Pirates/MLB category, Page 171
Wearing No. 21 as Roberto Clemente Award nominee holds ‘extra significance’ for Jacob StallingsVideo
Jacob Stallings already viewed the opportunity to wear No. 21 with his Pittsburgh Pirates teammates in celebration of Roberto Clemente Day as “one of the coolest days in Major League Baseball.” When Stallings wears that number on the back of his jersey against the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday night at...
Pirates place reliever David Bednar on 10-day IL, recall RHP Enyel De Los Santos
The Pittsburgh Pirates placed reliever David Bednar on the 10-day injured list Tuesday with a right oblique strain and recalled right-hander Enyel De Los Santos to take his spot on the 28-man active roster. Bednar (3-1, 2.18 ERA,) a Mars graduate, hasn’t pitched since he tossed a scoreless eighth inning...
ESPN: MLB to allow Pirates, Puerto Rican players, award nominees to wear No. 21 on Roberto Clemente DayVideo
MLB has granted permission to the 30 Roberto Clemente Award nominees and six active past winners, along with the Pittsburgh Pirates and all Puerto Rican players, to wear No. 21 on the 20th Roberto Clemente Day, according to ESPN. ESPN also reported that Sept. 15 will be announced as the...
Pirates SS Oneil Cruz cracks top 20 in Baseball America’s updated top 100 prospect rankings
After Pittsburgh Pirates rookie third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes graduated from prospect status, Oneil Cruz assumed the top prospect ranking in the club’s minor league system. Now, Cruz is one of the game’s top 20 prospects. When Baseball America updated its top 100 prospects on Monday, Cruz moved up 10 spots...
Tim Benz: Pirates’ inability to finish a sweep is something to behold
I have 15 windows open on my browser as I write this post about the Pittsburgh Pirates. The first one is the Google Doc I’m using to write my initial draft. The next 13 are box scores of the 13 losses from the Pirates this year as they have unsuccessfully...
Pirates place LHP Steven Brault on 60-day IL, claim reliever Enyel De Los Santos from Phillies
Steven Brault’s season is over for the Pittsburgh Pirates, who transferred the left-hander to the 60-day injured list Monday and claimed right-handed reliever Enyel De Los Santos off waivers from Philadelphia. Brault (0-3, 5.86 ERA in seven starts) was removed after the second inning Friday against Washington after experiencing tightness....
With David Bednar unavailable, Pirates bullpen suffers another blow
Just when David Bednar looked like he was positioned to become the closer for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Derek Shelton didn’t call his number late in any of the three games against the Washington Nationals. Shelton said Sunday that Bednar wasn’t a consideration. “Right now, he is not available,” Shelton said....
Pirates farm report for Sept. 12, 2021: Ka’ai Tom, John Nogowski lift Indianapolis to victory
INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 54-59) shut out Louisville (Reds), 3-0. RF Ka’ai Tom (.224) hit a two-run home run, and 1B John Nogowski (.207) had an RBI in a three-run fourth inning. 2B Tucupita Marcano (.236) was 2 for 4. RHP Max Kranick (4-4, 4.14) allowed two hits with one walk and...
Nationals blast 3 home runs off Bryse Wilson to beat Pirates, prevent series sweep
The Pittsburgh Pirates were searching for a sweep at home. The Washington Nationals were swinging for home runs. Luis Garcia and Alex Avila hit solo shots and Lane Thomas a three-run homer off Bryse Wilson to lead the Nationals to a 6-2 win over the Pirates on Sunday afternoon before...
Pirates farm report for Sept. 11, 2021: Oneil Cruz belts 3 hits, steals 2 bases
INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 54-58) lost 5-4 to Louisville (Reds) on a walk-off home run by Michael De Leon with two outs and nobody on in the bottom of the ninth. RHP Hunter Stratton (0-2, 4.86) gave up the homer. RHP Miguel Yajure started and allowed two runs on six hits and...
Propelled by a pair of home runs, Pirates use patience at plate to top Nationals
Derek Shelton wants his hitters to be aggressive at the plate, but when their swings were leading to quick outs the Pittsburgh Pirates manager asked for a different approach. The Pirates’ patience paid off. After rallying to tie the game with a pair of fifth inning home runs, the Pirates...
Pirates place LHP Steven Brault on 10-day IL, recall RHP Connor Overton from Indianapolis
The Pittsburgh Pirates placed left-handed pitcher Steven Brault on the 10-day injured list with a recurrent left lat strain and recalled right-hander Connor Overton from Triple-A Indianapolis on Saturday. Brault (0-3, 5.86 ERA) was out from spring training until Aug. 4, and he made his seventh start and pitched two...
Pirates farm report for Sept. 10, 2021: John Nogowski homers in Indianapolis rout
INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 53-58) crushed Louisville (Reds), 12-3. RHP James Marvel (5-6, 5.24) started, allowing a run and walking three to go along with seven strikeouts over six innings. RHP Keury Mella (8.31) and RHP John O’Reilly (4.43) both pitched scoreless innings. 2B Tucupita Marcano (.228), CF Jared Oliva (.270) and...
Pirates rally in 9th, Hayes hits winning single against Nationals
Ke’Bryan Hayes has accomplished quite a bit since making his major league debut with the Pittsburgh Pirates a little more than a year ago. The rookie third baseman added something else to his list Friday night. Hayes had his first career walk-off RBI, a single down the right-field line with...
Pirates starter Steven Brault leaves game with left arm discomfort
Pittsburgh Pirates left-hander Steven Brault was removed after two innings from Friday night’s game because of left arm discomfort. Facing the Washington Nationals in the opener of a three-game series at PNC Park, Brault allowed two runs and two hits. He walked two and struck out one. Cody Ponce replaced...
Pirates notebook: Nationals first baseman Josh Bell returns to PNC Park
Like so many other fan favorites before him, Josh Bell had his first PNC Park homecoming. Bell was back in Pittsburgh on Friday for the first time since the Pirates traded the switch-hitting first baseman to the Washington Nationals on Christmas Eve for right-hander Wil Crowe and a prospect. The...
Pirates GM Ben Cherington: ‘Unlikely’ new hitting coach will be hired until after season
Ben Cherington said it’s “unlikely” that interviews for a new hitting coach will begin until after the conclusion of the season, though the Pittsburgh Pirates general manager has an idea of what he wants. The Pirates fired hitting coach Rick Eckstein after three seasons on Aug. 30, when they ranked...
Mark Madden: Pirates great Dave Parker is one of Hall of Fame’s many absurd absences
It’s so much more fun to talk about the Pirates as they used to be. I went to Wednesday’s game against Detroit. (I had Club Cambria tickets. I always go first-class.) The announced attendance was 8,382. But I’d bet there weren’t more than 2,000 people in the stands. There were...
Tim Benz: Remembering how PNC Park helped baseball return after 9/11. And how an ex-Pirate played the hero
By his sixth year of Major League Baseball, Pirates catcher Jason Kendall knew how to massage a relationship with a home plate umpire. Build a rapport. Manage a mood. Gauge a personality. Maybe buy a call on the corner. That’s not what this was. This was one guy worried about...
Pirates farm report for Sept. 9, 2021: Bethel Park’s Justin Meis earns 1st win for Bradenton
INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 52-58) lost to Louisville (Reds), 6-3. RHP Tanner Anderson (2-3, 3.94) got the loss, allowing two runs, walking one and striking out three over five innings. RHP Connor Overton (1.99), who was just acquired from the Blue Jays, pitched a scoreless inning with a pair of strikeouts and...
‘Celebrate Roberto’ kicks off days of Clemente events
Even Pittsburghers who don’t follow the Pirates have never forgotten Roberto Clemente. In the nearly half century since his tragic death, there has been a bridge named after him and a museum created to honor his memory. And next week there will be plenty to remind people of the great...
‘Baseball is in my blood’: Francisco Cervelli enjoying retirement, eyes next phase of lifeVideo
Francisco Cervelli was back in a major-league ballpark for the first time in a year and, after visiting the broadcast booth for a guest appearance, the former Pittsburgh Pirates catcher was impressed by a new viewpoint of PNC Park after five years of seeing it from behind home plate. A...
U mad, bro?: Steelers fans torn on T.J. Watt topic; Pirates fans struggling to find a solution
On the Steelers front, we appear to have mixed opinions on the T.J. Watt situation. On the Pirates front, there is no such divide. Everybody has had it up to their eyeballs with frustration. In this week’s “U mad, bro?”, we surf through both emotions. Bryant doesn’t like the fact...
Pirates farm report for Sept. 8, 2021: Aaron Shackelford follows cycle with grand slam
INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 52-57) were beaten by Louisville (Reds), 7-1. CF Jared Oliva (.265) had a double — the only extra base hit for the Indians. RF Bligh Madris (.267) and 1B John Nogowski (.195) each had singles. RHP Beau Sulser (6-6, 4.49) suffered the loss, allowing five runs on 10...
Miguel Cabrera serves as catalyst for Tigers, who prevent Pirates from series sweep
Mitch Keller remains an enigma for the Pittsburgh Pirates, as the right-hander followed his best start of this rollercoaster season by surrendering double-digit hits to the Detroit Tigers. There is no mystery to Miguel Cabrera. On the day of the Baseball Hall of Fame induction ceremony, the Detroit Tigers first...
