The Pittsburgh Pirates won its series opener against the San Diego Padres in dramatic fashion as Pedro Alvarez hit a game-winning single in the bottom of the ninth to take the game by a 2-1 margin. Though manager Clint Hurdle tried to quiet a reporter when talks of a series win against the Padres came up it is hard to ignore that the past 14 series played at PNC Park have not gone in favor of the home team. “We’re due," Hurdle said. "It’s not the law of averages, it’s just that we’re due. ... Read More
Alvarez hits walk-off single to lead Pirates past Padres
Pedro Alvarez's RBI single in the bottom of the ninth brought home Andrew McCutchen as the Pittsburgh Pirates defeated the San Diego Padres 2-1 in walk-off fashion. The Pittsburgh Pirates entered Monday night having lost its past 14 series to the San Diego Padres. “I just tried to compete," Alvarez said. "I was just trying to see a pitch up and put hard contact on it.” In this game, the Padres struck first in the second inning. Yonder Alonso had a one-out walk and a Jedd Gyorko single ... Read More
Pirates’ Guerra gets first win in 14th inning
The Pittsburgh Pirates are now 3-0 on the road in Interleague play this season however, it took way longer than they bargained for. A Neil Walker double in the 14th inning proved to be the game-winning run as Josh Harrison scored from second base to give the Pirates a 5-4 victory over the Detroit Tigers. “ [Tom] Gorzelanny’s throwing sinkers and living on the outer half and I was just trying to fight him and drive the ball," Walker said. "Fortunately he left a pitch up in the zone.” The ... Read More
Braves hold off Pirates’ rallies to prevent sweep.
After being shut down all day by Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Alex Wood [5-5], the Pirates finally got on board with a two-out ninth inning double by Jordy Mercer that scored Francisco Cervelli, but former Pirates closer Jason Grilli struck out Gregory Polanco to secure a 2-1 Atlanta victory. The Pirates were looking for their first sweep against the Atlanta Braves since 1994. The Braves scored single runs in the fifth and seventh innings. With two outs in the fifth, Cameron Maybin ... Read More
Pirates first inning too much for Braves
After losing centerfielder Andrew McCutchen with one out in the first inning, the Pittsburgh Pirates responded with a five-run first offensive outburst in the bottom of the first en route to an 8-4 victory. “I think it was a real nice push for our guys to answer in that fashion," manager Clint Hurdle said. McCutchen left the game after he was hit by a pitch in the left elbow. In the first inning, Neil Walker started a string of seven consecutive Pirates that reached base. McCutchen was ... Read More
Pirates pregame 6/27: Mercer making progress; Polanco experiencing cold streak
The Pittsburgh Pirates moved to 10-0 at home against National League East opponents after a 3-2 victory Friday night against the Atlanta Braves in 10 innings. This afternoon the Pirates may battle the weather just as much -- if not more than -- the Braves as mother nature looks to add another layer to a lengthy stretch of recent home games. Both of the past two nights have featured games that have gone into extra innings, making it four home contests in the past nine games that have gone to ... Read More
Pirates walk-off on Mercer hit
Extra innings: two words Pirates fans have become accustomed to hearing at PNC Park and Friday was no different. It was the fourth extra inning game played in the past nine home contests. This time, however, Jordy Mercer had the walk off hit against Jason Grilli to send the 34,220 fans happy with a 3-2 Pirates victory over the Atlanta Braves. This, a day after losing a 13-inning game to the Cincinnati Reds. “It’s the kind of baseball that we play and we’ve done it time after time," Pedro ... Read More
Nationals sweep punchless Pirates
Sunday afternoon's game against the Washington Nationals [36-33] would end up a game to forget for pitcher Charlie Morton and the rest of the Pittsburgh Pirates [39-29]. Coming into the final game of this three-game series, Morton sported a 1.62 ERA and five wins in six starts. He would end up lasting only two thirds of an inning and gave up nine runs in a 9-2 loss. The Nationals took advantage of an erratic Morton, who was leaving balls on a tee for hitters. He gave up two home runs, a ... Read More
Pirates secure series sweep
It took a while for Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Jordy Mercer to hit his first home run of the season, however his second came in Wednesday's 5-2 victory over the San Francisco Giants and represented the winning run. This is the first Pirates sweep in San Francisco since May 14-16 2004 and the third sweep in the past four series. The Pirates have won 11 of their past 13 games and at 29-24 are a season best five games above .500. As was the case in the first two games, it was the Giants who ... Read More
Pirates offense backs Burnett to secure series win
It was the second consecutive below average outing for A.J. Burnett, however the Pittsburgh Pirates offense, led by a four-hit performance from Andrew McCutchen, defeated the San Francisco Giants 7-4 Tuesday night. McCutchen fell a home run short of hitting for the cycle as the Pirates secured a series win against the Giants who coming into the series had won 13 of their past 17 games. McCutchen is batting .292 on the season now and is 36-for-89 in his last 25 games, good for a .404 ... Read More