Pirates/MLB category, Page 16
Pirates farm report for July 10, 2025: Bubba Chandler fans 7 in 6 scoreless innings
INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 53-36) blanked Gwinnett (Braves), 3-0. RHP Bubba Chandler (4-2, 2.82) had his second straight scoreless outing, allowing five hits and two walks with seven strikeouts in six innings. RHP Eddy Yean (2.61) and RHP Cam Sanders (1.64) each threw a scoreless inning before RHP Kyle Nicholas (3.81) pitched...
Bucco Bricks remedy: Pirates to install bronze plaques that carry fans’ personalized messages
The Pittsburgh Pirates are planning to install bronze plaques on PNC Park’s facade to replace the personalized, fan-purchased bricks that were removed amid controversy. Sixty bronze plaques to be installed on the outside walls of the stadium along West General Robinson Street and Mazeroski Way will be “a deserving and...
Tim Benz: Pirates have no one to blame but themselves for newest chapter of ESPN Paul Skenes trade chatter
There were a couple of rounds of media-created Paul Skenes trade talks earlier this season. They were driven by a number of national outlets, baffled by how little the Pittsburgh Pirates had done to surround Skenes with any offensive talent to speak of. Thus, the presumption was that instead of...
U mad, bro?: Pirates fans fume over criticism of Paul Skenes’ pitch count, Steelers fans say, ‘Pay T.J. Watt!’
There are very few reasons to watch the Pittsburgh Pirates these days. One of them is Paul Skenes. So, when he is pitching great and gets pulled early, I get mad. As I wrote on Tuesday, in the wake of that occurrence happening in Seattle over the weekend, I was...
Isaac Mattson’s back-to-back tough outings belie a much stronger seasonVideo
Isaac Mattson was the man on the mound when Kansas City won in walk-off fashion Tuesday night, with Nick Loftin delivering the winning RBI single in the bottom of the ninth inning. But it wasn’t all on Mattson, inserted into the game in a tough spot in relief of Dennis...
Salvador Perez’s 8th-inning homer lifts Royals to sweep over Pirates, who lose 6th straight
For all their ongoing struggles, the Pittsburgh Pirates deserved to take some pride in their recent six-game win streak, which saw the club put together a perfect homestand ahead of nine straight on the road. But whatever modicum of momentum that stretch crafted since has been spoiled by a frustrating...
Pirates farm report for July 9, 2025: Ronny Simon walks it off for Indianapolis
INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 52-36) scored one in the eighth and two in the ninth to get past Gwinnett (Braves), 3-2. In the ninth, SS Tsung-Che Cheng (.222) hit a tying RBI single and DH Ronny Simon (.316) followed with a walk-off RBI double. CF Ji Hwan Bae (.281) hit an RBI...
Livvy Dunne, girlfriend of Pirates’ Paul Skenes, denied purchase of Babe Ruth’s apartmentVideo
Gymnast and social media influencer Livvy Dunne was all set to buy her first home. And it wasn’t just any home. Dunne, the girlfriend of Pittsburgh Pirates ace Paul Skenes, had a contract in place to buy a $1.6-million apartment that was once owned by baseball great Babe Ruth on...
Tim Benz: Debate over Oneil Cruz’s Home Run Derby invitation is unnecessary
Oneil Cruz has been named to the roster for the Major League Baseball All-Star Home Run Derby on Monday night. That seems to have stirred a debate on sports talk radio and in social media circles as to whether Cruz “deserves” to be in the competition. Personally, I’m not sure...
Pair of seemingly sensible pitching decisions backfire for Pirates, Don Kelly in loss to RoyalsVideo
Sticking with Mitch Keller in a tie game after the Royals put a man on first base in the seventh inning Tuesday in Kansas City made enough sense, and it’s the decision that Pittsburgh Pirates manager Don Kelly made. At that point, when Salvador Perez got aboard due to catcher’s...
Royals walk it off in 9th vs. Pirates, who drop series, lose 5th straight
Mitch Keller took the mound in Kansas City on Tuesday having recently earned wins in two straight starts for the first time since back-to-back victories June 1 and June 7 of last season. The Pittsburgh Pirates failing to offer much support behind Keller has defined his season to date, as...
Pirates farm report for July 8, 2025: Thomas Harrington throws 6 strong innings for Indy
INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 51-36) knocked around Gwinnett (Braves), 8-1. RHP Thomas Harrington started and went six innings, allowing one unearned run on two hits with two walks and two strikeouts. RHP Dauri Moreta (3.38), RHP Eddy Yean (2.68) and RHP Kyle Nicolas (3.95) each pitched a scoreless inning of relief. 3B...
Pirates place RHP Chase Shugart on IL, recall OF Jack Suwinski from Triple-A
The Pittsburgh Pirates placed right-handed reliever Chase Shugart on the 15-day injured list Tuesday because of left knee inflammation. In a corresponding transaction, outfielder Jack Suwinski was recalled from Triple-A Indianapolis. Shugart, 28, has enjoyed a solid first season with the Pirates. Over 32 games, he is 4-3 with a...
Pirates slugger Oneil Cruz to compete in MLB All-Star Home Run Derby
Pittsburgh Pirates center fielder Oneil Cruz has launched some of the hardest-hit balls since MLB started keeping track of exit velocity in 2015. He’ll get a chance to show that skill to a national audience when he participates in the Home Run Derby on Monday, the annual prelude to MLB’s...
Tim Benz: Load management for Paul Skenes heightens ‘whipped-puppy syndrome’ for some Pirates fans
The only thing worse than the Pittsburgh Pirates’ restriction on Paul Skenes’ innings Sunday was the support of that action from a (far too large) segment of the team’s remaining fanbase. A segment that is apparently even more brainwashed than I suspected. It’s certainly not all Pirates fans. In fact,...
First Call: Royals’ mound opponent for Mitch Keller under similar trade watch; 2 young Steelers getting national notice
A pair of young Pittsburgh Steelers are getting interesting recognition. Mitch Keller’s mound opponent in Kansas City has something in common with him. An ex-Duquesne Duke is receiving a look from an NBA club, and the Doak Walker Award odds feature some local running backs. All that in Tuesday’s “First...
Pirates’ Tommy Pham continues turnaround with homer, strong plays in fieldVideo
Leading into the final week of June, much of the 2025 season to that point could have been considered an exercise in futility for veteran Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Tommy Pham. Pham struggled immensely to get things going at the plate early, batting .118 in March and .182 in April. In...
Pirates end scoreless streak, still lose at Kansas City for 4th straight defeatVideo
The Pittsburgh Pirates averaged more than seven runs during their recent streak of six consecutive victories, only to be swept in Seattle via three shutouts in a row. That marked an inauspicious beginning to a nine-game road trip, with the Pirates arriving in Kansas City on Monday looking to begin...
After completing rehab assignment, Pirates’ Colin Holderman optioned to Triple-A
Pittsburgh Pirates right-handed reliever Colin Holderman had his rehab assignment ended Monday, was activated from the 15-day injured list (right thumb inflammation) and optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis. The 29-year-old’s last big-league appearance came May 19. The 2025 campaign has been one of injuries and struggles for Holderman, who has a...
Mark Madden: What are Pirates saving Paul Skenes for?
Paul Skenes is pitching great: He’s got an ERA of 1.94, second-best in MLB. But he isn’t pitching much. What are the Pittsburgh Pirates saving Skenes for? In his past three starts, he’s thrown just 14 innings. He’s averaged only 81 pitches. Is that what Skenes and his agent want?...
Tim Benz: The Pirates keep trying to tell us who they are. We should just listen
If you ever forget who the Pittsburgh Pirates really are, give them five minutes. They’ll remind you right away. Just three days after completing a sweep of St. Louis in which the Bucs shut out the Cards in all three contests (7-0, 1-0, 5-0), manager Don Kelly’s team countered that...
Randy Arozarena homer lifts Mariners to 3rd shutout of Pirates despite Paul Skenes’ 10Ks
The Pittsburgh Pirates went scoreless in Seattle. In a sobering series for a red-hot team coming off three consecutive shutouts of the St. Louis Cardinals, the Pirates went ice cold and failed to score a run in three consecutive games against the Mariners. Mariners righty George Kirby matched Paul Skenes...
Pirates farm report for July 6, 2025: Konnor Griffin collects 3 hits, steals 40th base of season
INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 50-36) outslugged Louisville (Reds), 13-11. LF Jack Suwinski (.280) went 4 for 4 with his 12th homer, a double, walk, two runs scored and three RBIs. 2B Nick Yorke (.278) went 2 for 5 with a double, two runs scored and three RBIs. 3B Liover Peguero (.247) went...
Paul Skenes becomes 1st Pirates pitcher to be selected to All-Star Game in 1st 2 seasons
Paul Skenes wasn’t “super surprised” to be selected to the All-Star Game for the second consecutive season, even if he became the first Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher to be chosen in each of his first two seasons. “Pretty cool. I’m looking forward to it,” Skenes said Sunday on the SportsNet Pittsburgh...
Pirates CF Oneil Cruz makes perfectly placed throw clocked at 105.2 mph on play at plate
It’s almost impossible for the Pittsburgh Pirates to overshadow Paul Skenes when he’s pitching, but a throw by center fielder Oneil Cruz against the Seattle Mariners on Sunday earned a salute from Skenes. Cruz made a perfectly placed one-hop throw to get J.P. Crawford out at home plate that was...
