It’s hard to imagine how the season could have started much worse for the Pittsburgh Pirates. 

They opened their season by losing three of four in Miami against the Marlins, with all three losses coming in walk-off fashion — a historically bad feat. They followed it up with another series loss against the Tampa Bay Rays, with their only win coming in a Paul Skenes start that saw him pitch seven innings of shutout ball. 

Things didn’t get better during their first series back at PNC Park. The Pirates’ 9-4 loss in the home opener had angry fans erupting, booing and jeering as the Pirates turned in yet another offensive slugfest and defensive disaster-class. Despite coming off a walk-off win on Sunday, the Pirates have yet to win a series this year and are 3-7. 

The team has looked lifeless for much of the early going. Their horrid offense is averaging under three runs per game and has only brought in more than four runs in one game. The Pirates’ one area of strength, base stealing — where they lead the major leagues — is routinely erased by their awful performance at the plate with runners in scoring position. 

Their bullpen is still a mess, and both the eighth-inning setup man and closer for the Pirates are not currently on the active roster. 

Taking the brunt of the frustration to open the 2025 session is manager Derek Shelton, who was viciously booed on Friday during the opening day introductions at PNC Park. 

Shelton’s critics have a lot of material on him, but there is perhaps nothing more staggering than his win-loss record. Shelton possesses one of the worst managerial records ever — not just in Pirates history but in baseball history. 

Among managers with at least 315 games of experience under their belt, Shelton’s .413 winning percentage is the 27th worst of all time. He is 124 games under .500. 

Of the nine other managers hired in the offseason before 2020, all but one have a better winning percentage than Shelton, with Ron Roenicke’s one year in Boston the only exception. 

Of course, that lacks some context. Shelton took over at the same time as general manager Ben Cherington, just as the Pirates were officially entering a rebuild. As such, his first three years as skipper saw him manage a team that was explicitly designed to lose and to lose a lot. It’s the one thing during this six-year rebuild that the Pirates have succeeded at. 

Shelton was more or less just along for the ride as the team had a revolving door of minor leaguers, journeymen and prospects at virtually every position. 

The better way to evaluate Shelton is to look at his record after April 22, 2023 — the day the Pirates extended his contract. Amid the Pirates’ electric 20-8 run to start the 2023 season, Cherington praised Shelton’s handling of the dark, 100-loss seasons and painted the Pirates’ early run as the “fruits of that labor.”

Since that day, Shelton is 141-172, 31 games under .500 for a .450 winning percentage. 

Seven of the nine other managers in the 2020 hiring crop had a better winning percentage than Shelton, even if you only look at his time post-extension. Yet, he is the only manager out of that crop who is still employed. After two years of 76-86 records and an awful start to this year, it’s time for the Pirates to explore a change. 

Is Shelton a fall guy for all of this? Probably. 

This organization is plagued by problems from nearly every position of power over this team. Owner Bob Nutting — who was heckled by fans as he wandered the rotunda at PNC Park and heard loud chants of “sell the team” during the game — has not properly invested in this team. 

Cherington, with what little money he has to work with, has whiffed on almost every free-agent signing he has made and has a history of getting fleeced on trades. 

In an offseason where the Pirates should have shown the most urgency in a decade, this organization decided to sit on its hands and spend minimally. Their one big trade in the offseason, first baseman Spencer Horwitz, is still weeks away from making his team debut as he recovers from offseason wrist surgery. 

But Shelton is not without his faults as a manager. His bullpen management alone last season cost the Pirates a handful of games, and players on hot streaks or who are coming off a great game are sat far too often. 

You could deal with these things when the games didn’t matter. They matter now. More than ever before. 

Now off to a horrible start, the Pirates look directionless, and Shelton looks dejected. I’m not saying that he needs to go out and literally steal first base like Lloyd McClendon did all those years ago. But we have seen no passion and virtually no expression from him as his team falls apart. The vibes around this team are rancid right now. 

This is the time when the Pirates have to consider a change at manager. 

The terms of Shelton’s contract extension were never revealed to the public. We don’t know how many years Shelton has left on his deal. But even for an organization like the Pirates, which hesitates to spend money on its active roster, let alone people who don’t work there anymore, there is precedent. 

Shelton’s predecessor, Clint Hurdle, had two years left on his contract when he was fired in 2019 after a nightmare 93-loss season and four straight years out of the postseason. 

And if the Pirates care about optics or want to retain Shelton somewhere, they can simply “promote” him out of the dugout and into a front office job in lieu of firing. 

Whenever someone suggests a change at coach or manager, the question always becomes, “Who will take over for them?” 

If this slow start continues for even another week or two, we’re approaching a point where it almost doesn’t matter who — just as long as it’s someone else. 

What we are seeing right now is flat-out unacceptable.