MLB analyst Dan Plesac drew comparisons between the Pirates' loaded pitching staff, featuring young talents like Paul Skenes and Bubba Chandler, and the Atlanta Braves dynasty of the early 1990s. The Pirates ranked seventh in ERA last season and have continued to bolster their rotation.
"It's a very good rotation," Plesac said on MLB Network. "It reminds me a little bit going back, and this might be a little bit of an overstatement, of some of those young pitching staffs of the Atlanta Braves before we knew who they were." The Pirates haven't won a playoff game since 2013 or a championship since 1979, but their improved pitching and offseason lineup upgrades have Plesac excited for the coming season.