The Pittsburgh Pirates, which are hovering at the bottom of the Major League, replaced Derek Shelton (54) and appointed bench coach Don Kelly (45) as the new coach.
Pittsburgh announced the dismissal of Shelton and the appointment of coach Kelly through the club's official announcement on May 9 (Korea time). Shelton led the Pirates for five and a half years from the 2020 season, but was recently dismissed amid a seven-game losing streak.
The Pirates, which have the third-worst record in the Major League this season with 12 wins and 26 losses, have expressed their commitment to rebound in the rest of the season through a managerial change. "The first quarter of the season caused everyone frustration and pain. We need to do better," owner Bob Nutting said in a statement. "We need to take the necessary steps now to regain direction as a team and organization."
"In the evening, I advised Knutting owner and club president Travis Williams to break up with him, and I met with him this morning," General Manager Ben Sherrington said in a news conference. "It's not just Shelton's responsibility. It's all of us, and the beginning is on me," he said.온라인바카라
Sherrington, who joined Shelton in November 2019, is under criticism for failing to reinforce his team's capabilities this season. Notably, even though he had the ace of the National League rookie last year, Paul Skins, he has been passive in strengthening his team's capabilities.
The Pirates are one of four teams with less than $90 million (W126.5 billion) in team payrolls this season, according to Spotrac data, and have remained in the MLB's lowest five clubs every year since 2017. 2017 was the last season when team payrolls topped $100 million.
MLB Trade Rumors said, "It's ridiculous that the owner's Nutting put 'urgent' in his mouth," and pointed out, "The Pirates are delaying the Major League debut of the league's best pitching prospect, which devastates batters in Triple-A for the second consecutive year."
Last year, Paul Skins postponed his start until May 6 and became the best pitcher in the Major League after his debut, and this year, Bubba Chandler remains in Triple-A despite his overwhelming performance of 2.25 ERA and 38.3 percent strikeout rate in seven games. On the other hand, Bayley Poulter and Kamen Murzinski, the Pirates' previous 4-5 starters, are sluggish with 5.06 ERA and 6.16 ERA, respectively.
Despite the criticism, Sherrington said, "The goal is to have a stronger team on the field in 2025," adding, "We believe there are players within the organization who will add strength to this. I think the players on the team can offer more."
Shelton has led the Pirates since the 2020 season, but the season's highest number of wins was only 76. During his tenure, his team's performance was only 306-440. He received a contract extension with 14 more wins in 2023 compared to the previous year, but fell to the bottom of NL Central earlier this year after stagnating to 76 wins in 2024.
Kelly, the newly appointed coach, is from Pittsburgh and joined the Pirates coaching staff after experiencing first base coaching experience with the Houston Astros in 2020. General manager Cherrington explained that Kelly, with regional connections and "educational capabilities," is the right person to bring out the best performance on the current roster.
There was no "temporary" tag for the coach's appointment, but Cherrington said it was confirmed only in 2025 and that he is focusing on 2025 without thinking until after the next season. This seems to be a paving the way for a wide range of coach candidates after the end of this season.
Kelly will make his managerial debut through three consecutive home games against the Atlanta Braves at copyright Park from the 10th.