Audacy MLB insider Bob Nightengale believes Pirates manager Don Kelly is “smack dab in the NL Manager of the Year race.”
Kelly is two games over .500 since taking over the club from Derek Shelton.
The Pirates are now 26-24 with Kelly as the manager and after Wednesday’s 5-0 win against the St. Louis Cardinals, are on a six-game winning streak.
The Pirates have outscored their opponents 43-4 over the past six games and didn’t allow one run against St. Louis over three games.
But is Kelly in Manager of the Year contention?
“No,” said Chris Mueller. “He’s managed 50 games, everybody else has managed 85.”
Mullsy said he would probably have Milwaukee manager Pat Murphy and Cincinnati’s Terry Francona ahead of Kelly.
“I think he’s smack dab,” said Andrew Fillipponi. “He’s in the conversation.”
Mueller says if Kelly’s able to get the Pirates to near .500 toward the end of the season, then he’ll consider him for Manager of the Year.
If that does happen, you can bet Kelly is back in 2026.