The Pirates Have a Starting Pitching Problem They Can’t Fix

The Pirates entered 2026 expecting their starting rotation to be one of the strengths of the team. Now Paul Skenes is being handled carefully, Mitch Keller is out, several young starters are approaching career-high workloads, and the fifth rotation spot has turned into a bullpen game. Alex Stumpf looks at how Pittsburgh plans to cover innings over the final stretch and why not adding another starter at the trade deadline looks increasingly questionable. Read more from Alex at Book-Rule Bucs: https://bookrulebucs.substack.com/ Download our app! : https://apps.apple.com/us/app/north-shore-nine/id6771171000 : https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.northshorenine.app Join this channel to get access to perks: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9ZY250XUYiS-yX7xOQCdLA/join Use Promo Code NS930 for 30% off your first order at https://www.defer.coffee Use Promo Code NORTHSHORENINE for $20 off your first order at https://www.seatgeek.com LIKE and SUBSCRIBE with NOTIFICATIONS ON if you enjoyed the show! NS9 MERCH: https://northshorenine.myshopify.com ►Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/NorthShoreNine ►Website: https://www.northshorenine.com ►Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/northshorenine ►TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@northshorenine ►Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/northshorenine ►Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/northshorenine ►Discord: https://discord.gg/3HVYPg544m #pittsburghpirates Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.