On Wednesday, Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Charlie Morton received a roaring ovation from Pirate fans as he walked off the pitcher’s mound and toward the third base dugout against the Milwaukee Brewers. The right-hander just gave one of the Pirates’ best pitching performances this season – seven and a third innings of shutout baseball. And Morton’s season so far has deserved the applause of Pirate fans. The 31-year-old began the season on the disabled list while he continued to recover ... Read More
Ian Happ leads list of local players taken in MLB Draft
Ten athletes with local ties saw their names called in Major League Baseball's First-Year Player Draft this past week. Three of those players are former WPIAL standouts who went off to college, three hail from the University of Pittsburgh, three came from the PSAC West and one was drafted right out of high school from Western Pennsylvania. Ian Happ leads the list of those local stars drafted this past week after he was chosen ninth overall by the Chicago Cubs. A standout from Mt. Lebanon, ... Read More
Morton’s outing helps Pirates avoid sweep
Charlie Morton pitched seven or more innings for the third time in four major league starts this season as the Pittsburgh Pirates defeated the Milwaukee Brewers 2-0 to avoid a sweep. “That’s who we are, we bounce back very well," Jordy Mercer said. "We’re a very resilient ball club and when things don’t go for us we can easily come back the next day and be ready. We showed a full team effort tonight.” Morton [4-0] would pitch a total of 7.1 shutout innings allowing three hits. In his 102 ... Read More
Pirates pregame 6/10: Hurdle relates to Hart’s inactivity
The Pittsburgh Pirates look to avoid being swept when it takes on the Milwaukee Brewers tonight. The Pirates have been swept on two occasions this season, both on the road. The first sweep was the opening series against the Cincinnati Reds and the second was May 1-3 against the Cardinals as part of a five game losing streak. A loss for the Pirates tonight would be the first three game losing streak since they lost four May 13-16. The Brewers are 4-1 in their past five games. Tonight’s ... Read More
Pirates go college-heavy in first 10 rounds of MLB Draft
The Pittsburgh Pirates came into the 2015 MLB Draft with a clear objective; In the first three rounds Pittsburgh selected four fielders, three of which being infielders. After selecting short stop Kevin Newman and third basemen Ke’Bryan Hayes, the Pirates looked to continue filling the holes on the left part of the infield and add on to their pitching depth. Round 2, Pick 62: Kevin Kramer, SS, UCLA (CA) The Pittsburgh Pirates entered the day looking for the best options that satisfied the ... Read More
Brewers clinch series win over Pirates with 4-1 victory
Jason Rogers came into the game with five hits against left-handed pitching. It was his bat, however, that contributed to a 4-1 Milwaukee Brewers victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates. “Rogers had the two big hits for sure and it was a nice game by Jason," Brewers manager Craig Counsell said. "He’s not in there every day and he’s facing one of the better starters in our division and has a nice night. That’s why he’s here.” Rogers first hit his second home run of the season to left field in ... Read More
Pirates pregame 6/9: McCutchen returns to the lineup
The Pirates hope to get back to its winning ways after losing a 2-0 contest Monday evening to the Milwaukee Brewers. In the loss, there were two rain delays totaling two hours and 13 minutes. A.J. Burnett took the loss and is now 6-2 on the season. Tonight’s starters: The Pirates send Francisco Liriano to the mound against Taylor Jungmann. Liriano has posted the second-lowest batting average against [.215] among all National League left-handed pitchers since 2013 behind Clayton ... Read More
Pirates take ‘best player available’ approach
You can call it the year of the shortstop as the Pirates drafted shortstops Kevin Newman and Kevin Kramer, while also drafting third basemen Ke'Bryan Hayes. "It's a good year for shortstops and it's been a good year for middle-of-the-diamond players," Pirates general manager Neal Huntington said. "Each Draft has strengths. Each Draft has challenges. This just happened to be a good year for middle-of-the-diamond players." Newman got the call two minutes before the selection was made and ... Read More
Why MLB Draft is unique
The Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft is probably the most complex draft process out of the big four American sports leagues. The best players eligible do not always get drafted in the first or second round. Sometimes they do not get drafted at all. Others may get drafted, but won’t sign with the team that picked them. So why is that? One word can explain that – signability. In the NFL, for example, a team signs the players they draft within a matter of weeks of them ... Read More
Pirates draft INF Ke’Bryan Hayes with 32nd pick
The Pittsburgh Pirates, with their 32nd pick in the 2015 MLB Draft, selected third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes. The 18-year-old native of Tomball, Tx., and graduate of Concordia Lutheran High School, the pick was received as compensation from the Toronto Blue Jays after they signed Russell Martin to a 5-year $82 million contract. The son of former big league outfielder has intangibles that could one day translate into MLB production, but the Pirates will need to work on his conditioning and ... Read More