Ray Searage may have done it again. The Pittsburgh Pirates pitching coach notorious for turning struggling castaway pitchers into solid and at times outstanding contributors appears to have pulled another rabbit out of his hat. This time, the rabbit’s name is J.A. Happ. Happ has only pitched in four games for the Pirates, but aside from his poor first outing he has been exactly what the doctor ordered for a Pirate rotation that looked to be falling apart a few weeks ago. He has limited ... Read More
Pirates’ Morton loses first decision in more than a month
Brad Hand departed the game for the Miami Marlins in the ninth inning, however by then it was too little too late for the Pittsburgh Pirates. Hand [4-3] just missed his first ever complete game but threw a career-high eight-plus innings in a 5-2 victory Tuesday night against the Pirates which evened the four-game series at one victory apiece. Prior to the ninth inning, the top half of the first presented the Pirates high point against Hand. With two outs in the first inning, Andrew ... Read More
Happ wins second straight as Bucs manhandle Marlins
The Pittsburgh Pirates moved to 27 games over .500 for the first time since 1992 with a 5-2 victory Monday night against the Miami Marlins. Andrew McCutchen played in the 1,000th game of his major league career and had two RBI when he hit his 30th double of the season in the third inning. His double put the Pirates in front by a 2-0 score. J.A. Happ [2-1] has now allowed one run in his last 19 innings of work, an ERA of 0.47. He allowed no runs on four hits and has allowed just six hits in ... Read More
Cervelli’s health has been key for Pirates
When Francisco Cervelli was traded from the New York Yankees to the Pittsburgh Pirates, expectations immediately rose. He was, after all, replacing Russell Martin. Martin was a clear leader of the Pirates and was well-liked by his teammates and fans as well as the media. Martin was known for having a tireless work ethic and was always willing to put his teammates needs above his own. "It’s been so much fun to see him thrive in this environment, take charge, learn and get better," catching ... Read More
Is the pace of play initiative losing steam?
Perhaps the biggest change going into the 2015 MLB season was the pace of play initiative. The big push was that there would be a timed clock for inning breaks and new pitchers. Many have deemed the pace of play as a welcome addition and Pittsburgh Pirates union representative Neil Walker has stated that he has not heard any backlash. “Halfway through the season, guys were very happy with where it was and how we were doing," Walker said. "They told us to keep it up. I haven’t been told ... Read More
Pirates again use long ball to beat Giants
The Pittsburgh Pirates defeated the San Francisco Giants by a 5-2 score Sunday night to take three games out of the four-game series. “There were a lot of different things that happened out there tonight that complicated things at times but we were able to stay in front of it, get outs when we needed them and add on runs when we needed them," manager Clint Hurdle said. It was an up and down day for Pedro Alvarez. Alvarez was responsible for two errors and was an official scorer decision ... Read More
Pirates pregame 8/23: Mercer rejoins Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates hope to continue its momentum from yesterday's 3-2 bottom of the ninth victory against the San Francisco Giants. Yesterday's win marked the second time that the Pirates won a game by scoring at least three runs, each on a solo home run. The other one came in 1949. Tonight, Francisco Liriano [8-6 3.35 ERA] will face Ryan Vogelsong [9-8 3.93 ERA]. Liriano is 3-1 with a 3.75 ERA in four career starts against the Giants. He won a 5-2 decision earlier this season ... Read More
What’s your favorite North Shore venue?
With the Steelers hosting the Packers at 1 p.m. at Heinz Field and the Pirates hosting the Giants at PNC Park at 8 p.m. today, we want to know which is your favorite North Shore venue? [poll id="144"] ... Read More
Kang, Marte power Pirates to win
No more than 30 minutes earlier Starling Marte played hero hitting a game-winning home run, however he quickly tried to deflect the credit. "You should be talking to Jung Ho [Kang]," Marte said. "He hit two home runs, he was the real hero today." Marte's 15th home run of the season, his second career walk-off allowed the Pittsburgh Pirates to defeat the San Francisco Giants by a 3-2 score. “I was looking for a fastball away because it was tied in the ninth inning and that’s what ... Read More
Pirates pregame 8/22: Kang continues to progress with his English
It was a night to forget for Jeff Locke as the Pittsburgh Pirates fell to the San Francisco Giants by a 6-4 score last night. Locke surrendered a career-high 11 hits in five innings of work. He missed in location repeatedly early in the game and the Giants made him pay. The most notable hit was a 418-foot home run hit by his mound counterpart, Madison Bumgarner, his fifth of the season. This afternoon Gerrit Cole [14-7 2.61 ERA] will face Mike Leake [9-6 3.52 ERA]. Cole is 3-0 with a ... Read More