Kevin Gorman stories, Page 32
Nick Lodolo outduels Bailey Falter, Santiago Espinal homer leads Reds past Pirates
If the Pittsburgh Pirates thought beating the Cincinnati Reds was going to be as easy as 5-4-3, they were wrong. The Pirates turned three double plays in the first three innings, all starting with grounders to third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes throwing to Nick Gonzales at second base and relayed to...
Paul Skenes silences Reds as Pirates break tie in standings with NL Central rivals
When Paul Skenes attacked the Cincinnati Reds with his four-seam fastball by flirting with triple digits on four of his first five pitches, he found that their hitters were sitting on his heater. The Reds responded with back-to-back hits against the fastball, scoring a run in the first inning. But...
Confidence factor: Why Pirates pitchers have full faith in veteran catcher Yasmani Grandal
Yasmani Grandal isn’t hitting anywhere near his weight and admittedly made an inexcusable mental error that allowed the Colorado Rockies to steal home Saturday night, a blemish for any catcher. Yet there’s a reason the Pittsburgh Pirates find value in the 35-year-old Grandal, and it has everything to do with...
Josh Fleming, Jason Delay deliver for Pirates in bounce-back win over Rockies to clinch series
The Pittsburgh Pirates turned to a pair of new arrivals for emergency spot starts, and left-handed reliever Josh Fleming and catcher Jason Delay required no extra incentive. Battery mates at Triple-A Indianapolis, both used their second chances to provide prominent performances as the Pirates bounced back from a double-digit defeat...
Rockies pound Jared Jones, bullpen to hand Pirates most lopsided loss of season
Jared Jones had matched his career high in earned runs when Colorado Rockies third base coach Warren Schaeffer noticed that Pittsburgh Pirates catcher Yasmani Grandal was lobbing the ball back to the mound. So Schaeffer, a Vandergrift native and Greensburg Central Catholic graduate, tipped Ryan McMahon to be on alert....
Pirates place Henry Davis on concussion IL, recall Jason Delay to serve as backup catcher
When Henry Davis took a foul ball off the face mask Friday night at Colorado, it proved to be worse than expected. Not only was the Pittsburgh Pirates catcher removed from the game but he was placed the catcher on the seven-day concussion injured list before Saturday’s game against the...
Andrew McCutchen, Bryan Reynolds, Jack Suwinski homer to push Pirates past Rockies
The high altitude of Coors Field proved to be the perfect antidote to the Pittsburgh Pirates’ slumbering lumber. Bryan Reynolds, Andrew McCutchen and Jack Suwinski homered to provide run support to propel the Pirates to a 5-2 win over the Colorado Rockies on Friday night in the first of a...
Pirates place RHP Hunter Stratton on 15-day IL, select LHP Josh Fleming
The Pittsburgh Pirates made a series of roster moves before Friday’s game against the Colorado Rockies, bringing back a former reliever to a bullpen dealing with an injury. The Pirates placed right-hander Hunter Stratton (2-1, 4.26 ERA, one save) on the 15-day injured list with a right triceps strain and...
Pirates hope 1st homer a step in the right direction for catcher Henry Davis
Henry Davis makes it clear he doesn’t care about anything but winning, so the Pittsburgh Pirates catcher isn’t the type to seek solace in making hard contact when it’s a foul ball. When Davis pulled a ball nearly 400 feet in the fifth inning Wednesday in St. Louis, it was...
Pirates trade LHP Jose Hernandez to Los Angeles Dodgers for cash considerations
Jose Hernandez is headed back to the Los Angeles Dodgers. Two days after designating the left-handed reliever for assignment, the Pirates traded Hernandez to the Dodgers on Thursday night for cash considerations. The Pirates picked Hernandez in the 2022 Rule 5 Draft from the Dodgers, and he was 1-3 with...
Mitch Keller gives up 2 home runs as Cardinals beat Pirates to win series
Mitch Keller has had an impressive stretch of streaks for the Pittsburgh Pirates, but the one that came to an end against the St. Louis Cardinals proved to be the difference in the game. Keller hadn’t surrendered more than one home run in a game since Sept. 20 at the...
In bullpen shakeup, Pirates activate RHP Dennis Santana, option RHP Ryder Ryan
The Pittsburgh Pirates added right-hander Dennis Santana to their active roster before Thursday’s game at the St. Louis Cardinals, the latest move in their bullpen shakeup. The 28-year-old Santana, claimed Tuesday off waivers from the New York Yankees, adds another veteran arm to the relief corps. The 28-year-old has a...
Pirates reliever Kyle Nicolas pitches with conviction in fanning 5 against Cardinals
Kyle Nicolas has had his share of moments ranging from the emphatic to the erratic this season, so the Pittsburgh Pirates reliever wanted to focus on filling up the strike zone against the St. Louis Cardinals. The result was Nicolas’ most impressive outing, as the right-hander struck out the heart...
Sonny Gray strikes out 9, Cardinals have 11 hits in win over Pirates
Sonny Gray seemed off at the start as the St. Louis Cardinals right-hander allowed the first two batters he faced to reach base. After walking Andrew McCutchen and giving up a double to Bryan Reynolds, Gray struck out the next three Pittsburgh Pirates on his way to recording nine strikeouts...
Pirates cut ties with Ben Heller, claim IF/OF Niko Goodrum
One day after he gave up seven runs in the 10th inning against the Minnesota Twins, the Pittsburgh Pirates designated right-handed reliever Ben Heller for assignment. The 32-year-old allowed 11 earned runs in two appearances for the Pirates, giving up nine hits, one walk and four hit batters to post...
Kevin Gorman’s Take 5: Pirates ‘better than one call’ but would like to see umpires get it right
Henry Davis had just watched video replay of the first-inning foul tip that was called a passed ball and cost the Pittsburgh Pirates a run in a game they lost in extra innings to the Minnesota Twins on Sunday. So it would be safe to assume the Pirates catcher wasn’t...
Twins take advantage of Pirates reliever Ben Heller’s disastrous 10th to prevent sweep
After a bullpen game Saturday followed by a short start from rookie Jared Jones, the Pittsburgh Pirates were down to their last reliever when the game went into extra innings. So they turned to right-hander Ben Heller, in hopes his second appearance would fare better than his first. Instead, it...
Preparing to succeed: How Connor Joe became the most consistent player in Pirates’ lineup
When Connor Joe’s name is mentioned, the reflex response from the Pittsburgh Pirates has been to talk about his preparation. Joe is nothing if not prepared, a label he wears as a badge of honor. But Joe is changing the conversation, as the first baseman/outfielder has been the most consistent...
‘We want to keep winning’: Pirates GM Ben Cherington focused on improvement
The Pittsburgh Pirates resided in last place in the NL Central, seven games behind the Milwaukee Brewers, but only a half-game back in wild-card standings. So Pirates general manager Ben Cherington believes teams “have a pretty good idea” of what is and isn’t working this season. Even though the Pirates...
Mitch Keller tosses six shutout innings, Oneil Cruz, Connor Joe homer as Pirates beat Twins
Mitch Keller had kept the Minnesota Twins off the scoreboard for five-plus innings when he faced a full count with the bases loaded when the Pittsburgh Pirates ace showed confidence in his sweeper, a pitch he has worked to sharpen. If it wasn’t a strike, Keller was hoping for a...
Pirates’ Paul Skenes, Dodgers’ Shohei Ohtani trade highlights in much-anticipated showdown
Thanks to a free ticket, a teenage Paul Skenes was in attendance when Shohei Ohtani made his home pitching debut for the Los Angeles Angels against the Oakland Athletics in April 2018. Skenes watched in awe as the Japanese superstar, a two-time AL MVP who was then only a 23-year-old...
Jared Jones tosses 6 shutout innings, Jack Suwinski homers as Pirates blank Dodgers
Jared Jones was full of adrenaline and battling nerves, a Los Angeles kid facing the Dodgers for the first time in his major league career and a lineup that featured three MVPs at the top of the batting order. Jones came out throwing heat, as the rookie right-hander attacked Mookie...
Pirates recall C Henry Davis, INF Liover Peguero, OF Jack Suwinski in roster shakeup
The Pittsburgh Pirates shook up their lineup Tuesday with a series of roster moves that brought back a pair of big bats who struggled early this season and a veteran reliever to help the bullpen. The Pirates recalled catcher Henry Davis, infielder Liover Peguero and outfielder Jack Suwinski and selected...
Kevin Gorman’s Take 5: Pirates GM counting on internal options to provide improvement
Even though the Pittsburgh Pirates had a better record at this time last year — they were 29-27 on June 2, just a half-game back and days from moving into first place in the NL Central — general manager Ben Cherington made an interesting statement Sunday about this year’s team....
Rowdy Tellez snaps out of slump but Pirates strand 13 as Blue Jays clinch series win
Rowdy Tellez finally had the breakout game the Pittsburgh Pirates have been waiting for from the first baseman, with season highs of three hits and four RBIs against the team that drafted him. But it was another burly slugger who did the most damage against his former team, as designated...
