Pirates/MLB category, Page 233
Fully recovered after Tommy John surgery, Edgar Santana ready to bolster Pirates’ bullpen
BRADENTON, Fla. — Edgar Santana was more than 1,000 miles away from Pittsburgh last season, and that made it difficult on the Pirates relief pitcher. Santana underwent Tommy John surgery in September 2018. He spent the majority of last year in Florida rehabbing his elbow at the Pirate City training...
First Call: 2 Pirates get thrown out at home plate on same playVideo
Tuesday’s “First Call” gives you a glimpse at how the 2020 Pirates season is going to go. It’s only March. It’s still spring training. But the club’s highlight of the year may have already occurred. Let’s set the scene. The Pirates are in the process of losing an otherwise innocuous...
Pirates option prospects Will Craig and Oneil Cruz to Triple-A, reassign 3 othersVideo
Two of the Pittsburgh Pirates’ top prospects were optioned to Triple-A on Monday, and three others were reassigned to the organization’s minor league camp. Shortstop Oneil Cruz and corner infielder Will Craig were optioned to Indianapolis. The Pirates’ No. 3 prospect according to MLB Pipeline, the 6-foot-7 Cruz slashed .217/.250/.435...
Trevor Williams, Pirates pitchers strong in spring-training loss to Blue JaysVideo
Starter Trevor Williams pitched three shutout innings, and five relievers combined to throw five hitless innings in a 3-1 loss for the Pittsburgh Pirates against the Toronto Blue Jays on Monday afternoon at LECOM Park in Bradenton, Fla. Williams allowed two singles and two walks with two strikeouts, but Williams...
Pirates pitchers Blake Cederlind, JT Brubaker, Cody Ponce sent to Indy in first spring cuts
The Pittsburgh Pirates made their first cuts of spring training, and they all involved pitchers. Right-handers JT Brubaker, Blake Cederlind and Cody Ponce were optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis. Right-handers Montana DuRapau, Luis Escobar and James Marvel were reassigned to minor league camp at Pirate City. Check out our Pirates coverage...
First Call: Le’Veon Bell visits Pittsburgh, Mike Sullivan on Penguins problems, Barry Bonds is sad
Monday’s “First Call” looks at Mike Sullivan’s characterization of his struggling Penguins. Also, Le’Veon Bell’s return to Pittsburgh, Robert Morris hockey stays alive, and a positive spin for Duquesne hoops. Aw. And Barry Bonds is sad. Bad connection? Uh oh. The last time we heard about something being “disconnected” in...
Tim Benz, Mark Madden: Stumbling Penguins, Steelers questions, Pirates disinterest
So much for the Penguins getting back on track. That was the hope after the Pens won back-to-back games against the Ottawa Senators and Buffalo Sabres last week. Those victories stopped the bleeding of a six-game losing streak. However, any hope that the team had found its footing for a...
Fast-rising Pirates OF prospect Jared Oliva’s story helps shape careerVideo
Jared Oliva always knew what he wanted to be: A professional baseball player. What he didn’t know was how to get to the major leagues, especially without a college scholarship offer. Oliva went from former walk-on at Arizona to leading the Wildcats to the College World Series to seventh-round draft...
John Steigerwald: OK, now it’s time for Penguins fans to panic
Feel free to panic. The six-game losing streak with three straight losses to bad teams on the road was a good reason for Penguins to be annoyed, but it could be written off as an ordinary, if not expected, bad spell in a long season. Losing to the Capitals at...
Pirates elder statesman Jose Osuna out to impress new management team
BRADENTON, Fla. — The player who has spent the most continuous service time in the Pittsburgh Pirates’ organization is a bit of a surprise. However, Jose Osuna has been around longer than anybody. The Pirates signed him as an amateur international free agent from Venezuela in 2009 as a 16-year-old....
Mitch Keller strikes out 5, allows 1 run in 3 innings as Pirates tie RaysVideo
Top prospect Mitch Keller had five strikeouts and allowed one run in three-plus innings as the starting pitcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates in a 2-2 tie against the Tampa Bay Rays on Sunday in Port Charlotte, Fla. Keller retired four of the first five he faced but allowed three hits...
Gregory Polanco continues scorching spring, but Pirates lose to YankeesVideo
John Ryan Murphy hit his team-leading third home run of the spring, and Gregory Polanco doubled in each of his two at-bats but the Pittsburgh Pirates lost to the New York Yankees, 7-4, on Saturday at LECOM Park in Bradenton, Fla. Signed to compete for the No. 2 catcher’s job,...
Blake Cederlind making noise this spring, showing potential to be future closer for Pirates
Blake Cederlind is making noise for the Pittsburgh Pirates, from his grunting on the mound when throwing a pitch to popping the catcher’s mitt with fastballs that can touch triple digits. Derek Shelton called Cederlind one of the more fun things to watch in spring training after the Pirates manager...
Pirates offer free admission to kids under 14 in April and May
It’s never been easy for the Pittsburgh Pirates to attract people to PNC Park in April and May when the weather is not always appropriate for spectators. But Pirates officials hope their latest promotion — free admission for anyone 14 and under — helps draw a crowd. The only conditions:...
Pirates hit 7 home runs in spring win over Blue JaysVideo
A Phillip Evans seventh-inning grand slam was one of seven homers hit by the Pittsburgh Pirates in a 19-13 victory against the Toronto Blue Jays in Grapefruit League play Friday. A 27-year-old nonroster invitee with 34 games of major league experience, Evans homered and added a single among three at-bats...
Chris Stratton brings positive spin to Pirates bullpen
BRADENTON, Fla. — Chris Stratton has a comfortable feeling in his first spring training with the Pittsburgh Pirates. “I feel like I’ve been a Pirate for three or four years,” the relief pitcher said. “I don’t why. I guess it’s just the group of guys that we have. It’s been...
Derek Holland, 4 others toss 2-hitter in Pirates loss
It’s only spring training, but the Pittsburgh Pirates keep finding new ways to lose. Derek Holland and four others combined for a two-hitter Thursday, but the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Pirates, 2-1, in Port Charlotte, Fla. A veteran lefty on a minor league contract and competing to be the...
Kevin Gorman: Pirates catcher Jacob Stallings showed leadership when no one was watchingVideo
As a former third-stringer who was designated for assignment last May, Jacob Stallings understands how unlikely it is that he’s slated to become the starting catcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates, let alone a leader. Stallings isn’t taking anything for granted, even though he was endorsed the starter in spring training...
Pirates allow 18 runs in 2 losses; Bell, 4 others homerVideo
Josh Bell, Cole Tucker, Bryan Reynolds and Adam Frazier homered, but Pittsburgh Pirates pitchers allowed 16 earned runs in 17 innings in losing two split-squad Grapefruit League games by 9-7 scores Wednesday. The Atlanta Braves scored the final seven runs to beat the Pirates at Bradenton’s LECOM Park in a...
OF prospect Jason Martin excited to get another chance with Pirates
BRADENTON, Fla. — It was a small sample size, to be sure. Outfielder Jason Martin made his MLB debut with the Pittsburgh Pirates last season. He logged 40 plate appearances over 20 games, but it was enough for Martin to learn life in the major leagues isn’t as overwhelming as...
Pirates sanitize LECOM Park as proactive measure vs. virus
BRADENTON, Fla. — The Pittsburgh Pirates have given their spring training home a deep clean as a proactive measure after a man in Manatee County tested positive for coronavirus. Pirates spokesman Brian Warecki said workers sanitized the clubhouse, press box, concession stands and other areas of LECOM Park in an...
Pirates reliever Geoff Hartlieb off on the right foot
BRADENTON, Fla. — Geoff Hartlieb spent the first 25 years of his life with an extra bone in his right foot and didn’t even know it. “It’s one of those crazy things,” the Pittsburgh Pirates relief pitcher said. Hartlieb began feeling pain in his foot midway through his rookie season...
U.S. pro sports leagues, NCAA begin to prep contingencies in wake of coronavirus
Even if COVID-19 has not yet spread throughout the U.S., concern about what is better known as coronavirus has. And it is beginning to have an effect on the sports world. The NFL, NBA, NHL and Major League Baseball to varying degrees all have announced they are monitoring the threatened...
Pirates catcher Susac hoping to finally live up to once-lofty projections
BRADENTON, Fla. — It wasn’t a big deal when the Pittsburgh Pirates signed Andrew Susac to a minor league contract Jan 31. In fact, it barely rated more than a mention. Yet, there was a time when Susac was a pretty big deal. That makes his presence in an organization...
After rehabbing with Pirates the past 13 months, pitcher Tom Koehler retires
Veteran pitcher Tom Koehler announced his retirement Monday, 2 ½ years after throwing his final regular-season pitch and 13 months after joining the Pittsburgh Pirates organization. The 33-year-old right-hander pitched for six seasons for the Miami Marlins and Toronto Blue Jays before shoulder injuries struck during 2018 spring training while...
