The Pirates have some decisions to make this offseason and it's not just for Russell Martin. Starters Francisco Liriano and Edinson Volquez are both free agents along with backup shortstop Clint Barmes. For Volquez and Liriano, this season aided their profiles as both came in to Pittsburgh — the island of misfit pitchers — with poor numbers and mechanical issues while they will go back on the market as renewed back-of-rotation starters thanks to the tutelage of Ray Searage and the ... Read More
Pirates season ends at the hands of Bumgarner/Crawford
Madison Bumgarner pitched a dominant complete game shutout and Brandon Crawford hit a fourth inning grand slam to pace the Giants to a 8-0 Wild Card victory eliminating the Pirates from postseason competition. Bumgarner had the Pirate bats off balance throughout the night painting the corners and mixing his fastball and off-speed pitches. The Pirates could only scratch together four hits and one walk in the contest and were not able to put more than one runner on until the ninth when the game ... Read More
Pirates – Giants Wild Card Preview
Good afternoon from PNC Park and the 2014 National League Wild Card game where the Pirates (88-74) look to advance to the NLDS as they host the Giants (88-74). Season Series The Pirates took the season series (4-2) to lock up home field for tonight's Wild Card game. Realistically, the six games could have gone either way as five of the six meetings were decided by two runs or less while two were decided in the final inning — a Giants 11-10 win in 10 innings and Starling Marte's walk-off ... Read More
Pirates power closer to Cards with 10-1 win over Braves
Edinson Volquez struck out a season-high 10 batters in seven innings of shutout baseball and the Pirate bats awakened for a 10-1 blowout of the Braves on Thursday night. Volquez — who lowered his season ERA to 3.04 — extended his scoreless innings streak to 18 with seven stress-free innings allowing four hits and one walk while striking out ten. The start did all but solidify Volquez's spot in the postseason rotation and could put him in line to start the Wild Card game if the Pirates need ... Read More
Pirates turn triple play, score late in 7-3 win over Cubs
The Pirates scored six times in the fifth inning and completed their first ever triple play at PNC Park as they defeated the Cubs on Sunday afternoon to keep their 1 1/2 game lead in the National League Wild Card race. The Pirates (79-70) did nothing against Cubs starter Jacob Turner through the first trip of the lineup, but the defensive gem helped ignite their quiet bats. With runners on first and second against Pirates starter Edinson Volquez and the Cubs leading 3-0, Matt Szczur hit a ... Read More
Harrison’s all-around play lifts Pirates past Reds
Josh Harrison continued his breakout season going 3-for-4 with a double, triple, RBI and a run scored while making three pivotal late-inning defensive plays to help the Pirates comeback and defeat the Reds 2-1 on Friday night in front of a sellout crowd at PNC. Harrison picked up Pirates starter Edinson Volquez numerous times throughout the game allowing Volquez to keep a no-hitter into the seventh inning. Harrison also kept the shutout alive in the sixth after Billy Hamilton walked with ... Read More
Pedro powers Pirates back into NL Central contention
Pedro Alvarez hit two home runs to lead a powerful Pirates attack to a 10-2 victory over Milwaukee on Saturday night at Miller Park. Alvarez --who had gone 42 days since his last home run -- turned the tides in the Pirates favor in the fourth inning. With two outs and the visitors trailing 2-0, Neil Walker walked and Russell Martin doubled for the Bucs first hit of the game off of Brewers starter Wily Peralta. Alvarez then followed with an opposite-field home run to put the Pirates ahead ... Read More
Volquez holds Tigers to two runs in Pirates 4-2 victory
Edinson Volquez threw six solid innings of one run ball and the Pirate offense but up another complete effort as they swept the Tigers in the Pittsburgh portion of a four-game home-and-home series with a 4-2 victory on Tuesday night. Volquez didn't have the most efficient start to his evening allowing three one out hits in the first inning to put the Tigers (63-54) ahead 1-0. With runners still on first and third, Victor Martinez sent a chopper back up the middle. Volquez -- who was looking ... Read More
Volquez shaky in first start after break in Pirates 5-2 loss
Edinson Volquez couldn't pick up where his first half ended as he allowed ten hits in five earned runs in a Pirates 5-2 loss to the Dodgers on Monday night in front of 28,255 at PNC Park. Volquez didn't have his stuff allowing at least one baserunner in each inning he pitched -- 13 total baserunners. An 11-day layoff didn't help him out,either, as it was the longest non-injury layoff between starts during a season he's had in his career. "I think I had too many days in between starts," ... Read More
Volquez goes the distance in Pirates 9-1 win
Edinson Volquez became the first Pirates starter to pitch a complete game this season as the Bucs salvaged a game from the Cardinals 9-1. Volquez only experienced a small amount of trouble in the third, fourth and ninth innings, but only allowed one run to cross. Kolten Wong began the third for the Cardinals (50-43) with a single. He then stole second, advanced to third on a sac bunt and scored on a Matt Carpenter sac fly. The fourth and ninth innings both saw runners on first and second ... Read More