Photo provided by Matt Lynch
One of the biggest questions surrounding the Pittsburgh Pirates in the weeks leading up to spring training is whether or not fan favorite Andrew McCutchen would be brought back for the 2026 season.
McCutchen, who was named an All-Star five times and won the 2013 National League MVP during his first stint in Pittsburgh from 2009-17, returned to the Pirates in 2023 and has spent the last three seasons back with the team who drafted him in the first round in 2005.
Since returning to the Pirates, the team has yet to sniff playoff contention. Late last season, McCutchen understandably expressed his frustrations with the team’s lack of winning. The 39-year-old has accomplished a lot in his career but has yet to reach a league championship series and hasn’t been to the playoffs since the 2018 season with the New York Yankees.
McCutchen opted to return to the Pirates in 2023 and expressed a desire to win in Pittsburgh instead of playing for a team with a better chance of doing that.
This offseason, the Pirates have shown much more urgency than in previous years with several notable additions. They’ve added two All-Stars to the roster in second baseman Brandon Lowe (Tampa Bay Rays) and first baseman/outfielder Ryan O’Hearn among several others.
But still with work to be done, McCutchen remains a free agent two and a half weeks before pitchers and catchers report to Bradenton.
The Pirates held their annual PiratesFest this weekend. One of the segments included fan questions directed towards management. As expected, one of the questions directed towards a stage with general manager Ben Cherington, manager Don Kelly and president Travis Williams was in regards to McCutchen.
Cherington’s answer was shared by MLB.com’s Alex Stumpf.
During the Ask Management segment at PiratesFest, Ben Cherington was asked a preselected question about where things stand with Andrew McCutchen. His answer, in full: pic.twitter.com/kI33n0nqSd
— Alex Stumpf (@AlexJStumpf) January 24, 2026
Several hours later, after social media stirred with reactions to what Cherington said, McCutchen responded with a clear message on Twitter/X.
McCutchen noted several notable players who continually retained by their teams deep into their careers, including Albert Pujols, Adam Wainwright and Yadier Molina of the St. Louis Cardinals, Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Miguel Cabrera of the Detroit Tigers.
“There’s more work to do and [I’m] not done, no matter what label to you try to stamp on me, McCutchen posted in part. “Rip the jersey off of me. You [don’t] get to write my future, God does.”
The follow post can be found below:
I wonder, did the Cards do this Wainwright/Pujols/Yadi? Dodgers to Kershaw?Tigers to Miggy? The list goes on and on. If this is my last year, it would have been nice to meet the fans one last time as a player. Talk to them about my appreciation for them over the years. Shake that… https://t.co/oB8Nq1bjng
— Andrew McCutchen (@TheCUTCH22) January 25, 2026
Though there’s still work to be done, the Pirates have had a nearly flawless offseason up to this point. But they just pissed off a franchise icon and it remains to be seen if and when McCutchen will be brought back, and if and when the relationship can be amended.
Mentioned in this article: Andrew McCutchen Pittsburgh Pirates
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