Analyst - Coaching and Player Development

The Pirates Why

The Pittsburgh Pirates are a storied franchise in Major League Baseball who are reinventing themselves on every level. Boldly and relentlessly pursuing excellence by:

• purposefully developing a player and people-centered culture;
• deeply connecting with our fans, partners, and colleagues;
• passionately creating lifetime memories for generations of families and friends; and
• meaningfully impacting our communities and the game of baseball.

At the Pirates, we believe in the power of a diverse workforce and strive to create an inclusive culture centered in Passion, Innovation, Respect, Accountability, Teamwork, Empathy, and Service.

Job Summary

Support Coaching and Player Development (CPD) by turning performance data, research, and video into clear player evaluations and actionable development insights. This role will help coaches and CPD leadership identify player priorities, monitor progress, and make informed development decisions. The successful candidate will combine strong analytical skills, baseball knowledge, and the ability to communicate clearly with coaches. Working within Player Analysis and closely with Research and Development (R&D), this analyst will produce reliable analysis, maintain useful reporting, and help staff apply organizational research and tools in their daily work.

Responsibilities:

1. Analyze player performance using tracking data, statistical models, video, and other available information to identify strengths, limitations, and development opportunities.
2. Evaluate hitter/pitcher tendencies and other assigned areas of player performance, accounting for pitch characteristics, game context, competition level, and sample size.
3. Translate research and analytical findings into practical recommendations that support player evaluations, development plans, and CPD decisions.
4. Support the player plan process by helping coaches identify objective focus metrics, establish baselines, document priorities, and update measures of progress.
5. Monitor performance trends and communicate meaningful changes to the appropriate staff in a timely manner, distinguishing likely skill changes from short-term variation.
6. Build and maintain reports, dashboards, and visualizations that answer coaching questions clearly and are accessible through organizational systems, including Bridge as appropriate.
7. Use current R&D research and models in CPD reporting; work with R&D to understand assumptions, resolve questions, and provide feedback on tools and analysis.
8. Partner with product and technical teams on durable reporting solutions; automate recurring work and validate data quality before sharing results.
9. Maintain reproducible code, version-controlled analysis, and clear workflow documentation in organizational systems such as DevOps or GitHub.
10. Help coaches interpret reports and use analytical tools independently; seek feedback on whether the information is understandable and useful in practice.
11. Complete timely analysis for player meetings, offseason planning, Spring Training, and other CPD projects as assigned; communicate priorities and handle player information with discretion.

Qualifications

Required:

1. Bachelor's degree in statistics, mathematics, computer science, data science, sports analytics, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience.
2. Demonstrated ability to complete analytical projects from a defined question through data preparation, analysis, and clear communication of findings.
3. Proficiency in Python or R and working knowledge of SQL for accessing, cleaning, joining, and analyzing data.
4. Understanding of statistical reasoning, sample size, uncertainty, and the limitations of observational data.
5. Working knowledge of baseball performance analysis and a strong interest in player development.
6. Ability to explain technical information in practical language and collaborate effectively with coaches, analysts, and other staff.
7. Strong attention to detail, organization, and follow-through; ability to manage recurring work alongside time-sensitive requests.
8. Availability to support the baseball schedule, including nights, weekends, holidays, and travel as required by the role.

Desired:

1. Experience working with baseball tracking data, player development reports, or performance analysis in a team or comparable setting.
2. Experience building dashboards, interactive visualizations, or automated reporting workflows for end users.
3. Familiarity with Git-based version control, documented analytical workflows, and collaboration with software or product teams.
4. Experience applying statistical models to player evaluation, monitoring performance over time, or assessing development outcomes.

Our Commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) are integral to who we are as an organization. We believe that our workforce should reflect the vast diversity of the communities we serve and that diverse voices should be elevated and intentionally integrated into our work. Even if you feel as if you do not meet 100% of the qualifications, we still strongly encourage you to apply.