7-25-2025 – By Ethan Smith – @mvp_EtHaN on X
The Pittsburgh Pirates, for better, and definitely for worse, have been an enigma this year.
Coming out of the All-Star break, Pittsburgh dropped all three games to the Chicago White Sox on Yinzerpalooza weekend, something that felt like another new low for a franchise that recently fell below .500 historically.
The encore you ask? Sweeping the Detroit Tigers, who are primed to take the American League Central division and be a potential AL Pennant winning team this year, and not only did Pittsburgh sweep Detroit, they did so convincingly, outscoring the Tigers 17-6 across the three game series.
Pittsburgh now turns its attention to the Arizona Diamondbacks (50-53), who did the completely opposite of what the Pirates did entering the second half, sweeping the St. Louis Cardinals to get back to .500 before being swept by the Astros in their previous series.
Unlike the Pirates, Arizona still has an outside chance at the postseason, but it appears they will be sellers with pieces like Eugenio Suarez and Zac Gallen being intriguing options for opposing teams to try and poach away from the desert.
Nevertheless, the Pirates and Diamondbacks will do battle at PNC Park this weekend, and here’s what you can expect.
7/25
Pirates: RHP Mike Burrows: 1-3, 4.70 ERA, 1.41 WHIP, 46.0 IP, 46 H, 48 K, 19 BB, 8 HR
Diamondbacks: RHP Ryne Nelson: 6-2, 3.52 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, 84.1 IP, 63 H, 69 K, 26 BB, 9 HR
7/26
Pirates: LHP Andrew Heaney: 4-9, 5.03 ERA, 1.31 WHIP, 102.0 IP, 99 H, 74 K, 35 BB, 20 HR
Diamondbacks: RHP Merrill Kelly: 9-5, 3.32 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, 122.0 IP, 92 H, 118 K, 37 BB, 13 HR
7/27
Pirates: RHP Paul Skenes: 5-8, 1.91 ERA, 0.91 WHIP, 127.0 IP, 85 H, 137 K, 31 BB, 6 HR
Diamondbacks: RHP Zac Gallen: 7-11, 5.58 ERA, 1.37 WHIP, 121.0 IP, 120 H, 116 K, 46 BB, 23 HR
Pirates: Spencer Horwitz
Spencer Horwitz was the Pirates “big” offseason acqusition this past winter, as he was brought over from. the Cleveland Guardians in the Luis Ortiz, having played all for the Toronto Blue Jays in 2024.
The move was a gamble (see what I did there) on the part of the Pirates, and although Horwitz hasn’t quite broken the scale, and he likely never will, he has been strong since coming out of the break, posting a .381/.458/.619 slash with nine RBIs, four of those coming on his first career grand slam on Wednesday.
Horwitz has posted a .264/.333/.390 slash versus right handers this season, so he has a prime opportunity to keep his strong play going through the weekend versus Arizona.
Diamondbacks: Eugenio Suarez
This is one of those “well duh”‘s when it comes to who’s hot for Arizona, because Eugenio Suarez has been on an absolute tear for the Diamondbacks.
Viewed as a prime trade candidate, Suarez has launched five home runs in his past seven games, slugging .958 in that span.
It gets even more impressive for Suarez when you look at his past 30 games, as he’s hit 15 homers and slashed .297/.365/.748 during that time, posting 29 RBIs on top of that.
Although PNC Park isn’t a strong right-handed hitting ballpark, especially for home runs, keep an eye on Suarez to go yard this weekend, because although he’s 0-7 in his last seven at-bats, it seems like everything he touches at the plate is going far and over fence.
Pirates: Joey Bart
The Joey Bart who had massive contributions in 2024 is all but gone at this point and it doesn’t seem to appear the needle is pointing upwards anytime soon for the Pirates catcher.
Bart has posted a .155/.219/.175 slash over his past 30 games and he has just three hits in his last 16 at-bats, playing in just four games since July 13 in favor of Henry Davis.
If Bart was hitting, I could see him getting more reps, but the development of Henry Davis and eventually a healthy Endy Rodriguez is much more important at this juncture.
Diamondbacks: Lourdes Gurriel Jr.
The Diamondbacks outfield has been headlined by Corbin Carroll since his arrival a few years ago, but Lourdes Gurriel Jr. has been a contributor to that group since 2023, having impressive campaigns the past two seasons.
2025 hasn’t been as kind though, seeing Gurriel Jr.’s OPS drop from .757 in 2024 to .701 in 2025. He hasn’t had a great past 30 games either, posting a .215/.273/.339 slash with just two home runs in his past 121 at-bats.
Gurriel Jr. did have one hit and three walks versus the Astros in the last series, but the left fielder has to find his past form if the Diamondbacks want any chance of contending for a wild card spot.
Pirates:
Ryan Borucki(15-day IL), Chase Shugart(15-day IL), Johan Oviedo(rehab 60-day IL)
Diamondbacks:
Shelby Miller(15-day IL), Ryan Thompson(15-day IL), Jalen Beek(15-day IL), Connor Kaiser(7-day IL)
Notes
- Arizona is 12-8 in their past 20 games versus Pittsburgh
- Pittsburgh won the first series between the teams in May, including a 10-1 win in. the finale
- Both teams appear to be trending as sellers as the trade deadline approaches
- Players to play for both franchises include Jay Bell, Starling Marte, Reggie Sanders, Raul Mondesi, Bronson Arroyo and current Pirate Tommy Pham, with Kevin Newman being the other most recent Arizona and Pittsburgh player
- Arizona started their sell-off this week as they shipped out Josh Naylor to Seattle, making one less potent bat to watch out for in their lineup this weekend.
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