Pittsburgh Pirates / MLB category, Page 131
With family watching for 1st time, Johan Oviedo shows out as Pirates shut out Yankees
Johan Oviedo brought his family from Cuba to the United States, so his start for the Pittsburgh Pirates on Saturday was the first time his parents and sister saw him pitch as a professional. “They came to stay forever. They’ve been apart from me for a long time. I want...
Pirates send minor league RHP Ricky DeVito to Rangers to complete trade for Mark Mathias
The Pittsburgh Pirates sent minor-league right-handed pitcher Ricky DeVito to the Texas Rangers on Saturday as the player to be named to complete the trade for infielder-outfielder Mark Mathias. The 6-foot-3, 195-pound DeVito was 3-6 with a 5.40 ERA and 1.53 WHIP in 70 innings over 35 appearances, including six...
Pirates counting on Carlos Santana to provide stability at 1B, leadership for Latin teammates
When the Pittsburgh Pirates signed Carlos Santana to a free-agent contract, they discussed how his impact could be two-fold: by addressing offseason needs at first base and in the clubhouse. The Pirates considered Santana’s positive personality and veteran leadership as important as his good glove and big bat, especially with...
Tim Benz: Embrace the pitch clock, but pace isn’t MLB’s biggest problem
I used myself as my own baseball-fan guinea pig on Tuesday. I set up as much of a real life, everyday, control environment as I could to watch the Pittsburgh Pirates spring training game against the Toronto Blue Jays. I made a turkey sandwich. Brewed a cup of coffee. Opened...
Phillies hit 6 home runs to power past Pirates, who blow 3-run lead
When Oneil Cruz hit a leadoff home run for the Pittsburgh Pirates, it was a sign of what was to come against the Philadelphia Phillies. The Pirates jumped out to a three-run lead on Cruz’s solo shot and a two-run homer by Travis Swaggerty, only for the Phillies to answer...
Prospects Mike Burrows, Quinn Priester share goal of finishing season pitching for the Pirates
Mike Burrows and Quinn Priester arrived at spring training with similar resumes — right-handed pitchers drafted out of high school and ranked among the Pittsburgh Pirates’ top 10 prospects — and the same end goal. If they have to start the season as teammates in the minor leagues, they want...
Defensive lapses plague Pirates as Tigers use 5-run 7th inning to roll to win
The Detroit Tigers took advantage of defensive lapses by the Pittsburgh Pirates, including a botched rundown, and answered a three-run sixth inning with one that put their Grapefruit League game away. The Tigers batted around the order in a five-run seventh to roll to a 10-7 win Thursday afternoon at...
Miguel Andujar hopes to bounce back from ‘business’ move, win spot on Pirates’ rosterVideo
Perhaps the only person affiliated with the Pittsburgh Pirates who wasn’t happy about the news of Andrew McCutchen’s return was Miguel Andujar, if only because it came at his own expense. When the Pirates signed McCutchen in January, they designated Andujar for assignment. It was a calculated risk by general...
Powered by Ryan Mountcastle’s grand slam, Orioles beat Pirates
Vince Velasquez made another strong start in his bid to solidify a spot in the Pittsburgh Pirates’ rotation, recording three strikeouts in three scoreless innings before the bullpen gave up a pair of big home runs. The Baltimore Orioles rode an Austin Hays three-run homer and a Ryan Mountcastle grand...
Pirates acquire IF-OF Mark Mathias in trade with Rangers, move RHP Max Kranick to IL
The Pittsburgh Pirates acquired Mark Mathias from the Texas Rangers for a player to be named, adding the versatile 28-year-old infielder-outfielder to the mix for a super-utility player. The right handed-hitting Mathias, 28, has a .256/.307/.462 slash line with six doubles, six home runs and 24 RBIs played in 46...
For Pirates’ double play partners Nick Gonzales, Liover Peguero, the waiting is the hardest part
For Nick Gonzales and Liover Peguero, spending spring training with the Pittsburgh Pirates showed how close they are to making the major leagues and how far they still have to go. With Gonzales at second base and Peguero at shortstop — both are capable of playing on the other side...
Strong start from Mitch Keller helps Pirates defeat Blue Jays
The Pittsburgh Pirates got another strong start from Mitch Keller, who recorded three strikeouts and tossed three scoreless innings. Carlos Santana hit a two-run homer, and Lolo Sanchez added a solo shot in the four-run eighth inning as the Pirates beat the Toronto Blue Jays, 7-2, on Tuesday afternoon in...
2021 No. 1 draft pick Henry Davis among Pirates’ 1st spring training cuts
The Pittsburgh Pirates’ first day of cuts in spring training included catcher Henry Davis, the 2021 No. 1 overall draft pick. The Pirates reassigned Davis and outfielders Matt Gorski and Lolo Sanchez to their minor league camp Tuesday afternoon, following their 7-2 win over the Toronto Blue Jays at LECOM...
‘Go for a lot’: After showing he could hit as a Pirates rookie, Cal Mitchell sets new goal
Now that he’s no longer a rookie, Cal Mitchell came to spring training without the nerves the Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder had felt in the past but with a newfound sense of purpose. With 69 major league games under his belt — including coming through in a big moment to break...
Yankees hit Luis Ortiz hard in pounding Pirates behind Aaron Judge’s 3-run homer
The first time Luis Ortiz faced the New York Yankees, the Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander held them to two runs on three hits while striking out five over five innings in only his second major-league start. His Grapefruit League game didn’t go as well. The Yankees tagged Ortiz for five runs...
Veteran Chris Owings has inside track on becoming a super-utility man for Pirates
When Derek Shelton was asked about potential backups at shortstop, second base and third base, the Pittsburgh Pirates manager kept mentioning the name of a non-roster invitee to spring training. That Chris Owings can play all three infield positions, as well as several others, is the primary reason why he’s...
JT Brubaker leads Pirates past Twins, but Andrew McCutchen hit by pitch in left hand
The Pittsburgh Pirates got a dose of good news and bad news Sunday afternoon. The good news: JT Brubaker struck out four while allowing one hit in three scoreless innings, and the Pirates got two-run hits from a pair of players trying to make the Opening Day roster in a...
‘Being part of it is really special’: Pirates players thrilled to participate in World Baseball Classic
BRADENTON, Fla. — When David Bednar saw the Team USA roster for the World Baseball Classic, the Pittsburgh Pirates closer’s mind drifted to his first All-Star Game last summer. His teammates will include 21 All-Stars and four MVPs in Mookie Betts, Paul Goldschmidt, Mike Trout and three-time Cy Young Award...
Phillies’ big inning drops Pirates in spring training game
Ji-Man Choi twice drove in Ke’Bryan Hayes but it wasn’t enough for the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Philadelphia Phillies used a four-run third inning for a 4-3 win in a Grapefruit League game at BayCare Ballpark in Clearwater, Fla. The Pirates took a 2-0 lead in the first inning when Hayes...
Pirates adjusting to love-hate relationship with baseball’s new pitch clock in spring training
In his first at-bat of spring training, Bryan Reynolds took an Aaron Nola four-seam fastball for a ball to work a 3-0 count against the Philadelphia Phillies in a Grapefruit League game Monday at LECOM Park. Typically, the Pittsburgh Pirates All-Star outfielder would step out of the batter’s box to...
Ji Hwan Bae gets Pirates off to a fast start in 1st inning but they play Orioles to a tie
Ji Hwan Bae got the Pittsburgh Pirates off to a fast start against the Baltimore Orioles, but it proved to be their only run. The Pirates and Orioles played to a 1-1 tie Friday night in a Grapefruit League game at Ed Smith Stadium in Sarasota. Bae hit a leadoff...
Now that Chase De Jong has found a home with Pirates, he’s working on a new pitch
Chase De Jong arrived in Bradenton last year as a nonroster invitee coming off season-ending knee surgery and making the move from the starting rotation of the Pittsburgh Pirates to a reliever role. If Bradenton feels more like home for De Jong this year, it’s because he bought a house...
Yankees homer twice off Mitch Keller to pound split-squad Pirates, who tie Blue Jays on road
With a split squad playing the New York Yankees at home and the Toronto Blue Jays on the road, the Pittsburgh Pirates turned to two of the pitchers in contention to start on Opening Day. Where Mitch Keller gave up a pair of home runs to the Yankees in a...
Former Pirates No. 1 pick Travis Swaggerty takes a big swing at rebuilding his reputation
When the Pittsburgh Pirates chose Travis Swaggerty out of South Alabama with the No. 10 overall pick in the 2018 MLB Draft, they got an outfielder with a reputation as the best hitter in college baseball. Despite some setbacks, both personal and professional, Swaggerty is still trying to swing his...
Oneil Cruz, Travis Swaggerty belt homers, but Pirates fall short against Tigers
Shortstop Oneil Cruz smacked his first home run of spring training, and outfielder Travis Swaggerty crushed a three-run homer in the eighth inning, but the Pittsburgh Pirates fell short against the Tigers, 8-7, on Wednesday at Publix Field in Lakeland, Fla. Cruz hit a two-run shot 355 feet to the...
