With the Pittsburgh Pirates franchise headlined by star pitcher Paul Skenes, there has been a major change to the ball club as the team fired manager Derek Shelton, as announced on their official X, formerly Twitter, account. As the Pirates have struggled to start the season, the team has relieved Shelton of his duties, with the new manager being Don Kelly, who was the bench coach.

Along with the announcement, Pittsburgh released a statement that included quotes from general manager Ben Cherington and chairman Bob Nutting. The former would speak on Shelton's tenure with the team, which lasted five seasons.

“Derek worked incredibly hard and sacrificed a lot over five-plus years. His family became a big part of the Pirates family, and we will miss that,” Cherington said. “He's an incredibly smart, curious, and driven baseball leader. I believe he was the right person for the job when he was hired, I also believe that a change is now necessary, I wish Derek and his family all the best in their next chapter.”

Cherington would go on to say how Kelly is “the right person to manage the team right now,” with Nutting saying that the bench coach is “respected as any person” on the team's staff and even “throughout the organization.” Kelly is in the midst of his sixth season with Pittsburgh, where he was the first base coach for the Houston Astros before he was a former major league player.

Pirates make change after “painful” start to season

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Despite the Pirates having a top pitcher in Skenes, the team has vastly underperformed this season as they are on a seven-game losing streak and are 1-9 in the last 10 contests. Nutting would mention how Shelton “did a lot” for the franchise, but that a “change” was in store for Pittsburgh.

“Derek is a good man who did a lot for the Pirates and Pittsburgh, but it was time for a change,” Nutting said. “The first quarter of the season has been frustrating and painful for all of us. We have to do better. I know that. Ben knows that. Our coaches know that. Our players know that.”

“There is a lot of baseball left to be played,” Nutting continued. “We need to act with a sense of urgency and take the steps necessary to fix this now to get back on track as a team and organization.”

If there is one word to describe Pittsburgh's season at the moment, it would be painful, as the team's chairman mentioned, but there still seems to be hope within the team that a change at manager can be a net gain. Kelly will look to boost the Pirates as they are 12-26, which puts them last in the NL Central as the team starts a three-game series against the Atlanta Braves on Friday evening.