Kevin Gorman stories, Page 93
Pirates release RF Gregory Polanco, severing ties with team’s longest-tenured player
As one of baseball’s top prospects, Gregory Polanco was trumpeted by Sports Illustrated as baseball’s Next Big Thing. Polanco never lived up to that billing with the Pittsburgh Pirates, who severed ties with their longest-tenured player and the last holdover from their postseason teams Saturday by releasing the right fielder....
Pirates find ‘more satisfaction than motivation’ in serving as spoiler for foes in playoff race
That the Pittsburgh Pirates are 31 games out of first place in the NL Central and 231⁄2 games back from wild card contention hasn’t stopped them from paying attention to the playoff race. Even though the Pirates (47-83) have no realistic shot at making the postseason, they know that they...
Pirates fail to capitalize against Cardinals, as Tommy Edman homers, has 3 RBIs
The four reviews should have served as a cue for the Pittsburgh Pirates that this would be a game of close calls. One they would eventually lose. Tommy Edman hit a two-run home run and a sacrifice fly for three RBIs to lead the St. Louis Cardinals to a 4-3...
Colin Moran quells concerns over hand injury by powering Pirates since his return from IL
Colin Moran couldn’t hide his frustration when he was hit by a pitch in the left wrist by Colorado Rockies left-hander Kyle Freeland, a fracture that would sideline the Pittsburgh Pirates first baseman for five weeks. Moran already had missed 24 games with a left groin strain earlier this season,...
Sparked by Gregory Polanco, Pirates use 8-run rally for comeback to beat Cardinals
Gregory Polanco complained about the catcalls from Pittsburgh Pirates fans before Thursday night’s game against the St. Louis Cardinals, then turned the jeers to cheers at PNC Park. Polanco went 3 for 4 with two doubles, including a two-run line drive to left in an eight-run seventh inning to score...
Gregory Polanco fires back at Pirates fans: ‘I’m a human being, too’
Gregory Polanco sounded off on Pittsburgh Pirates fans who have heckled him at PNC Park this week, showing their sharp criticism has clearly stung the pride of the right fielder who is the team’s longest-tenured player. A day after Polanco made a costly error in a 5-2 loss to the...
Gregory Polanco makes costly error, bullpen blows lead as Pirates fail to sweep Arizona
The Pittsburgh Pirates television broadcast crew brought their brooms, but the only sweeping being done Wednesday night at PNC Park was another disheartening loss under the proverbial rug. Bryse Wilson came off the injured list to pitch five scoreless innings, only for Gregory Polanco to make a costly error and...
Pirates’ No. 1 pick Henry Davis goes on IL with oblique injury, could miss rest of season
Henry Davis, picked No. 1 overall in the 2021 MLB Draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates, is on the injured list with a right oblique strain that could bring a premature end to his first professional season. Pirates director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk confirmed Wednesday that Davis was placed on...
Pirates activate RHP Bryse Wilson to start against Arizona, place JT Brubaker on IL
The Pittsburgh Pirates activated right-handed pitcher Bryse Wilson from the 10-day injured list in time to start Wednesday night against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Wilson (0-2, 4.80 ERA), acquired at the trade deadline from the Atlanta Braves in exchange for closer Richard Rodriguez, went on the IL on Aug. 15 with...
Michael Chavis hits 1st home run for Pirates after focusing on letting power come naturally
After hitting his first home run with the Pittsburgh Pirates, Michael Chavis celebrated with his new teammates in the dugout and then pulled out a little black book to commemorate the occasion. Dating to his days with the High-A Salem (Va.) Red Sox in the minor leagues, Chavis has kept...
JT Brubaker ends skid, Michael Chavis, Anthony Alford homer as Pirates top Diamondbacks
JT Brubaker was closing in on three months between earning wins, a stretch the Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander called a continuous cycle where he learned to focus on his next start instead of his last. Brubaker got his groove back against the Arizona Diamondbacks, thanks to improved fastball command and a...
Pirates SS Kevin Newman delivers gems in ‘best defensive game that I can remember’
When Kevin Newman works on ground balls, he uses it as a chance to practice plays like making a backhand stop and following with a jump-throw from deep in the hole or going left to make a spinning toss. Never did the Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop imagine pulling off both plays...
Pirates prefer a mix-and-match mindset with new relief roles in back end of bullpen
Derek Shelton knew he would have to mix and match to reconstruct a Pittsburgh Pirates bullpen decimated by ineffectiveness, injuries and trades, especially over the final two months of the season. The Pirates have turned a starter into a reliever, transformed a veteran from a multi-innings eater into a high-leverage...
Yoshi Tsutsugo lifts Pirates past Cardinals, as Mars alum David Bednar earns 1st MLB save
The Pittsburgh Pirates arrived in St. Louis trying to snap a five-game losing streak. Now, they are on the brink of sweeping the Cardinals and spoiling their Hall of Fame weekend at Busch Stadium. Where the Cardinals presented red jackets to some of their all-time greats in a pregame ceremony,...
Yoshi Tsutsugo’s 1st home run for Pirates receives warm welcome from teammates
Once he made contact, Yoshi Tsutsugo watched the ball and pointed his bat toward the home bullpen in right-center field at Busch Stadium as the ball sailed over the outstretched glove of Lars Nootbaar. Tsutsugo’s first home run for the Pittsburgh Pirates was a pinch-hit solo shot that traveled 397...
Mitch Keller delivers strong start as Pirates take advantage of error to shut out Cardinals
Mitch Keller’s season has been a head scratcher, especially for the Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander, so trying to make sense out of his mastery of the St. Louis Cardinals is something of a mystery. Where Keller’s struggles with his fastball command got him demoted to the minors midseason, he was at...
Pirates notebook: RHP Chad Kuhl returns from covid list, will work out of the bullpen
After a bout with covid-19, Chad Kuhl is back with the Pittsburgh Pirates but the right-hander will be used in a new role. Pirates manager Derek Shelton said Kuhl, reinstated to the active roster on Friday after being out since Aug. 2, will pitch out of the bullpen “as of...
‘We’re trying to win ballgames’: Pirates endure brutal start to August, losing 15 of 17 games
There wasn’t much promise in the post-trade deadline Pittsburgh Pirates, and they didn’t make any after dealing away their All-Star second baseman, a starting pitcher and three relievers, including the closer. The Pirates won their final two games of July to finish the month with an 11-14 record, their best...
Dodgers hit JT Brubaker hard, pound Pirates for 4 home runs to sweep series
JT Brubaker watched in disbelief as the ball sailed over the left field wall at Dodger Stadium, courtesy of Max Muncy muscling a sinker on the outside corner only four pitches into the bottom of the first inning. It was the first of four home runs the Los Angeles Dodgers...
Chad Kuhl, Anthony Alford, Sam Howard take steps toward returning to Pirates from IL
Lefty reliever Sam Howard started his minor-league rehabilitation assignment, but right-hander Chad Kuhl and outfielder Anthony Alford are on track to return to the Pittsburgh Pirates first. Pirates director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk said Kuhl (3-6, 4.43 ERA in 14 starts), who went on the covid-19 injured list Aug....
After smashing start, Pirates rookie 2B Rodolfo Castro struggles
Derek Shelton never considered benching Rodolfo Castro for his baserunning blunder against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Monday. Instead, the Pittsburgh Pirates manager treated it as a teaching moment. When Castro failed to tag up at third on a Hoy Park lineout to left field, Shelton didn’t hesitate to note...
Dodgers lean on doubles to defeat Pirates, whose late rally falls short
Wil Crowe was looking to get the Los Angeles Dodgers to make soft contact, a game plan that was working for the Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander. What went wrong is how the ball kept landing in gaps. The Dodgers hit leadoff doubles in four of the first eight innings on their...
Pirates ‘extremely proud’ to see Baseball America ranks their farm system No. 4 overall
When the Pittsburgh Pirates hired Ben Cherington as general manager, he made the acquisition of talent his top priority. Through trades and the draft, Cherington has his fingerprints all over their foundational rebuild. Where the Pirates have plodded through this season with one of the worst records in majors, their...
Billy McKinney, Max Muncy homers boost Dodgers past Pirates after Steven Brault’s strong start
The Pittsburgh Pirates made three mistakes that proved costly against the Los Angeles Dodgers, and only two of them came on swings by left-handed batters against lefty relievers. A baserunning gaffe by Rodolfo Castro, who failed to tag up at third, prevented the Pirates from scoring a run in the...
Pirates sign Yoshi Tsutsugo, designate John Nogowski, Ka’ai Tom for assignment
The Pittsburgh Pirates officially signed Yoshi Tsutsugo to a major league deal and made the first baseman/outfielder active for Monday’s game at the Los Angeles Dodgers. To make room on the roster for Tsutsugo, the Pirates on Monday designated outfielder Ka’ai Tom and first baseman John Nogowski for assignment. Tsutsugo...
