It wasn't that the Pirates outplayed the Reds on Saturday night. Actually, it was anything but. If you watched the game, the Pirates were outplayed in every facet. Fortunately for the Pirates and the fans, the Pirates were able to win the only category that mattered in a 2-1 victory. Looking at the match up, it wasn't in the Pirates favor as they entered PNC Park. Johnny Cueto, one of the top pitchers in baseball, was going for the Reds. Jeff Locke, a mystery at this point, was taking the ... Read More
Yinzer of the Week: Starling Marte
Even though the Pirates have had a rough start to their baseball season, one player on the team is shining. That player is the youngster in the outfield, Starling Marte. So far this young season, Marte is batting .350 with 4 RBI's, 14 hits, 7 runs and two stolen bases. He also has an on-base percentage of .395 and a slugging percentage of .450. He's also hitting .500 with runners in scoring position, and .333 with runners on and two outs. He currently leads the Pirates in batting average, hits, ... Read More
Baseball is his love, but Russell Martin is no stranger to hockey
Baseball is known as America's pastime. The game was the most popular sport in America in the 19th and 20th century. Regardless of football's popularity in our country today, America will always be represented by baseball. As you may have heard, in the Great White North of Canada, hockey rules all. Hockey has caught on in a big way in the United States, while baseball has made its mark on Canada as well. The Pirates new catcher, Russell Martin, is one of many Canadians that enjoy both. Growing ... Read More
Pirates unable to sweep D’backs, lose 10-2
Tom Singer - Sometimes you're the broom, and sometimes you're the mess. The Pirates had no trouble deciding which they were on Wednesday, when they entered Chase Field hoping to sweep the D-backs and instead were whisked out of town. With Jonathan Sanchez looking nothing like the left-hander who impressed in Spring Training and in his first start of the season, the Bucs took a 10-2 series-ending loss on the chin. The haymakers were delivered by A.J. Pollock, who drove in four with a ... Read More
Pirates get swept at hands of Dodgers
The Pirates' stay in Dodger Stadium, appropriately overrun with movie and television glitterati all weekend, was like a lot of other Hollywood productions: Based on a true story. But still a little hard to believe. With Korean rookie left-hander Hyun-Jin Ryu extending their torment on Sunday, the Bucs were swept out of Chavez Ravine, 6-2. Jeff Locke, the Pirates' own young southpaw, couldn't quite keep up with Ryu, allowing four runs -- three of them delivered by Adrian Gonzalez -- in six ... Read More
Pirates offense struggles again; shutout by Dodgers
The Pirates dropped their third game of the season Friday night against the Los Angeles Dodgers, and once again the offense was nonexistent. Jonathan Sanchez was given the ball for his first start as a Pirate. He actually did pretty well. For a guy whose ERA was over eight last season, Sanchez looked decent for a fourth starter. He pitched five innings and allowed three runs. One of the runs was an absolute bomb given up to Andre Ethier, and the other two were driven in by Matt Kemp and ... Read More
Wandy paces Pirates over Cubs
For the second consecutive game, the fans who braved the frigid temperatures of PNC Park were rewarded with an excellent pitching performance by the Pittsburgh Pirates. While A.J. Burnett wasn't able to receive any run support for his 10-strikeout performance, the Pirates were able to scrape together three runs to give Wandy Rodriguez and the Pirates their first win of the year. "It was great to get it out of the way," Catcher Russell Martin said. "Now it's on to tomorrow's game." Prior to ... Read More
Pirates reflect back to their time at WBC
Once every four years, respective sports hold a competition to find out who the best of the best is throughout the world. The first one that comes to mind, of course, would be the Summer and Winter Olympics respectively. To a lesser degree - depending on who you speak to - is the World Cup which pits the best of the best that soccer has to offer against each other over a month long tournament. While baseball is America's oldest game, it's also the newest to the four-year annual ... Read More
Pirates Notebok: New Look Lineup; Backend of the Pen Set
PITTSBURGH, Pa. -- When Pirates Manager Clint Hurdle put together his Opening Day lineup for Monday's game against the Chicago Cubs, there were several interesting placements regarding the order. Garrett Jones was hitting in the two spot, where he spent the final two Grapefruit League games, as well as in the exhibition game on Saturday against the Double-A Altoona Curve. Also, Pedro Alvarez batting cleanup, a spot Pittsburgh has envisioned him hitting in since they drafted him in the first ... Read More
Pirates lose second straight Opening Day contest
Despite the snowfall two hours before the game, the sun came out and Opening Day went as planned. On this day, April 5, 2012, the Pirates hosted the Philadelphia Phillies. Wait, that's not right. While it is 361 days later than their opener last year, the Pirates looked the same as they did against Roy Halladay and the Phillies. The Pirates lost its last year's Opening Day contest to the Phillies by a score of 1-0. They were able to muster just two hits in the game and wasted a seven ... Read More