Pirates end 2025 season with loss to Braves

Noah Hiles, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on Sep 28, 2025

Published in Baseball

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ATLANTA — The Pirates’ 2025 season ended in an appropriate fashion, as a poor offensive display ultimately wasted a commendable effort from the pitching staff, culminating in a 4-1 loss Sunday to the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park.

A two-run homer from Ronald Acuna Jr. in the bottom of the first inning was all Atlanta needed to secure its win. Pirates starter Johan Oviedo surrendered that blast. He was the game’s losing pitcher, which dropped his record to 2-1. 2024 National League Cy Young Award winner Chris Sale threw 5 2/3 innings of relief to earn himself the win, improving to 7-5.

The Pirates’ lone run of the afternoon was scored in the top of the sixth inning. Bryan Reynolds set the table with a one-out, pinch-hit double. Joey Bart followed with an RBI single that cut Atlanta’s lead to a single run. But the Pirates, similar to many other times this year, were unable to come up with any further offense.

Rookie left-hander Hunter Barco kept things close after Oviedo’s exit, throwing two scoreless innings of relief. But the Braves added on in the bottom of the eighth against Yohan Ramirez.

Matt Olson drove home Nick Allen with a one-out single to make it 3-1. He later came around to score on an error. It’s worth noting that while Allen reached on a double, his hit was largely due to Nick Yorke misreading the fly-ball in right field.

It was over when …

Raisel Iglesias closed out the Braves’ victory with a scoreless frame in the top of the ninth inning. The save was his 29th of the season.

On the mound

Oviedo concluded his brief, but overall solid 2025 campaign with five innings of two-run ball, allowing three hits, issuing three walks and striking out three batters. Both of his runs allowed came from Acuna Jr’s homer in the bottom of the first inning. In the end, he posted a 3.57 ERA over 40 1/3 innings, a positive first step back after missing last season due to Tommy John surgery.

While Oviedo’s outing marked a potential sign of better things to come, his counterpart’s served as the end of an 18-year journey.

Former Pirate Charlie Morton made his final career start Sunday afternoon, recording Atlanta’s first four outs before exiting the field to a standing ovation in the top of the second inning. Morton’s final hurrah appropriately came against the team he called home for seven seasons, while pitching for the club that he debuted with in 2008.

At the plate

The Pirates had six hits in their final game of the year. Reynolds’ double was the only one that went for extra-bases. Per baseball reference, Spencer Horwitz was Pittsburgh’s lone hitter with at least 400 plate appearances that finished 2025 with an above-league-average OPS.

Most valuable player

Sale struck out nine Pirates while allowing just four hits and a pair of walks.

Up next

The Pirates ended their 2025 season 71-91, marking their 29th losing record since 1992, the year of their last NL Central Division title. That mark resulted in the organization’s 11th last place finish since 2001, the year PNC Park opened. They enter the offseason with many questions to answer, hoping to create a better result in 2026.

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