April 14, 2026<\/a><\/p>\nEven better for Burnett was being back at the ballpark where he pitched on the 2013 and \u201915 wild-card playoff teams while the Pirates entered the weekend series in first place in the National League Central. More than a decade since he played for the Pirates, Burnett remains popular.<\/p>\n
\u201cActually, walking in the stadium from the hotel, it just brings back everything,\u201d Burnett said. \u201cI had every hair on my body standing up on my walk over here. And the greetings from everybody is great. You see them left and right. They don\u2019t leave me alone. It\u2019s awesome so far.\u201d<\/p>\n
Burnett received an invitation to spend time with the team the first week of spring training at Pirate City in Bradenton, Fla., where he served as a mentor and shared his experiences with a young pitching staff that features a 23-year-old ace in Paul Skenes, a two-time All-Star right-hander who won the NL Cy Young Award in an unanimous vote.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s just scary, because he ain\u2019t even close to prime or peak, so it\u2019s just going to be fun to watch him,\u201d Burnett said. \u201cAnd, from what I gather, they all enjoy being around each other, competing against each other. Same thing when we played. Seems like all they want to do is punch tickets. I know it was other things, but that\u2019s the mentality. They have arms for days, so I loved watching them work, being around it again, seeing how they go about their business.\u201d<\/p>\n
Burnett was on the same staff as another former No. 1 overall pick with the Pirates, so it\u2019s no surprise that he sees similarities between Skenes and Gerrit Cole.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re both bulldogs, for one,\u201d Burnett said. \u201cOne thing I gather from both \u2013 and Cole is this way \u2013 but it doesn\u2019t matter how good they throw; they want to do better the next time out. And that was a big thing with Cole. He\u2019d go seven strong, like one hit, two hits and one run, and just sit down like, \u2018How can I go better next time?\u2019 I feel like Paul\u2019s the same way. He wants to be better every time out. I think the rest of the staff has seen that, and they\u2019re feeding off that as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pirates manager Don Kelly said Burnett made an impact on the starting rotation in spring training, sharing a winning attitude that has carried over into the regular season.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s great to see him back,\u201d Kelly said. \u201cIt was awesome to have him in spring (training). We\u2019ve talked about what he means to Pittsburgh, what he meant to those \u201913 and \u201915 teams, the edge that he brings. He\u2019s the perfect guy for City Connect Night to be back.\u201d<\/p>\n
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