and was swinging the bat pretty well. Just a tough decision on the business side,” said Kelly, who knows there’s a chance Suwinski can rediscover his power with another organization. “That’s always the concern. When you make a move like that, you’ve seen it in there, and it can always come out. It’s just where we’re at from a roster standpoint. Just felt like that was the best move to make right now.”
The question is whether the construction of the roster will work. With O’Hearn and Spencer Horwitz both left-handed hitters, they were expected to split time at first base and designated hitter. The signing of Ozuna, who has served strictly as DH the past two seasons for the Atlanta Braves, complicates that scenario.
O’Hearn, selected to his first All-Star Game last summer while with the Baltimore Orioles, expressed excitement over the Ozuna signing — “I love it, a guy who’s obviously been very good for a long time” — and showed a willingness to play elsewhere. Although O’Hearn has played 385 games at first base, 185 at DH and 121 in the outfield, he was stationed in right field (77 career starts) for his first fielding drills while Spencer Horwitz manned first base.
“You know what, I’m all for it. Whatever we need to do, whatever I need to do for us to be at our best,” O’Hearn said. “And if that means going out to right field or left field, whatever they want me to do, I’m going to figure it out. That’s why we’re here in spring training.”
Reynolds switched from right field, where he started 117 games last season, to left field (where he started 177 games in 2024) and made a spectacular catch in foul territory. Coming off a subpar season at the plate, Reynolds is excited about the Pirates adding some pop to the lineup and protection around him.
“Spring’s just a little bit different now. Different vibes, different thoughts,” Reynolds said. “It’s fun to build off of that.”
The next six weeks will determine who plays where and what the lineup will look like for Opening Day on March 26 at the New York Mets, but the newcomers were quick to note that, from an outsider’s perspective, the Pirates appear ready to compete and contend in the NL Central.
“They look like they’re a team and an organization that really wants to win and push with the talent that they’ve had and make some minor additions here and there,” Lowe said. “I think that’s kind of the biggest thing of it all. It seems like a team that wants to put some talent on the field and go win some ballgames. That’s all you can really ask for. Winning is a whole heck of a lot more fun than losing is.”
