The Pittsburgh Pirates have relieved manager Clint Hurdle of his duties:
Statement from Pirates Chairman Bob Nutting. pic.twitter.com/wsgytvOv6A
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) September 29, 2019
This news comes on the heels of the Chicago Cubs announcing the departure of manager Joe Maddon after this season, so there are already two job openings in the National League Central.
The Pirates have scuffled to a 69-92 record this season heading into Sunday's finale. This record is the second-worst record in the NL, and it marks the fourth consecutive season without a playoff appearance for Pittsburgh.
The franchise hired Hurdle after a 2010 season in which the Pirates lost 105 games. Pittsburgh was in the midst of a long playoff drought, and the hope was that Hurdle would bring them back to the postseason after a stellar run with the Colorado Rockies ended in 2009.
Hurdle's first two years in Pittsburgh continued the lengthy playoff drought, but 2013 saw the club beat the Cincinnati Reds in the NL Wild Card Game before eventually falling to the St. Louis Cardinals in five games in the NLDS. The Pirates reached the NL Wild Card Game the two seasons after that, but they lost to the San Francisco Giants and Cubs, respectively.
Pittsburgh won 98 games in 2015 before losing to Chicago in the Wild Card Game, and things went downhill for the club from there. The Pirates fell back to 78 wins in 2016 and 75 wins in 2017 before a slight rebound to 82 in 2018. This 2019 season marks a low point for Hurdle in Pittsburgh.
Hurdle is getting let go with a 735-720-1 record as Pirates manager.
Follow Us
Subscribe