Painful: Derek Shelton sobs as the Pittsburgh Pirates present their new head coach to the entire team
Derek Shelton has only managed a 127-214 record in his more than two seasons as the Pirates’ manager due to the arduous task of steering the team through an extensive rebuilding process. Shelton’s initial contract expires in 2023, meaning he will continue to lead the team through that season as manager, Pirates General Manager Ben Cherington told reporters, including Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic.
It’s a pleasure to work with Shelty and this staff. According to Cherington, they work extremely hard every day and care a great deal about doing things correctly. “I am thrilled for this group to benefit from their diligent labor, and I have total faith in the quantity of work that this personnel accomplishes. They most likely will as our roster grows and gets stronger.
Naturally, Shelton’s record is by no means a deciding factor in his job security given how little playing time he has had on Pittsburgh’s roster. “We’re making progress in a lot of ways that isn’t showing up — it’s not going to show up publicly — but will help lead us to success,” Cherington said.
The Bucs have given notable youngsters like Oneil Cruz, Roansy Contreras, Rodolfo Castro, and Tucupita Marcano more time to grow in the major leagues in 2022, despite their dismal 47-72 record. The current team is loaded with talent: Ke’Bryan Hayes has emerged as one of baseball’s best defenders, Jason Bednar has established himself as a strong reliever, and Bryan Reynolds has already shown he is an All-Star caliber player. Moreover, not even a few of the top prospects acquired since Cherington took over as manager in November 2019 have succeeded in reaching the major leagues.
