Kevin Gorman stories, Page 103
Kevin Gorman’s Take 5: Did Derek Shelton’s double switch foreshadow a change in center?
The Pittsburgh Pirates are preparing for the impending return of rookie third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes, and manager Derek Shelton made a double switch on Sunday that possibly foreshadowed their future lineup. Shelton sent Kevin Newman to pinch-hit for Dustin Fowler in the sixth inning against the Milwaukee Brewers. Newman remained...
Colin Moran’s double in 10th inning lifts Pirates to win over Brewers
Colin Moran had put the Pittsburgh Pirates on the scoreboard with an opposite-field, three-run home run in the third inning. When he came to bat in the top of the 10th, the left-hander was looking for a pitch to pull. With Bryan Reynolds starting extra innings on second base, Moran...
Pirates GM: Ke’Bryan Hayes will play ‘a game or two’ at alternate site
Pittsburgh Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said Sunday on his weekly radio show that Ke’Bryan Hayes, out with a wrist injury, will join the alternate site team for “a game or two” in Toledo. The rookie third baseman was placed on the 10-day injured list April 4, a day after...
Pirates leadoff hitter Adam Frazier finding opposite is true with his approach to plate
The ballpark name has changed from Miller Park to American Family Field, but when it comes to batting against the Milwaukee Brewers, Pittsburgh Pirates second baseman Adam Frazier is right at home. “I do like hitting in Milwaukee,” Frazier said. “I can say that.” Frazier has a career .307/.358/.471 slash...
Pirates take long-term approach by sitting catcher Jacob Stallings despite his hot bat
Jacob Stallings was the hottest bat in the Pittsburgh Pirates lineup, coming off a three-hit, three-RBI game when manager Derek Shelton removed his catcher from the starting lineup the following day. Despite Stallings batting .500 over a five-game stretch, Shelton had scheduled a day off for Stallings on Wednesday night...
Padres hit Mitch Keller hard to beat Pirates, earn series split
Mitch Keller has had trouble with his fastball command this season, so finding the strike zone has been a challenge for the Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander since spring training. Against the San Diego Padres, Keller attacked the zone. And they hit him hard from the start. The Padres battered Keller for...
Pirates GM Ben Cherington sees a ‘good sign’ with Ke’Bryan Hayes, still early in center field
Seeing Ke’Bryan Hayes is back to taking swings is a “good sign,” yet Pittsburgh Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said he doesn’t want to “guess on a day” the rookie third baseman will be ready to be activated from the 10-day injured list. Cherington spoke with the media for 20...
Gregory Polanco homers off Joe Musgrove as Pirates beat Padres
Gregory Polanco was scuffling so much at the plate that the Pittsburgh Pirates gave their right fielder successive days off against the San Diego Padres to work on the timing of his swing. Polanco returned to the lineup just in time. The Pirates bet on a batting order filled with...
Pirates rookie Ke’Bryan Hayes back swinging, but not ready to return from IL
Ke’Bryan Hayes took a “step in the right direction” by taking swings in the batting cage, but the Pittsburgh Pirates rookie third baseman isn’t ready to return from the injured list yet. Pirates director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk said the club is being careful to monitor how Hayes, out...
‘That was quite a baseball game’: Pirates beat Padres in wild, 4-hour affair
If this was supposed to be a pitcher’s duel, Blake Snell and Chad Kuhl unloaded most of their ammunition in a 75-pitch first inning that lasted 51 minutes and set the tone for a long night of baseball. Mostly bad baseball. By the time this one was over, four hours...
After no-hitter, Joe Musgrove makes bittersweet return to Pittsburgh with Padres
After tossing the first no-hitter in San Diego Padres history Friday, donating a hat and ball to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and having a mural painted in his honor at his alma mater, only one thing could bring down Joe Musgrove from the natural high he’s been riding....
Pirates turned to Wilmer Difo in a pinch, and the super utility player is delivering
When the Pittsburgh Pirates pursued Wilmer Difo in free agency, the attraction was as much for his magnetic personality as it was his switch hitting at the plate and versatility in the field. While Difo didn’t make the Opening Day roster out of spring training, he has slid seamlessly into...
Luis Oviedo struggles in relief, as Wil Myers has 5 RBIs to lead Padres past Pirates
It’s not a typo that Wil Myers spells his first name with only one L. He handed the other L to the Pittsburgh Pirates. The San Diego right fielder went 3 for 5 with five RBIs, including a two-out, two-run homer to break a tie in the sixth inning, as...
Pirates celebrate video coordinator Kevin Roach’s successful challenges against Cubs
Kevin Roach is locked in a video room next to the Pittsburgh Pirates clubhouse during home games at PNC Park and locked into the game, watching every play with a close eye in search of a mistake. As the team’s video coordinator, Roach collaborates with bench coach Don Kelly to...
Pirates notebook: Phillip Evans ‘ready to play everywhere’ when Ke’Bryan Hayes returns
When the Pittsburgh Pirates were counting on a rookie third baseman to bat second and provide some pop in the lineup, no one was expecting it would be Phillip Evans instead of Ke’Bryan Hayes. The 28-year-old Evans isn’t your average rookie. A journeyman who played 34 games for the New...
JT Brubaker’s 3 RBIs lead Pirates hit parade vs. Cubs
For as much as JT Brubaker loves to sling it, the Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander also enjoys every chance he gets to swing it. While Brubaker kept the Chicago Cubs in check with his arm, he put the Pirates ahead with one swing of the bat. Six days after Brubaker got...
Mitch Keller delivers promising performance, 7-run inning boosts Pirates past Cubs
After a rough spring training and first outing, Mitch Keller could have wilted when he walked the first batter he faced and gave up a run in the first inning Saturday night against the Chicago Cubs. Keller’s fastball command has been an issue, so Pittsburgh Pirates manager Derek Shelton was...
Pirates ‘super happy’ for Joe Musgrove after he throws 1st no-hitter in Padres history
When Jacob Stallings asked his 4-year-old son if he wanted to watch Joe Musgrove pitch for the San Diego Padres on Friday night, they had no idea they were about to witness history. Well, one of them, anyway. “We turned it on in the first inning,” Stallings said, “and he...
Legendary Pirates usher Phil Coyne, whose career spanned from Forbes Field to PNC Park, dies at age 102
Phil Coyne spent eight decades as an usher for Pittsburgh Pirates games, spanning from Forbes Field to Three Rivers Stadium to PNC Park, and only one tradition lasted longer. Known as “Philly” to family and friends, Coyne ate two Oreo cookies with a glass of milk before going to bed...
Pirates trade reliever Edgar Santana to Braves for cash considerations
The Pittsburgh Pirates traded Edgar Santana to the Atlanta Braves for cash considerations Friday, four days after designating the right-handed reliever for assignment. Santana, 29, was 3-4 with a 3.31 ERA and 1.198 WHIP in 88 relief appearances over two seasons. He underwent Tommy John surgery in September 2018 and...
Cubs belt 3 homers to spoil Pirates’ home opener
The first game with fans back at PNC Park was emotional for Derek Shelton, who spent his first season as Pittsburgh Pirates manager playing in an empty ballpark on the way to the worst record in baseball. So Shelton’s heart got pumping when the crowd came to life in the...
Pirates manager Derek Shelton savoring return of fans for home opener at PNC Park
On the day Derek Shelton was introduced as Pittsburgh Pirates manager, a photo captured the moment he took his family through the dugout and onto the field at PNC Park for the first time. Shelton has the framed photo hanging in his office, and it’s the closest his family has...
Chad Kuhl, Pirates bullpen battered as red-hot Reds complete 3-game sweep
From the first pitch, the Pittsburgh Pirates knew they were in for a long day. And it didn’t matter whether it was starter Chad Kuhl or reliever Chris Stratton on the mound. Tyler Naquin hit Kuhl’s first pitch over the left-field fence to lead off a five-run first inning, and...
Pirates: Ke’Bryan Hayes not catching or swinging, could be out longer than 10 days
The left wrist injury that sent Ke’Bryan Hayes to the 10-day injured list has limited the Pittsburgh Pirates rookie third baseman’s baseball activities to only throwing and not catching the ball or taking swings. Pirates director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk said Wednesday the club is “overall encouraged” by Hayes’...
Phillip Evans provides highlights for Pirates at plate, on mound in blowout loss to Reds
Facing a two-touchdown deficit at the Cincinnati Reds, the Pittsburgh Pirates were searching for someone — anyone, really — to deliver a highlight in a game that was the lowlight of this young season. Phillip Evans provided a pair, first by breaking up the shutout with a solo home run...
