Tuesday, October 20

Welcome to another offseason edition of the Pirates Beat newsletter.

PITTSBURGH -- As Mason Montgomery saw it, the miraculous streak had to end eventually. 

From July 27 to Sept. 24, Montgomery posted 25 straight scoreless outings, the most by a Pirates pitcher since 1900. It ended on the penultimate day of the regular season on a walk-off home run. Montgomery followed up by saving the final game of the year.

Amid the success, Montgomery attempted not to keep count and take the task one day at a time. The results followed, and Montgomery became one of the top relievers in baseball to close out 2026.

From the Trade Deadline on Aug. 3 through the end of the regular season, Montgomery recorded a 1.14 ERA with a 40.9% K rate and 16 saves. Each of the statistics ranked in the top five in MLB for relievers with a minimum of 20 innings pitched over that span. And his save total beat out Cincinnati's Emilio Pagán (14), Milwaukee's Trevor Megill (12) and St. Louis' Riley O'Brien (12) for the most over the final seven weeks.

Just a few years ago, Montgomery was a starting pitcher in the Rays’ farm system. Now entering 2027, he’s emerged as a star closer in Pittsburgh while making one of the team’s weaknesses into a strength.

“I learned that I can have success whenever I stay consistent and I don't try to do too much,” Montgomery told MLB.com. “I think I got in trouble last year because I'd maybe try to be too perfect, and if a guy gets on, I'm thinking, ‘OK, I can't let that guy score.’ Rather than just continuing to stick to the approach and focus on the important thing at hand, which is the next pitch.

“So I found that if I can do that, then I will naturally become more consistent. And I've shown myself this year that my stuff plays. If I stick to the approach, then I will have success and consistency … If you had asked me three years ago, I would not have thought that I would be throwing the ninth inning for the Pirates right now.”

Montgomery had always thought of himself as a starting pitcher through his young baseball career. Then things changed with Tampa Bay in 2024, his third full professional season. He found success in the bullpen and debuted in the big leagues, which he described as a “shock.” Then he made the Opening Day roster in 2025, another “unexpected” accomplishment.

Montgomery saw an immediate improvement once he moved to the bullpen, increasing his velocity by three miles per hour. It was a learning curve to change his routine, but results followed with more strikeouts and far more consistency. 

Then came more unexpected news: a trade to the Pirates in a three-team deal ahead of the 2026 season. Montgomery, at first, could have been seen as a throw-in with part of the larger acquisition of his teammate Brandon Lowe, though the Pirates saw plenty of potential in the left-hander soaring past 100 mph.

With veteran southpaw Gregory Soto also added to the bullpen, Soto took the majority of high-leverage spots against lefties across the first half of the season. Montgomery flashed his ability in multiple roles, opening five games, pitching in the middle innings eight times and becoming a back-end weapon later on.

An added two-seam fastball from pitching coach Bill Murphy in mid-June made Montgomery more dangerous. Eventually, Pittsburgh entrusted him as the ninth-inning pitcher. Montgomery recorded his first save on July 11 against Milwaukee. He opened in Cleveland a week later.

Even after recording 18 saves across the final 68 games, Montgomery has never truly been named the team’s closer. All parties involved are just fine with that. 

“I see myself as a left-handed reliever,” Montgomery said. “They have control over when I throw, so I do think it's fun closing games. I enjoy it. I take some pride in it. I'm glad I've been able to work and get to this point. But at the end of the day, if they want me to throw in the fifth inning or the first inning, yeah, I'm gonna throw.”

“I don't think of it as closing,” Murphy added. “Yes, he's pitched in the ninth inning a ton, and I think in today's game, if there's a spot in the eighth inning where he's going to face the best hitters, maybe he pitches in the eighth inning. But what I do feel pretty confident saying is he is one of the best relievers in baseball.”

Which of the following Pirates veterans set a new career high in 2026 for home runs?

A. Brandon Lowe (35)

B. Ryan O’Hearn (18)

C. Bryan Reynolds (17)

D. Oneil Cruz (20)

• Mueth takes on ‘closer’s mentality’ in AFL opportunity

The 21-year-old right-handed pitcher is one of Pittsburgh’s most intriguing prospects playing in the Arizona Fall League. After a tough go filled with injury and command issues, he’s coming out of the bullpen looking for a fix.

• ‘Like something out of a movie’: Cutch flashes back to 2013 Wild Card Game on 6-1-1 Podcast

Andrew McCutchen appeared on the 6-1-1 Podcast with fellow NL MVPs Ryan Howard and Jimmy Rollins this past week. A highlight of the episode was McCutchen giving a backstage pass inside the blackout 2013 NL Wild Card Game, and the biggest moments from his perspective.

• Bucs take season series from Brewers, see blueprint for future

It feels like an appropriate time to replug this story from the end of the season as the divisional foe Brewers get set for the World Series. Pittsburgh defeated Milwaukee in the season series, 7-6, even sweeping a series before the All-Star break.

• “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” -- Elton John
• “The Sad Cafe” -- Eagles
• “Now And Then” -- The Beatles
• “Young Americans” -- David Bowie
• “Captain Jack” -- Billy Joel

B. Ryan O’Hearn

O'Hearn surpassed his previous career high of 17 homers from a year ago with 18 in his first year with the Pirates. O’Hearn reached the feat despite playing 110 games, 34 fewer than last season. Cruz came one home run short of tying his career high, while Lowe set a new single-season record for a Pittsburgh second baseman but fell four short of his career high in 2021.

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