A pair of Pittsburgh Pirates minor-leaguers will represent the organization at the 2015 MLB All-Star Futures Game. The game, part of the MLB All-Star Game festivities, will be held at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati, Ohio, on Sunday, July 12. Representing the Buccos will be Indianapolis Indians catcher Elias Diaz and Altoona Curve first baseman Josh Bell. Diaz, 24, is batting .281 with 11 doubles and 25 RBI in 57 games with the triple-A Indians. He has also caught 9-of-31 base ... 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
Cole knocked out early in Pirates loss
Coming into Wednesday night's start, Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Gerrit Cole had not allowed more than three runs in a game this season. That all changed 21 minutes into the game as a four-run and 38-pitch first inning allowed the Cincinnati Reds to win 5-2. The outing was the shortest of Cole's season and also the shortest since June 28 against the New York Mets when he went four innings. “I didn’t bring out a good delivery tonight the stuff was a little flat," Cole said. "I didn’t make ... Read More
Pirates pregame 6/24: Volstad called up; Hart to DL
A roller coaster game Tuesday night ended in the Pittsburgh Pirates favor as it won a 7-6 game against the Cincinnati Reds. “We lost three in a row on the road so we want to win at home," Andrew McCutchen said. "To lose how we did against the Nationals, we were pretty amped up for playing in front of a home crowd.” The Pirates will look to make it two wins in a row when they take on the Reds once again. Gerrit Cole will start for the Pirates attempt to become the fifth Pittsburgh ... Read More
Seven-run fourth inning propels Pirates to victory
With the Pittsburgh Pirates leading the Cincinnati Reds by one, Todd Frazier came to the plate against Arquimedes Caminero. Frazier came into the contest batting .375 against the Pirates in 2015 and hit a sinking liner. Starling Marte came in and dove headfirst to record the third out of the seventh inning stranding Billy Hamilton. Caminero celebrated with a fist pump and Frazier slammed his helmet in disgust. “I didn’t know he was so shallow," Caminero said. "When I saw that play it was ... Read More
Pirates pregame 6/23: Locke regains confidence
It is the start of another home stand for the Pittsburgh Pirates as the team returns to town to face the Cincinnati Reds. The Pirates are 1-5 against the Reds this season and 1-2 at PNC Park. Locke goes back to basics Jeff Locke gets the start for the Pirates and is 1-0 in his last three starts. He also has not allowed a run at PNC Park in his last 16.2 innings pitched. Locke was a winner in his last start which was Wednesday against the Chicago White Sox. He allowed two runs on three ... 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
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
Scherzer no-hits Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates suffered a no-hitter Saturday evening in the 6-0 loss to the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park. Washington pitcher Max Scherzer pitched the second no-hitter in Nationals history, striking out ten Pirates in the process. Scherzer pitched his second straight complete game and the third of his career. The Pirates entered the game on an eight-game winning streak. Prior to Saturday, Pittsburgh has scored one run in the 18 innings played in D.C. Scherzer’s only ... Read More