It has been a busy time all around baseball as the 2015 season is over and teams are trying to find the right pieces to make a run toward the 2016 World Series. The Pittsburgh Pirates are no different and have welcomed some faces, while saying goodbye to other ones. Hellos: Oct. 24 Pirates acquire Trevor Williams - This was a bizarre acquisition as this was later revealed to be compensation for the Pirates losing their "pitching guru" in Jim Benedict, someone whose opinion had high ... Read More
Reviewing the Pirates impending free agents
With the 2015 season coming to an abrupt end for the Pittsburgh Pirates, they have plenty of time to evaluate their crop of impending free agents before they are set to hit the market. None of them are players they would have to break the bank to keep, though there are a few that the club will likely let find a new team for 2016. Also keep in mind that this list does not include pitcher A.J. Burnett or third baseman Aramis Ramirez, since both said they plan to retire at the end of the ... Read More
Pirates lose in Wild Card again
The crack off Kyle Schwarber's bat made it perfectly clear that the Chicago Cubs meant business in their 4-0 Wednesday night Wild Card game victory the Pirates. His 449-foot home run sailed over the right field seats, completing a dramatic turnaround for Schwarber. A year ago, the Cubs sent Schwarber to the Instructional League. Schwarber and Dexter Fowler, the top two hitters in Wednesday's Cubs lineup had five of the team's six hits with the remainder of the team batting 2-for-32, good ... Read More
Rodriguez to start, Alvarez on bench for Bucs in Wild Card
Pittsburgh Pirates manager Clint Hurdle has announced his lineup for tonight’s Wild Card matchup against the Chicago Cubs and it comes with a big surprise towards the end. Batting eight and starting at first base will not be Pedro Alvarez, who played 124 games at first the Pirates this season, but utilityman Sean Rodriguez. Rodriguez saw extensive action as a defensive replacement, but started only 12 games at first base on the year. On the season, Alvarez hit .243/.318./.469 with 27 home ... Read More
Pirates get solid from Liriano in win
Francisco Liriano threw 7.2 innings and reached 200 strikeouts as the Pittsburgh Pirates defeated the Chicago Cubs, 4-0. Hitters came in batting .100 with two strikes against Liriano [12-7], and in this game, Cubs batters were 0-for-16. By reaching 200 strikeouts, Liriano is one away from tying a career-high set in 2010 with the Minnesota Twins. The victory secures the Pirates a series win and a 5.5 game lead for the top spot in the National League Wild Card race over the Cubs. Much of the ... Read More
Pirates miscues give Reds win
The Pittsburgh Pirates defense betrayed Jeff Locke, as the team fell by a 3-1 loss to the Cincinnati Reds Monday afternoon. Locke [7-10] only allowed four hits in his five-plus innings of work, however the Pirates defense did him no favors committing four errors in this game. Two of those errors were committed by Sean Rodriguez who made his first start this season at shortstop. Though Rodriguez takes ground balls at the position every day there is on-field batting practice, he committed ... Read More
Cole’s pitching helps Pirates cause in series win
It was 13 years ago when Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Gerrit Cole sat in the stands of Angel Stadium rooting for John Lackey to win game seven of the 2002 World Series for the then Anaheim Angels. Fast forward to Sunday night and Cole was pitching against Lackey. The Pirates defeated the Cardinals 7-1 to earn a series sweep. In fact, Cole [16-8] hit a single off Lackey [11-9] in the top of the seventh inning which placed the Pirates in front by two runs. It was Cole's first RBI in 2015 and ... Read More
Pirates offense quiet in 4-1 loss to Cardinals
The Pittsburgh Pirates saw its chances for a sweep end Saturday afternoon with a 4-1 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals. Charlie Morton [8-7] saw all of his damage come in a second inning at-bat against Stephen Piscotty. Piscotty singled on the play and Josh Harrison was given a throwing error. The combination of the two things allowed for two runs to score. Morton was charged with one earned run as a result of this sequence. Jaime Garcia [8-4] was making his first start of the season against ... Read More
Happ dominant in Pirates victory
The last time the Pittsburgh Pirates traveled to face the St. Louis Cardinals, J.A. Happ's turn was skipped in the rotation. This was partially because of past performance against the Cardinals, but also recent struggles at the time. Friday night, Happ struck out eight batters in seven scoreless innings as the Pirates won by a 9-3 score Friday night. Happ [4-1] was 1-8 with a 6.79 ERA in 10 career starts against the Cardinals coming into the start. His appearance tonight marked the first ... Read More
Pirates, Happ secure series victory
The Pittsburgh Pirates secured its 20th series victory with a 4-1 victory Wednesday night against the Arizona Diamondbacks. J.A. Happ [1-1] went six innings for the Pirates in his longest start with the team. He also surrendered two hits, his lowest total as a starting pitcher since September 12, 2014 against the Tampa Bay Rays. In the game, the Pirates recorded a three-run second inning. The inning started when Jung Ho Kang was hit by a pitch. Francisco Cervelli then added a single and ... Read More