The Pittsburgh Pirates’ run production has easily been the highlight of the 2018 season to date.
Even after taking into account the occasional bout of ineffectiveness that the club’s hitters are prone to, the results speak for themselves. As of this writing, heading into games played on May 24th, the Pirates’ team wRC+ of 109 ranks third in all of baseball (first in the National League). The team’s hitters carry the second-highest fWAR in the National League at 8.7. The club’s 19.2 percent strikeout rate is tops on the NL, and only .2 percentage points behind the MLB-leading Royals.