The Pirates are hiring Astros pitching coach Bill Murphy as their new pitching coach, sources told MLB.com. The club has yet to confirm the story.
Murphy, 36, has spent the past decade in the Astros’ organization, starting as a Rookie Ball pitching coach in 2016 before rising to their pitching coordinator in ‘19 and assistant pitching coach in ‘21. He was elevated to one of Houston’s two Major League pitching coaches after the ‘21 campaign, and the Astros have boasted some of the best pitching in baseball since then, leading the Majors in team ERA (3.61) since the start of the ‘22 season.
This year, the Astros finished eighth in team pitching WAR (18.0) in MLB per FanGraphs and were tied for 11th in ERA (3.86).
Murphy started his coaching career in the collegiate ranks with Georgetown and Brown. His background in player development has also been a commonality in many Pirates coaching hires.
Murphy worked under Brent Strom early in his coaching career. Strom was the Pirates’ assistant pitching coach in 2025, but he declined to return amid a shakeup on the coaching staff. While his stint was short, he did make an impact, focusing on teaching.
The Pirates opted not to renew Oscar Marin’s contract at the end of this season after getting input from pitchers believing they could reach another level. The 2025 staff was one of the best in the National League, finishing seventh in baseball in ERA (3.76) and fourth in WAR, according to FanGraphs (19.1).
NL Cy Young Award favorite Paul Skenes anchored that group, but the organization has one of the best collections of young pitchers in baseball. Braxton Ashcraft, Bubba Chandler and Mike Burrows all made strong leaps to the Majors in their rookie campaigns, Mitch Keller has been a steady force in the rotation, Johan Oviedo made his return from Tommy John surgery and Jared Jones should return from his elbow surgery in 2026.
The Pirates still have some holes to fill on manager Don Kelly’s coaching staff, most notably finding a new third-base coach.
