Pirates firmly in the mix in NL Wild Card race
· Yahoo Sports
The Pittsburgh Pirates recently concluded a 2-1 series victory over the Cleveland Guardians to resume action after the All-Star break and find themselves well within reach of a postseason berth in the National League Central despite a loss last night to the New York Yankees.
Visit somethingsdifferent.biz for more information.
The ever stiff NL Central division remains largely gridlocked with little separation between the respective squads. Milwaukee remains at the top of the division as they currently have 62 wins, and sit six games in front of the second place Chicago Cubs. The Brewers hold claim to the second largest division lead in baseball, with only the Dodgers having a more dominant grasp on the NL West with an 11.5 game lead.
Despite the lengthy lead the Brewers have, the Pirates swept them in their most recent series. Given all of the injury problems that have plagued Pittsburgh through the first half of the season, they have maintained an above .500 record for a majority of the season. Amazingly they keep finding ways to stay in ball games and to plug and play different players to fill the roles left by those on the IL. Esmerlyn Valdez is perhaps the strongest example of a Pirates’ placeholder, but his play may have elevated him past that temporary status. Valdez could be a key contributor in helping lead the Pirates to the postseason.
HE SIMPLY CAN'T STOP HOMERING. pic.twitter.com/Lu6MXTl36i
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) July 21, 2026
Other players like Nick Gonzales and Ryan O’Hearn have remained consistent in their production, while former All-Stars Bryan Reynolds and Brandon Lowe also do a lot to help this team’s lineup. This team is not playing like it lost half of its lineup. Most teams that lose a player like Oneil Cruz or Konnor Griffin scramble to try to get the pieces right and stay afloat. The Cincinnati Reds for example have not lived up to expectations this season, and a lot of that has to do with their beaten up roster. Whereas the Pirates lineup despite the injury setbacks, seems to be firing on all cylinders. The Pirates currently have the second most runs scored in Major League Baseball and have the most hits with a sizable gap between them and the second place Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Pirates are 17-12 against divisional opponents this year, but their kryptonite to this point has been against the St. Louis Cardinals. The Buccos have a 2-5 record against the Cards this season, and currently sit behind them in the NL Central standings. However, the Cardinals are on a bad streak of games, going 4-6 in their last 10 and are on a two-game losing streak. While the Cards are slipping, the Pirates are starting to surge. St. Louis currently holds the Wild Card spot that Pittsburgh needs, but the Pirates are only 0.5 games back from taking that spot.
The Brewers and the Cubs are in comfortable spots and first and second place in the division, but the Buccos are absolutely in the mix among potential playoff teams. The next time the Pirates face a divisional opponent will be against the Cubs in a three-game series starting on Friday, July 24.