Pirates/MLB category, Page 28

During a recent episode of “The Carton Show” on FS1, retired Pittsburgh Steeler Willie Colon said his former coach Mike Tomlin is in hot water. “I love Mike Tomlin. But I have to officially say he is on the hot seat,” Colon said. “When you talk about his overall record,...

Rowdy Tellez understood the optics of getting caught admiring his work when his 100.6-mph line drive to right field ricocheted off the top of the Clemente Wall and bounced back into the outfield. In an instant, Tellez went from watching what he thought was a home run to sprinting and...

Yasmani Grandal has had a front-row seat for two of the featured attractions in baseball, starting behind the plate for Paul Skenes at Triple-A Indianapolis and Jared Jones for the Pittsburgh Pirates. In the span of five days, the two-time All-Star catcher was witness to why they are more than...

INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 16-14) topped Buffalo (Blue Jays), 8-3. SS Nick Gonzales (.360) had two doubles, a walk and an RBI. 1B Jake Lamb (.403) was 2 for 3 with a walk. DH Malcolm Nunez (.261), 2B Liover Peguero (.306) and LF Matt Gorski (.236) all had RBIs. RF Dustin Peterson...

If the last few weeks have served as any guide, the three-run hole the Pittsburgh Pirates found themselves in early Sunday afternoon should have been more than enough to sink them and lead to yet another loss. After all, the Pirates have managed three or more runs only twice in...

The Pittsburgh Pirates wanted to see top prospect Paul Skenes check off an important box in his development by having the 6-foot-6½-inch right-hander make his first start on four days of rest. Skenes checked off another by surrendering the first home run of his professional career, as Buffalo’s Will Robertson...

Pittsburgh Pirates general manager Ben Cherington conducted his weekly radio show on 93.7 The Fan on Sunday afternoon, wrapping up as the club’s top prospect, Paul Skenes, prepared to make his seventh start for Triple-A Indianapolis. With Skenes posting a 0.39 ERA, 41 strikeouts and six walks to date at...

INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 15-14) was blasted by Buffalo (Blue Jays), 9-3. LF Ji Hwan Bae (.404) went 2 for 3 with a run scored, an RBI and a walk. SS Nick Gonzales (.355) went 1 for 4 with a triple and a run scored. RF Jake Lamb (.392) went 1 for...

When it comes to major-league batters’ recognition skills and their ability to win pitch-by-pitch battles with their mound opponents, Andrew McCutchen was unflinching in identifying a key component that’s out of a hitter’s control and subject to change nightly. “The strike zone’s horrible,” the Pittsburgh Pirates designated hitter said before...

As Jared Jones walked off the field in the seventh inning, a chorus of cheers erupted from the rain-drenched fans in honor of the best start yet by the Pittsburgh Pirates rookie right-hander. Jones allowed only one hit in seven scoreless innings while tying his career best with 10 strikeouts...

INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 15-13) was knocked around by Buffalo (Blue Jays), 10-4. RHP Wily Peralta (5.40) started and was mostly effective, giving up one run on three hits with four strikeouts and no walks. RHP JC Flowers (2-1, 6.59) came on and allowed three runs, two earned, on two hits and...

If their Friday night loss to the Colorado Rockies proves anything for the Pittsburgh Pirates, it’s that playing one of MLB’s worst teams offers no antidote to their ongoing issues, namely figuring out how to emerge from a frustrating multi-week offensive slump. The Rockies, who came to PNC Park with...

As one of the Pittsburgh Pirates’ No. 1 overall draft picks closes in on a highly anticipated MLB debut, Friday afternoon brought news that another will navigate an early career disruption. All eyes are on pitcher Paul Skenes, selected atop the 2023 MLB Draft by the Pirates, who is expected...

When the Pittsburgh Pirates signed Michael A. Taylor, it was with the intention of adding a pure center fielder with a Gold Glove on his resume to improve their outfield defense. What they got for the first eight games of the season was a player whose bat was better than...

I’m not sure the phrase “swept by the Oakland A’s” really needs much contextualizing, but let’s do that from a Pittsburgh Pirates’ perspective as they return home from a brutal California swing. Not only did the Pirates lose three in a row against the vagabond franchise from Oakland, but they...

INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 16-13) beat Buffalo (Blue Jays), 6-4. LF Billy McKinney went 2 for 4 with a double and a two-run homer, his second of the season. 1B Jake Lamb (.388) went 1 for 3 with a double. DH Canaan Smith-Njigba (.281) went 2 for 4 with a double and...

Despite a draft that has gotten positive reviews, not all Pittsburgh Steelers fans are happy about the organization’s efforts last weekend. Others just didn’t like my coverage of it. We also have some angst over the Steelers’ QB situation, baseball pitch counts and general disdain over how the Pirates “have...

The Pittsburgh Pirates bottomed out in the Bay, especially when they had chances to cash in. If the Pirates (14-18) losing 13 of their past 16 games to complete a freefall from first place in the NL Central to the basement of division standings in a two-week stretch isn’t alarming,...

INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 14-12) played small ball in a 14-5 win over Buffalo (Blue Jays). C Yasmani Grandal (.250) hit three singles and had three RBIs, DH Jake Lamb (.391) smacked two doubles and a single and drove in two runs, and Ji Hwan Bae (.391) hit three singles and a...

The Pittsburgh Pirates ended their West Coast trip to the Bay Area the same way they started it: by getting shut out. The Oakland Athletics got an early lead on solo home runs from Abraham Toro and Tyler Nevin and cruised to a 4-0 win Wednesday afternoon to sweep the...

Numbers painted a sorry picture Tuesday night for the Pittsburgh Pirates in the Oakland Coliseum, and the result was another loss, 5-2 to the A’s. It was the third in a row, fourth in five games on the current West Coast road trip and 12th in the past 15. But...

INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 13-12) defeated Buffalo (Blue Jays), 4-3 in 11 innings. RHP Paul Skenes (0.39) struck out seven, walked one and gave up four hits in six scoreless innings, his longest outing a professional. He has struck out 41 in 23 innings with Indy. DH Yasmani Grandal (.231) hit a...

The Pittsburgh Pirates completed the March 29 trade of pitcher JT Brubaker to the New York Yankees on Tuesday, acquiring switch-hitting, minor-league second baseman/shortstop Keiner Delgado as the player to be named. Delgado, 20, is rated the 20th-best Yankees prospect by MLB Pipeline after he was named last year to...

When Kyle Nicolas switched from starter to reliever last season, Pittsburgh Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said the right-hander “looked like a different pitcher.” Since getting shelled for six runs on three hits — including a grand slam — in his major-league debut at the Chicago Cubs last Sept. 19,...