Starling Marte stepped into the batter's box and for a second consecutive game connected on a home run to left field as part of a Pittsburgh Pirates 6-2 victory Saturday against the Milwaukee Brewers. The three-run home run doubled the Pirates run total, and also provided the first runs since a 27-minute first inning. In that first inning, the Brewers which went with a different lineup sent Ryan Braun up to the plate. It was the first time Braun has ever led off in a Major League Baseball ... Read More
Pirates pregame 4/18: Walker hopes to continue success against Lohse
The Pittsburgh Pirates offense and baserunning reemerged in a 6-3 victory against the Milwaukee Brewers. The Pirates have a chance to win its first home series tonight as Kyle Lohse [0-2 11.17 ERA] takes on Jeff Locke [1-0 3.00 ERA]. Tonight’s starters: Jeff Locke starts for the Pirates. The left-hander won his starting role in Spring Training and is 1-0 on the season winning 6-2 April 10 against the Brewers. In 90 pitches, Locke pitched six innings allowing seven hits, two runs, one walk ... Read More
Pirates earn first win in Milwaukee
In past years winning a game in Milwaukee was a very hard accomplishment, however in 2015 Miller Park was the home of the first Pittsburgh Pirates win this season. The Pirates won Friday night's game by a 6-2 score. Locke [1-0] pitched six innings allowing seven hits and two runs while walking one batter and striking out two. Locke also helped his cause with an RBI double in the second inning as part of a three-run second inning. Locke threw 90 pitches in this game with 62 ending up as ... Read More
Pirates potential Opening Day lineup takes field in loss
The Pittsburgh Pirates used what many consider to be its Opening Day lineup in its 7-5 exhibition game loss Friday against the Philadelphia Phillies. Jeff Locke earned the start and allowed four runs, three of which were earned over the course of five innings. Locke threw 71 pitches and had one walk to go with four strikeouts. Locke gave up three of the runs in the first inning. Both Josh Harrison and Francisco Cervelli committed errors. Ryan Howard, Darin Ruf and Cody Asche each picked up ... Read More
Pirates rotation provides plenty of depth
The Pittsburgh Pirates have assembled its starting pitching rotation well ahead of Sunday's 3 p.m. deadline to finalize a 25-man roster. Last season, the Pirates ranked eighth in all of Major League Baseball and fifth in the National League with a 3.47 ERA and ranked fourth with a 3.05 ERA in the second half of the season. Pirates starters combined for a 3.60 ERA, seven shutouts, two complete games, a .249 batting average against and 798 strikeouts in 971 innings of work. Though the ... Read More
Locked up: Pirates set rotation, talk extension with Gregory Polanco
The Pirates took care of business today on and off the field. In Grapefruit league action, the Pirates dominated the Phillies for a 19-4 victory. After the victory, Manager Clint Hurdle announced that Jeff Locke will take the team's fourth spot in the Opening Day rotation while Vance Worley will begin the season in the bullpen for long-relief. Locke went 7-6 for the Pirates in 2014 with a 3.91 ERA in 21 starts with 89 strikeouts and 40 walks in 131 1/3 innings. After struggling through the ... Read More
Pirates major league roster shaping up; team wins shortened game
Jeff Locke pitched 5.2 innings as the Pittsburgh Pirates won a rain-shortened game 4-2 Friday against the Minnesota Twins. The game was called due to rain in the bottom of the eighth inning. Locke is now 1-1 on the season and lowered his ERA from 9.00 to 6.59. He allowed: eight hits, two runs, walked three and struck out two batters. Antonio Bastardo picked up his first save and allowed a hit while striking out two batters in his inning of work. Blake Wood got the final out of the sixth ... Read More
Worley continues to make starting case; Pirates lose
Vance Worley's six-inning start had some peaks and valleys in the Pirates 7-5 loss to the Atlanta Braves Thursday. Worley threw six innings allowing seven hits, five runs and striking out three batters. The vast majority of the damage came in the first inning in which the Braves scored five runs. The highlight was a Chris Johnson two-run homer, his first of the spring. Jace Peterson, Christian Bethancourt and Kelly Johnson also registered RBI in the frame. The Braves opened the game with four ... Read More
Liriano to start opening day; Pirates lose to Astros
Jeff Locke's quest for a spot in the Pirates rotation took a hit during Tuesday's 13-7 loss to the Houston Astros. On a day when Francisco Liriano was revealed to be the Opening Day pitcher in Cincinnati, Locke pitched three-plus innings, allowing seven hits, six runs and a walk. “I just left some pitches over the plate,” Locke said. “They just fell in.” Locke is battling with Vance Worley for the final position in the Pirates rotation and currently, the Spring Training statistics favor ... Read More
Jordy Mercer goes deep as Pirates lose to Phillies
The Pittsburgh Pirates lost its first game in a week losing 3-2 to the Philadelphia Phillies in a Wednesday Spring Training game. The Pirates were 3-0-2 during this stretch. Charlie Morton started for the Pirates and had command troubles in the first inning. Morton walked lead-off hitter Ben Revere on five pitches with all four balls in the sequence missing the strike zone by a comfortable margin. Morton then had his pick off throw dropped by Deibinson Romero allowing Revere to advance to ... Read More