PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates have played great baseball throughout 2026 and people across the sport are taking notice.

The Pirates moved up two spots in the latest power rankings from The Athletic, going up to No. 11 from No. 13, just one spot outside of the top 10 just three weeks into the season.

It’s not surprising to see the Pirates so high up, as they’re 10-6 so far, tied for the second-most wins in baseball and on top of the National League Central Division.

The Pirates are coming off of a 2025 campaign where they finished with the fifth-worst record in baseball and last in the NL Central, but have completely turned things around to start this season, which is due to work in the offseason internally and externally.

Pirates Offense Dominating in 2026

The Pirates had a great pitching staff last season, which led baseball with 19 shutouts, but were terrible from the plate and the worst hitting team in MLB in most categories.

Pirates Hitting Rankings in MLB

General manager Ben Cherington and the front office went out and added via the trade market and in free agency to make their lineup better, which have made for one of the better hitting teams in baseball.

Trading for second baseman Brandon Lowe and signing free agent Ryan O’Hearn gave the Pirates power and veteran bats that they desperately needed

Lowe leads the Pirates with six home runs, while O’Hearn has slashed .321/.403/.536 for an OPS of .939, playing both in right field and at first base.

The Pirates have also gotten great production from players that have needed bounceback seasons in center fielder Oneil Cruz and left fielder Bryan Reynolds.

Cruz has an MLB-long 12-game hitting streak, the longest of his career, and has the best slash-line on the Pirates, .355/.429/.645 for an OPS of 1.074, with 22 hits, three doubles, five home runs, 16 RBI and seven stolen bases.

He has also greatly improved against left-handed pitchers, going from just a .102 batting average in 2025 to a .471/.526/1.000 slash line for an OPS of 1.526 with three home runs.

Reynolds has slashed .290/.375./484 for an OPS of .859, with three home runs and 12 RBI, after hitting below .200 at this point last season.

The Pirates also locked up top prospect Konnor Griffin to a record nine-year, $140 million contract, who will serve as their shortstop for the long-term and will eventually bring great power and a top bat overall.

Pitching Staff Continues Dominating for Pirates

The Pirates ultimately need their pitching staff to perform at the best of their abilities if they are going to make it to the postseason.

Pittsburgh has had general success with their pitcher so far, particularly from the starting rotation, but the overall staff has been dominant in different ways.

Pittsburgh has gotten great showings from their starting rotation, featuring Cy Young Award winner Paul Skenes, veteran Mitch Keller, rookies in Braxton Ashcraft and Bubba Chandler, plus reliever-turned-starter Carmen Mlodzinski.

Skenes, surprisingly, has the highest ERA of the staff at 4.00, thanks to giving up five runs vs. the New York Mets on Opening Day in less than an inning, but has posted a 1.56 ERA in his past three starts.

Keller has been excellent at just a 1.00 ERA and three quality starts, Ashcraft is showing he’s no rookie on the mound, Chandler has some of the best pitches on the team and Mlodzinski has worked out of some jams and kept the Pirates in good shape in his second try in the rotation.

The Pirates have had issues with their bullpen, who have issued too many walks and struggled at times in 2026, but there’s reason that they can turn it around as well.

Pittsburgh has an excellent set-up/closer combo in left-hander Gregory Soto and Dennis Santana, who have a 1.04 ERA and 1.13 ERA, respectively.

Right-hander Yohan Ramírez is the biggest surprise out of the bullpen with a 1.86 ERA, fellow right-hander Isaac Mattson is back to his great form from last year at a 2.08 ERA and left-hander Mason Montgomery regularly throws a 100 mph fastball.

The Pirates will also get a boost from right-hander Jared Jones returning towards the end of May, early June from season-ending surgery last season too.

If Pittsburgh can keep up their great hitting and get better outings from their bullpen, then they should continue pushing for a spot in the postseason for the first time in a decade.

Make sure to visit Pirates OnSI for the latest news, updates, interviews and insight on the Pittsburgh Pirates!

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The St. Mary’s Colgan softball team secured a decisive 10-0 victory over Riverton in five innings at Pittsburg State Softball Field. Pitcher Bella Ascanio struck out 9 batters, while the Lady Panthers’ offense exploded for 6 runs in the first inning, 1 in the second, and 3 more in the fourth to end the game early via the run rule.

Why it matters

This win continues St. Mary’s Colgan’s strong start to the season and showcases the team’s dominant pitching and hitting abilities. Riverton struggled to get anything going offensively against the Lady Panthers’ stifling defense.

The details

Bella Ascanio was dominant in the circle for St. Mary’s Colgan, striking out 9 Riverton batters. The Lady Panthers’ offense got going early, scoring 6 runs in the first inning, 1 in the second, and 3 more in the fourth to end the game via the 10-run rule after 5 innings. Kynlee King recorded a hit for Riverton, but the Lady Rams were unable to sustain any offensive momentum against the Lady Panthers.

• The game took place on April 13, 2026 at Pittsburg State Softball Field.

Two Pittsburgh police officers are being sued in federal court over allegations that they misidentified and arrested an Allegheny County man on assault charges without probable cause and violated his constitutional rights.

In a lawsuit filed against Officers Brian Shelton and Joseph Giles, 22-year-old Chiyeh Green alleged that he was wrongfully held in jail for six days despite an ankle monitor from past charges showing he was at home during the time of the assault police accused him of committing, according to an April 9 report by the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.

Here’s what we know.

What led up to Pittsburgh officers arresting Green?

On July 20, 2025, an assault on Sydney Street on Pittsburgh’s South Side was livestreamed on Facebook, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported. The video showed a victim, who is not named, being assaulted by a man and a woman, according to the lawsuit.

During the investigation, officers spoke to the woman, who the victim knew, and were given the name of the man, the suit said. Police were told that the man was the father of the women’s children, with the victim showing Shelton a Facebook profile for “Sly Green.”

How did Pittsburgh officers identify Green?

The Facebook profile the victim pulled up for Shelton showed a Black man, who Shelton wrote “matched” the perpetrator in the video, the lawsuit said.

While with the victim, Shelton received a call from a Pittsburgh detective, who told him that Giles had learned of the video and identified Green as the attacker.

When was Green arrested?

Green was charged on July 24, 2025, with Shelton and several officers arresting him at his home five miles from where the assault took place, the lawsuit said.

His probation officer was also present at the home and told police that Green was on house arrest with an ankle monitor.

How long was Green held in jail?

Green was held at the Allegheny County Jail for six days. The charges were dismissed at a bond hearing on July 30, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported.

“Mr. Green was falsely accused of a crime he clearly did not commit,” said Amanda Shields, one of Green’s attorneys. “We look forward to seeking justice.”

Lawsuit: ‘Only identifiable similarity’ between Green and perpetrator ‘is their race and/or skin color’

The lawsuit alleged that the video of the assault “clearly depicts a different individual who does not resemble” Green committing the act.

“The only identifiable similarity between the male perpetrator depicted in the video evidence and the plaintiff (Green) is their race and/or skin color,” the lawsuit said.

In his affidavit of probable cause, Shelton didn’t include that Green was on probation and wearing an ankle monitor during the incident, according to the lawsuit.

“Shelton conducted a constitutionally deficient investigation by willfully and/or with reckless disregard ignoring exculpatory evidence as well as reasonably discoverable exculpatory evidence,” the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit includes claims of emotional trauma and suffering, economic damages, malicious prosecution, false arrest, false imprisonment, equal protections violations and intentional infliction of emotional distress.