Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Gerrit Cole was named to the NL All-Star team on Monday, and Friday he showed why in a 5-2 win over the St. Louis Cardinals. The right-handed Cole [13-3 2.30 ERA] threw seven innings and recorded three strikeouts with his only blemish coming from a Matt Carpenter two-run home run in the top of the third. He is the first Pirate pitcher to win 13 games before the Mid-summer Classic since Dock Ellis in 1971. Offensively, Neil Walker was the hero of the night for the ... Read More
Unheralded pitchers helping ease loss of pitching depth
Similar to the phoenix from the Harry Potter series, the once strong Pittsburgh Pirates pitching depth may be rising from the ashes a bit after appearing to flame out. Coming into the 2015 season, the team’s pitching depth was considered a strength, as pitchers like Jameson Taillon, Nick Kingham, Brandon Cumpton, Casey Sadler and Clayton Richard were expected to be the team’s top pitching depth options. Instead, the former four players are now unavailable due to injury, while Richard was sold ... Read More
A.J. Burnett named to All-Star Game
A.J. Burnett insists this is his last season. After a down year with the Philadelphia Phillies last season, Burnett returned to Pittsburgh where he spent his two previous years under the tutelage of pitching coach Ray Searage. If Burnett does in fact retire after the season, he will retire a world champion, who threw a no-hitter, an immaculate inning and is a multimillionaire. But one thing has been missing from Burnett's career; an All-Star appearance. Add that to the list now, as ... Read More
Poll: How many All-Stars should the Pirates have?
Major League Baseball will announce its All-Star teams tomorrow for the mid-summer classic. With many deserving players such as Andrew McCutchen, A.J. Burnett, Gerrit Cole, Francisco Liriano, Francisco Cervelli, Starling Marte, Tony Watson and Mark Melancon, how many representatives should the Pirates realistically have? [poll id="140"] ... Read More
Pirates fielding versatility can help preserve the bullpen
A baseball team having only four bench players is usually not an ideal situation for that team. But for the Pittsburgh Pirates, they can afford to do so for a short time. The bench fell short a man Wednesday after Corey Hart was placed on the 15-day disabled list and pitcher Chris Volstad took his spot on the 25-man roster. It was a much needed addition to the Pirate bullpen that combined to throw 12 1/3 third innings the previous three days. It is a loophole that is probably used more than ... Read More
Three surprises help anchor Pirates’ bullpen
The Pirate’s bullpen has been the anchor of this pitching staff for the last three years. It should come as no surprise that, as of Wednesday, the Pirates are second in the N.L. in bullpen ERA, behind none other than those pesky St. Louis Cardinals. Along with this success fans have seen remarkable pitching by players like Rob Scahill, Arquimedes Caminero and Antonio Bastardo. These three players have thrown very well as of late, but remember that the MLB season is a marathon and having ... Read More
Checking in on Travis Snider
When the Pittsburgh Pirates traded Travis Snider to the Baltimore Orioles for two minor league pitchers in February, many questioned why the Pirates traded a Major League player for prospects. The 27-year-old Snider looked like he was finally coming into his own last year, as he had a post All-Star line of .288/.356/.524 and added nine home runs after the Midsummer Classic. He looked like a challenger for the right field starting job in 2015, or at the very least be a strong contributor ... Read More
Dugout advice saves Hughes’ career
It was the middle of another long season in the minor leagues, and in the Altoona, Pa. dugout, Jared Hughes was talking with his catcher Kris Watts. Hughes was frustrated with his progress in Altoona and was struggling to find answers. Watts decided this was the time to approach his teammate and motivate him to become the fearless pitcher he remembered. "We've got half a season left, let it all out on the table. Don't worry about mechanics or anything, just have fun, play hard and play any ... Read More
Nats snap Pirates win streak in opener
Friday night sure did rock in Washington D.C. as the Nationals [34-33] hosted the Pittsburgh Pirates [39-27] who just finished off a four-game series sweep against the Chicago White Sox. The Nationals, who were without their most productive offensive player Bryce Harper [.344 BA, 22 HR, 54 RBI) mustered only four runs with a staggering 14 hits but still found a way to snap the Pirates’ eight-game winning streak, winning tonight’s game, 4-1. A.J. Burnett took the mound tonight pitching with a ... Read More
Hart needs to build on last start
Pittsburgh Pirates first baseman Corey Hart may have gotten the break he needed. In the top of the seventh inning against the Chicago White Sox on Thursday, Hart hit what would be a routine fly ball out to shallow center field. Shortstop Alexei Ramirez and centerfielder Adam Eaton converged towards where the ball was landing, but both stopped and the ball dropped in for a hit. Ramirez looked at Eaton and shrugged, and Hart picked up his third single of the night. He finished the game 3-3 at ... Read More