Don Kelly is past the pinch-me phase of being manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates yet the Mt. Lebanon and Point Park alum was so stunned by one fun factoid that he let out a hearty laugh in disbelief.
After Mike Sullivan was relieved of duties in April after 10 seasons with the Penguins and Mike Tomlin resigned in January after 19 seasons with the Steelers, Kelly has risen to prominence as the leader in longevity among head coaches of Pittsburgh professional sports teams.
All before his first spring training as Pirates skipper.
“It is kind of amazing to be the longest-tenured coach here,” Kelly told TribLive by phone from Florida last week. “Does it really count?”
It’s official, given that he never wore the interim tag upon replacing Derek Shelton last May 8. Kelly, who turns 46 on Feb. 15, has every intention of making his chance to manage his hometown team count. Kelly inherited a team that stumbled to a 12-26 start and directed the Pirates to a 59-65 record (.476 winning percentage). Even though they finished with 91 losses and in last place in the National League Central, Kelly received a contract extension on Sept. 29.
Before Kelly could look ahead, he spent time doing a self-evaluation of his first 124 games as a major league manager. That included picking the brains of two World Series-winning mentors, Hall of Famer Jim Leyland (who led the Marlins to a world championship in 1997) and A.J. Hinch of the Detroit Tigers (Astros in 2017). Kelly played for Leyland with the Tigers when they were swept by the San Francisco Giants in the 2012 World Series and was first base coach for Hinch when the Astros lost in the 2019 World Series.
“Last year, I learned a lot from when I took over. I’m still learning a ton. I don’t think I would’ve changed much about how I would’ve managed,” said Kelly, who logged their conversations in a notebook. “Even now, the best advice I got from Leyland, A.J. Hinch and others was, ‘You’ve got to be yourself.’ To continue to be me every single day is really the best thing I can do.”
Leyland was impressed with how Kelly handled the transition from bench coach to manager in May, immediately earning the respect of his players despite not having any prior managing experience at any level.
“All of a sudden because you are named the manager of the team, you can’t change who you are. You are who you are,” Leyland told TribLive. “It’s a different level of responsibility. It sends off a signal of panic to the players if, all of a sudden, you’re stepping out of your personality. Donnie did a real good job of that. He was learning on the job, so to speak. He had been the bench coach but he had never managed. When you’re in the manager’s chair, it’s a little bit different. You have to continue to be yourself.”
Kelly continues to preach positivity. An offseason that started with Paul Skenes winning the NL Cy Young Award by unanimous vote saw the Pirates make moves that provide a glimmer of hope that they can end a streak of seven consecutive losing seasons.
They signed a two-time All-Star left-handed reliever in Gregory Soto to boost the bullpen. In an effort to provide pop to MLB’s worst offense, they traded for an All-Star second baseman Brandon Lowe and signed their first multi-year free agent in first baseman/outfielder Ryan O’Hearn, who credited a phone call with Kelly for convincing him to agree to a two-year, $29 million contract. On Monday, the Pirates agreed to a free-agent deal with designated hitter Marcell Ozuna.
The Pirates also boast baseball’s consensus top prospect in 19-year-old Konnor Griffin, who is expected to compete for the starting job at shortstop.
After running the major league camp at Pirate City and LECOM Park the past six springs, Kelly now goes from taking orders to giving them. It started with assembling his coaching staff. He kept hitting coach Matt Hague and assistants Christian Marrero and Jonny Tucker, first base coach Tarrik Brock, bullpen coach Miguel Perez, catching coach Jordan Comadena and assistant/translator Stephen Morales, but hired a new bench coach in Kristopher Negron, third base coach in Tony Beasley, pitching coach Bill Murphy and assistant Thomas Whitsett, field coordinator Shawn Bowman and infield coach Chris Truby.
“I’m excited about spring and being the manager and really looking forward to 2026,” Kelly said, emphasizing attention to detail and doing drills correctly. “I’m managing the staff that way, so the staff is helping with that. Also, from my standpoint, making sure everything is going well and that we are focusing on the details we need to focus on to win.
“I want the staff to know that I trust them to do their job — and to do a great job of it — and I trust the players to work hard every day and be the best they can be. And I also want them to know that I’m in the boat with them. Whatever they need from me, whether that’s grabbing a fungo or throwing BP — doing whatever I can do to help — knowing that we’re all in the same boat, going in the same direction and that’s towards winning in Pittsburgh.”
Always looking for ways to be better, Kelly half-heartedly jokes that you don’t need to ask Leyland for advice. He’s going to tell you his opinion, regardless. To have an 81-year-old baseball lifer with a plaque in Cooperstown as a sounding board is invaluable to Kelly, especially considering that Leyland shared the same home dugout and managed the Pirates to their last three division titles from 1990-92.
Even if his advice comes with a warning: “The guy’s a Hall of Famer and he’s never going to lie to you,” Kelly said, with a chuckle. “You better buckle up sometimes.”
Leyland’s initial advice to Kelly was to remain constant in his personality and hands-on approach. They were the keys to a career that spanned nine seasons, often as the last man on the roster. Managers valued his versatility — Kelly once played all nine positions in the same season — and the positive presence he brought to their clubhouse.
“The biggest thing with Donnie, I talked to him a little bit about it this winter and he’s picked up on it pretty good, last year he said in press conference that the guys were playing hard right up until the end,” Leyland said. “That’s all fine and dandy, but I told him, ‘That’s good. But that’s supposed to be a given. The point you have to get across is, if you want to get your record better, you have to play good. If you want playing time, you have to earn playing time.’ I played hard and I never got out of Double-A. It’s a matter of playing hard but you have to play good up here. I hope he gets that message to his team.”
Driving that point home, Leyland suggested that Kelly could earn the respect of his players by how organized his big league camp is run. Leyland wanted to make sure his players were ready for the regular season, so he played starters on a regular basis — home and away — during Grapefruit League games, instead of giving veterans preferential treatment. Leyland believes it could lead the Pirates to steal some wins early in the season against superior opponents.
“I think this is a big spring for Donnie because it’s his first spring as the manager of the club,” Leyland said. “How he organizes his spring training and goes about getting players ready to play during the season is going to be a huge factor. … I told the players, ‘Look, I love veteran players. I hope you can make whatever you can make to the moon. That’s fine. But nobody on this team gets any more favors because you’re a veteran. You get your respect every two weeks when you get paid.’ I’m a big believer and know in my heart and believe it’s right.”
When it comes to veterans, Kelly danced around a delicate subject. Andrew McCutchen, the 39-year-old franchise icon, remains an unsigned free agent while the Pirates pursued slugger Kyle Schwarber before agreeing to sign three-time All-Star Ozuna to a one-year, $12 million contract to serve as designated hitter.
A five-time All-Star and 2013 NL MVP who led the Pirates to three consecutive wild-card playoff appearances from 2013-15, McCutchen lashed out at the organization on social media for its treatment of him last month after PiratesFest. While Kelly might be the messenger, McCutchen’s fate likely will be decided by Pirates chairman Bob Nutting and general manager Ben Cherington.
“I think the world of Cutch,” Kelly said Thursday afternoon. “Until there’s a resolution, I’m just trying to navigate it the best I can and we can. Having been a former teammate of his and been with him the last few years in Pittsburgh, what he means to this city, the years that he had ’13-15 were electric.”
Where younger Pirates fans view those as the PNC Park glory years, Kelly’s memory of winning baseball in Pittsburgh extends to the Three Rivers Stadium era. His love for baseball began when Leyland became manager in 1985, so Kelly was fully immersed in fandom when they lost to the Atlanta Braves in Game 7 of the 1992 NLCS.
“I got my heart ripped out,” Kelly said, “just like every Pirates fan out there when Sid Bream scored.”
Having made his major league debut for the Pirates in 2007, Kelly knows just how special it is to play for and manage his hometown team — the latter a title he shares with Mike McCarthy after the Steelers hired the 62-year-old Greenfield native to be head coach Jan. 27.
“It’s something that I haven’t, won’t and would never take for granted that I have the opportunity to do this,” Kelly said. “It feels natural, if that makes sense. I appreciate it every day. I don’t take it for granted at all. Having grown up in the city, I understand what the job as Pirates manager entails and understand the history of the team. Winning in Pittsburgh is the most important thing. How do we continue to strive for that every single day? Being a Pirates fan since I was 5 years old, I certainly don’t take it for granted and work hard every single day to bring winning to Pittsburgh.”