NEW YORK -- This wasn’t how the Pirates saw this season ending.

They finished 2023 strong, a step forward from 100-loss campaigns the two years prior. The veterans who endured those campaigns started saying in Spring Training that they viewed this group as a playoff team, wanting to take that next step forward.

That didn’t happen. This club showed flashes of getting better, but with a 6-4 loss to the Yankees at Yankee Stadium on Sunday, they finished with the same record as they did the year prior: 76-86 -- a stagnant record, even after adding Paul Skenes and Jared Jones to the rotation, having Oneil Cruz return and making a splash at the Trade Deadline. It’s hard to argue that the roster hasn’t improved, but it didn’t translate to more wins.

“We have to get better,” said manager Derek Shelton. “I mean, the last two teams that we played in terms of the Brewers and the Yankees, they're doing what we expect to do, and what we need to do and want to do. So I think that's the thing. We have to continue to find ways to get better."

For four months, the Pirates were in the thick of the National League Wild Card chase despite extended hot and cold stretches. They decided to go for it at the Trade Deadline, bringing in three Major League players. But it was about then that things went sideways: Pittsburgh went 8-19 in August, including a 10-game losing streak.

At that point, it became clear they weren’t going to reach those heightened expectations.

“We were in it at the Deadline,” said general manager Ben Cherington on his weekly radio show on 93.7 The Fan on Sunday. “We made the decision to add and give this team a chance. We didn’t play well enough. That’s really frustrating, but it’s become clear that we need to be better. The fact that we were in the position shows improvement over previous years. We need to get better faster, and we all have to do our jobs better.”

Game 162 was wet, messy and drawn out, the final game on the Sunday slate to start and conclude due to an hour-and-a-half rain delay. A 13-walk affair -- seven by Pirates pitchers -- was eventually settled like too many games for Pittsburgh this season: a bullpen loss. After a hit batter and two walks with two outs in the eighth, Alex Verdugo singled off Carmen Mlodzinski to put the Yankees ahead.

That bullpen situation is going to need to be rectified after finishing with a 4.49 ERA, 27th in the Majors. Cherington pointed out on his show that righting a bullpen can take less time than different parts of a roster. For the Pirates’ sake, they’ll need it to.

But if the bullpen is a cause for concern, it’s the rotation that gives them their hope moving forward. A group led by Skenes and Jones posted a 3.95 ERA. The two rookies had brief but eye-opening starts in this final series.

"I think Paul yesterday put a little show on for our organization and showed the league what is to come,” said Isiah Kiner-Falefa.

“I look at teams like the Mariners,” said veteran outfielder Andrew McCutchen. “I look at Baltimore. They do have some talent there on the offensive side, but they do have really good pitching, too, coming up through the organization, for the most part. When I look at teams like that, I go, 'This team isn't far off from that.' We're right there with 'em. Having really good pitching, lights-out pitching on top of that, [helps].”

That nucleus of young pitching gives the Pirates hope that better times are ahead. They’ll need to be supported with a better bullpen and a more consistent offense, but for four months, they showed they could be the heart of a team making a playoff push.

The 2025 schedule was posted on the door of the Yankee Stadium visitors’ clubhouse, something all players will have to pass to exit. Consider it an unspoken reminder of where the focus now is and getting over the hump they couldn’t this season.

”I feel like our windows are now opening,“ Kiner-Falefa said. “We have to figure out a way to adjust and get over the hump. The talent is here. That's not a problem or issue. The work ethic is here. We just have to go about our business and see how the chips fall next year, but I like our chances."