Pirates fire three coaches after 2024 season

The Pirates are parting ways with hitting coach Andy Haines, bullpen coach Justin Meccage and strength and conditioning coach Adam Vish in what is shaping up to be the most significant shakeup to the Major League coaching staff in years, sources tell MLB.com.

Haines was hired ahead of the 2022 season after a three-year stint as hitting coach of the Brewers. In his time, the Pirates’ roster transitioned from more outsiders getting tryouts to more homegrown players coming up through the Minors, but the overall team results mostly stayed the same. Their 665 runs scored this season ranked 24th in baseball, while their .672 OPS was 27th.

On a macro scale, the Pirates’ offense regressed in 2024, scoring fewer runs (692 in 2023, 665 in 2024), OPS (.707 in 2023, .672 in 2024) and wRC+ (90 in 2023, 86 in 2024).

Individual results were a mixed bag. Bryan Reynolds worked extensively with Haines ahead of the 2023 season, and he’s combined to post 48 home runs, 322 hits and a .790 OPS combined over the past two seasons. Oneil Cruz took noticeable steps forward this season, especially against left-handed pitching, and he was quick to give credit to Haines and assistant hitting coach Christian Marrero. Nick Gonzales’ drastically improved results this season started with Haines pointing out mechanical changes the young infielder had unknowingly made, and newcomer Joey Bart enjoyed a breakout campaign after being acquired in April.

However, more than a handful of players struggled to produce this season. Jack Suwinski was optioned to the Minors in July after regressing from his 26-home run campaign in 2023. Henry Davis, the first overall Draft pick in 2021, crushed Minor League pitching, but hit .144 with a .453 OPS in his 37 Major League games. Veterans Rowdy Tellez and Michael A. Taylor struggled most of the season. Ke’Bryan Hayes battled back issues for most of the season, but he too saw a significant offensive downturn, finishing with a .573 OPS.

A lack of consistent offensive production has been a recurring theme for the Pirates the past several years, extending beyond when Haines inherited the job. However, a lack of consistent offense was a key reason why the Pirates weren’t able to maximize their young starting pitching and why they finished with a 76-86 record.

The bullpen also played a major role in why the Pirates weren’t able to maximize their starting pitching this season. Projected to be one of the best bullpens in baseball coming into the season, their relievers finished with a 4.49 ERA (27th in baseball) and 27 blown saves (tied for fourth-most).

Meccage was the longest-tenured coach on the Pirates’ staff and the last remaining holdover from Clint Hurdle’s tenure, joining first as the assistant pitching coach in 2018 before transitioning to the bullpen coach ahead of the 2020 season when Derek Shelton took over.

David Bednar was at the center of those bullpen struggles, going from being an All-Star in 2022 and 2023 to being removed from the closer role when blew as many saves this season (seven) as he had the previous two seasons combined, and his eight losses were as many as he had over his first three years with the Pirates.

Outside of Bednar, Colin Holderman and Aroldis Chapman posted overall good results but were streaky, as were fellow young relievers Kyle Nicolas, Hunter Stratton and Carmen Mlodzinski. The team also struggled to find a lefty specialist all year, with Jalen Beeks, Josh Fleming, Jose Hernandez and a mostly hurt Ryan Borucki falling short of expectations.

Vish joined the Pirates in December of 2020 after serving as the Giants’ Minor League strength and conditioning coordinator for eight seasons.

On Sept. 11, general manager Ben Cherington gave a strong vote of confidence in Shelton, signaling he will return after the Pirates finished the season with the same record they had in 2023: 76-86.

“I think there’s a lot to the job [that] I believe [Shelton] does really, really well, and I also believe he works his tail off to continue to improve in a number of ways,” Cherington said. “Seeing that, I believe he’s the right person to manage this team in 2025, so I fully expect that will happen.”