Pirates/MLB category, Page 244
Remembering the ‘We Are Family’ 1979 Pirates
Now that the Washington Nationals have clinched the pennant, the Pirates are the National League team with the longest wait since their last World Series appearance. But if Pirates fans are forced to live off a memory of the team’s last appearance, Pittsburgh’s thrilling come-from-behind-victory over the Baltimore Orioles in...
Ex-Pirates SS Jackie Hernandez, member of 1971 World Series champs, dies
Former Pirates shortstop Jackie Hernandez, who fielded the final out in Game 7 of the 1971 World Series, died Saturday in Miami. He was 79. Born in Central Tinguaro, Cuba, Hernandez was a shortstop for most of his career. He played nine seasons for four teams from 1965-73, but he...
Former Pirate Bobby Del Greco remembered as ‘hero,’ ‘bigger than life’
One of Bobby Del Greco Jr.’s best memories of his father involves a fried bologna sandwich, the Three Stooges and an overturned newspaper delivery truck in the river near the Fort Pitt Bridge. Del Greco Sr., who grew up in the Hill District and played in the major leagues for...
Somehow, Pirates TV ratings go up this season
The Pittsburgh Pirates went 25-48 after the All-Star break, had several members of the organization get into physical confrontations in the clubhouse and fired manager Clint Hurdle at season’s end. And that’s to say nothing of the real-world horror of the arrest of closer Felipe Vazquez on sex crimes charges...
Report: A’s bench coach to interview with Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates’ search for a manager to replace Clint Hurdle will bring Neal Huntington face-to-face with Ryan Christenson, bench coach for the Oakland A’s, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. Christenson, 45, was a major league outfielder for the A’s, Arizona Diamondbacks, Milwaukee Brewers and Texas Rangers from 1998-2003. The...
Kevin Gorman: Gerrit Cole’s dominance mesmerizing, torturous for Pirates fansVideo
No Pittsburgh professional sports team tortures its fan base quite like the Pirates, and no Pittsburgh professional sports fan base tortures itself quite like Pirates fans. Watching former Pirates players shine in the MLB playoffs long has been an annual rite of passage in Pittsburgh as fans lament what could...
First Call: National broadcast jumps on ex-Pirates ALDS battle; James Neal stays hotVideo
For our final “First Call” of the week, we recap the ex-Pirates battle in Game 5 of the ALDS. James Neal can’t be stopped in Edmonton. And a very happy anniversary for a Pitt football legend. No contest Gerrit Cole and the Houston Astros blew by Tyler Glasnow and the...
First Call: Antonio Brown’s rambling plea to Patriots; Gerrit Cole vs. Tyler Glasnow in ALDS Game 5
In Thursday’s “First Call,” Antonio Brown says he wants to get back into the NFL with the Patriots. A Major League Baseball player channels his inner A.B. during a postgame celebration. John Gibson is back in Pittsburgh with the Anaheim Ducks. And Zion Williamson’s NBA career seems to be starting...
Ex-Pirates Gerrit Cole, Tyler Glasnow set to collide in Game 5 of ALDSVideo
There may be more than one Pittsburgh Pirates fan who, while watching Gerrit Cole and Tyler Glasnow pitch Game 5 of the ALDS on Thursday night, will whisper wistfully, “It could have been us.” Glasnow, the Pirates’ fifth-round draft choice in 2011, never gained traction in his eight seasons in...
Jason Kendall hopes to bring his passion back if hired as Pirates manager
If the question ever comes up, this is how Jason Kendall played the game of baseball: He once shattered an ankle trying to break up a no-hitter in the fifth inning with a bunt single for a Pittsburgh Pirates team going nowhere. On that fateful Fourth of July 20 years...
5 trouble spots the Pirates must address this offseason
While picking their way through the trash spilled over six months and 162 games, the Pittsburgh Pirates needed to scratch out only three more singles to do something no National League playoff team did this season. Collect 1,500 hits. Yes, it’s true. The Pirates compiled a team batting average of...
Pirates extend television deal to keep AT&T SportsNet as their television home
The Pittsburgh Pirates and AT&T Sports Networks on Friday announced a multi-year extension of their television rights deal that will continue to make AT&T SportsNet the regional television home for the Pirates. The network will televise at least 150 live Pirates game, along with pre- and post-game coverage and team-related...
First Call: Ed Reed’s ‘Steelers week’ speech to Ravens; Mark Melancon meltdown
In “First Call” Friday, the Ravens get a “Steelers Week” pep talk from a franchise legend. Mark Melancon melted down. What other teams are doing to Aaron Donald. Bring out the big guns Some have bemoaned the fact that so many of the players who laid the foundation of the...
Pitching coach Ray Searage, bench coach Tom Prince won’t return to Pirates in 2020
Pittsburgh Pirates pitching coach Ray Searage and bench coach Tom Prince have been informed by management they are not candidates to return to the team’s major league staff next season. All other major league coaches will be candidates to keep their jobs after a manager to replace Clint Hurdle is...
U mad, bro? Fans pounce on Clint Hurdle firing, Steelers offense, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith
Are you mad about the Steelers? You’ve come to the right place. Angered over how the Pirates mangled the firing of Clint Hurdle? I’ve got you covered. Hate the NFL pass interference debate? Come on in. The water is just fine. Wanna nitpick minor flaws on supermodels wearing costumes of...
Andrew McCutchen plans massive volunteer initiative in Western Pennsylvania
Andrew McCutchen now wears a Philadelphia Phillies jersey for a living, but in the offseason, he plans to make an impact on the community he called home for the better part of nine years. Along with his wife, Maria, a DuBois native, McCutchen has founded Project Pittsburgh, a foundation designed...
First Call: David Ross as possible Cubs manager; soccer fans storm owner’s box, kick him out of stadium
In Tuesday’s “First Call,” some MLB managerial candidates are emerging. Fans storm an owner’s box. Andy Dalton’s interesting audible. What if? When it comes to a potential managerial hire, here’s a former Pirates player that is becoming a name of interest. One-time Bucco, David Ross, is rumored to be a...
Tim Benz: Clint Hurdle shouldn’t be Pirates’ only scapegoat
The word “scapegoat” has been used quite a bit in the wake of Clint Hurdle’s firing as Pirates manager. I felt like it was inappropriate. So I double-checked the definition. Merriam-Webster defines the term this way: “A goat upon whose head are symbolically placed the sins of the people after...
Mark Madden: Pirates’ horrible season didn’t put damper on Steve Blass’ career
It was some year for the Pirates. The black cat that crossed their path was a rabid panther on meth. The Pirates went 25-48 after the All-Star break, finishing last in the NL Central. There were three fights between Pirates personnel that we know about. Closer Felipe Vasquez got arrested...
Clint Hurdle’s firing kills the Christmas spirit in Pirates’ clubhouse
The last day of the miserable 2019 Pittsburgh Pirates season started strangely, yet peacefully. Clubhouse musician and starting pitcher Steven Brault was listening to Michael Bublé’s rendition of “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.” One of the last things Clint Hurdle said to reporters before he was fired Sunday was...
Tim Benz, Mark Madden break down Clint Hurdle’s firing and Steelers-Bengals ‘MNF’ game
It’s not often a Pittsburgh Steelers “Monday Night Football” game gets dwarfed by other topics in the Pittsburgh sports world. But the team has started 0-3. Sidney Crosby got hurt. Clint Hurdle got fired. And Pat Narduzzi is getting linked to another job. So, apologies. It’s going to take us...
Tim Benz: Botched firing of Clint Hurdle typical of 2019 Pirates
Given the news cycle of the last week, this may be hard to do. But play along with me if you can. Imagine that the Pirates simply fired Clint Hurdle after the season ended Sunday evening. Hurdle manages Game 162. The franchise gives its sendoff to Steve Blass. The Pirates...
Pirates players balance fondness of Clint Hurdle, willingness for changeVideo
One by one, Clint Hurdle’s men lined up outside his office to say goodbye. Men, not players, by that time. To Hurdle, they were always more than names on a lineup card. It was difficult for the Pittsburgh Pirates to play a meaningless baseball game Sunday, and they lost it...
Kevin Gorman: If Pirates’ shortcomings were ‘collective,’ why only fire Clint Hurdle?Video
In an awkward attempt to avoid serving up a scapegoat for this colossal disaster of a season for the Pittsburgh Pirates, general manager Neal Huntington called it a “collective shortcoming.” Call it whatever you want. Pirates chairman Bob Nutting fired one man, Clint Hurdle. Perhaps it’s the first of many....
Pirates lose season finale, notching 13 more losses than 2018Video
The Pittsburgh Pirates head into the offseason searching for a new voice after firing Clint Hurdle. The Cincinnati Reds may have found theirs during a season that offered tangible proof that years of rebuilding might finally be producing forward momentum. The evidence came in a 3-1 victory over the Pirates...
