Pirates rotation is the best in baseball

Apr 3, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Mitch Keller (23) delivers a pitch against the Baltimore Orioles during the first inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images The Pittsburgh Pirates are coming off a series sweep of the Baltimore Orioles and their fifth straight win. The team is looking complete and firing on all cylinders, but it’s the starting rotation that has shown a different kind of dominance to start the season.

While it was well known that the Pirates’ group of starting pitchers was going to be elite, very few could’ve predicted that they’d get off to such a hot start. Outside of the season opener against the New York Mets, this group has been hard to rattle. Pittsburgh is the only starting rotation in baseball that has not allowed a home run.

As a franchise, the longest such streak was when the 1943 Pirates starters went 17 games without giving up a homer. The current nine game streak that the 2026 club is on is the longest to start a season since the 2018 San Francisco Giants went 10 straight games. The incredible part is that from top to bottom this group has not shown much weakness.

Paul Skenes is clearly the ace of this rotation and is coming off a 2025 Cy Young campaign where he proved he was the best pitcher in the National League. The opener against New York was ugly, but Skenes’ second start against the Cincinnati Reds was a nice rebound contest in which he had five strikeouts. There has been a very apparent hangover period for some of the players that participated in the World Baseball Classic, and Skenes may be a victim, but he is certainly trending in the right direction as one of the most feared pitchers in baseball.