The 2019 Pirates hoped to contend on the back of their starting pitching. Jameson Taillon, Trevor Williams, Chris Archer, Joe Musgrove, and Jordan Lyles looks great on paper.
Taillon won't be back until around the All-Star break at the earliest. Archer has been disappointing, or hurt.
Last night Trevor Williams was removed from the game after just 3.2 innings of work. If that's a long term injury, the Pirates are screwed.
Nick Kingham and Steven Brault have proven that neither one of them is the answer. Nobody in AAA has separated from the pack with the exception of Mitch Keller, but I don't expect the Pirates want to start his arbitration clock.
Francisco Liriano had an ERA just north of 4.50 last year in the AL. He's been great this year for the Bucs (.89 ERA in 20 innings). He'd be my pick to throw into the rotation for the time being.
I don't think any of those options are great. If Williams is out long term, the Pirates won't be contenders for long.