PITTSBURGH — Derek Shelton believes the Pittsburgh Pirates are already winning in the clubhouse.

“I’m really proud of the culture we’ve created here,” Shelton said after his second year as manager ended the same as the first, with Pittsburgh a distant fifth place in the NL Central. “We’re moving in the right direction.”

At least under the surface.

While the minor league system has been restocked thanks to the drafting of players like first overall pick Henry Davis and a series of trades in which general manager Ben Cherington flipped established players for prospects, the major league product remains very much in a state of flux.

The Pirates used 64 players in 2021, breaking the club record of 55 set in 2016. That number includes a record 38 pitchers, few of whom were particularly effective for a team that finished with the second-worst ERA (5.08) in the National League.

While a couple of building blocks — namely All-Star center fielder Bryan Reynolds and third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes — are already in place, the majority of the rest of the roster felt like the Uber line at an airport with people coming and going at will.

For every success story like reliever David Bednar (who revitalized his career with a 3-1 record and a 2.23 ERA while pitching for his hometown team) there was a Trevor Cahill (1-5, 6.57).

The same went for the position players. John Nogowski achieved fleeting cult status after arriving in early July. By late September he was playing for San Francisco. Todd Frazier was signed in February to provide veteran leadership to a young club. He was gone by mid-May. Adam Frazier started at second base in the All-Star Game. A couple weeks later, while leading the majors in hits, he was traded to San Diego.