Pirates/MLB category, Page 151

Rodolfo Castro was right where he wanted to be to celebrate his 23rd birthday Saturday, playing his favorite position in the major leagues and hoping to prove he’s a fast learner. The Pittsburgh Pirates rookie started at shortstop for the eighth time in nine games Saturday night, a day after...

INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 20-18) defeated Toledo (Tigers), 5-2. SS Ji-hwan Bae (.293) was 3 for 4 with a home run. 1B Mason Martin (.258) smacked a two-run homer. CF Travis Swaggerty (.208) was 2 for 3 with a home run, triple and two RBIs. LHP Trey McGough (3.06) started and allowed...

The Pittsburgh Pirates gave Tyler Heineman time to test the waters before putting him behind the plate, allowing their new backup catcher the chance to catch bullpen sessions and learn the pitching staff. Then they threw Heineman into the deep end. Two days after being claimed off waivers from the...

For the Pittsburgh Pirates hitters, coming back to PNC Park on Friday might be a case of getting the wrong guy at the wrong time. The Buccos batters will face a familiar foe in Adam Wainwright and the St. Louis Cardinals to open a three-game series and a six-game homestand....

INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 19-18) split a doubleheader with Toledo (Tigers). The Mud Hens won the first game, 4-2. RHP Roansy Contreras (0-1, 2.66) started and went 5.2 innings, allowing three runs, two earned, on six hits and a walk with four strikeouts. SS Oneil Cruz went 1 for 1 with three...

Derek Shelton was well aware of Adam Wainwright’s mastery of the Pittsburgh Pirates, as the 40-year-old St. Louis Cardinals ace was 9-0 with a 1.65 ERA in his last 11 starts against them. “We’ve got to do something different,” Shelton said. “The formula, so far, has not worked.” Nothing Shelton...

Considering the angst created by the Pirates’ recent offensive deficiencies, it was shocking to look up Thursday morning and discover they had won three of their past five games. This is a team that is last (15th) in the National League in runs scored (122), 14th in home runs (28)...

To the surprise of no one, Pittsburgh Penguins fans are ticked off about their team blowing a 3-1 series lead against the New York Rangers en route to playoff elimination. Meanwhile, Pirates fans are ticked off about … everything. That’s why we invented “U mad, bro?” It’s basically a public...

INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 18-17) and Toledo (Tigers) were rained out. The game will be made up as part of a doubleheader Thursday starting at 11:05 a.m. Next: Thursday vs. Toledo (Tigers), 11:05 a.m. ALTOONA (Double-A, 16-19) rallied past Richmond (Giants), 7-5. The Curve scored two runs in the bottom of the...

Tim Suwinski insisted the salty droplet trickling down his face was sweat. But no one believed him. Who could blame Suwinski, a retired carpenter who devoted much of his adult life to chauffeuring his children to their sporting events, if he shed a tear or two in the Wrigley Field...

Veteran catcher Roberto Perez, who was helping guide the Pittsburgh Pirates pitching staff through the difficult early days of the season, will have season-ending surgery to repair his hamstring, director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk said Wednesday afternoon. Perez, who signed a one-year, $5 million contract in November, to replace...

Over the past three games, the Pittsburgh Pirates have found themselves in an unfathomable offensive funk where they have been no-hit once and shut out twice — against two teams sitting below them in NL Central standings. The struggles at the plate actually have stretched longer than a week. Since...

INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 18-16) blanked Toledo (Tigers), 7-0, as five pitchers combined on a two-hit shutout. RHP Osvaldo Bido (3.76) worked a scoreless first. RHP Cody Bolton (1-1, 3.86) followed with four scoreless, allowing one hit and fanning six. LHP Cam Vieaux (1.53) and RHP Yerry De Los Santos (1.98) pitched...

After going 48 hours between hits, the Pittsburgh Pirates continued their search for offense. They might want to look for their defense while they’re at it. JT Brubaker recorded a career-high 10 strikeouts, but the right-hander couldn’t count on Pirates infielders to make even the most routine defensive plays. The...

A former Pittsburgh Steeler is making news by taking a high school coaching job. He is also endorsing a reunion between the Steelers and Antonio Brown. Things aren’t perfect in Cincinnati with the Bengals and a star player. The New York Rangers are underdogs in their next series despite dispatching...

As one of only 20 players drafted twice in the first round and a former top prospect in the San Francisco Giants’ system, Tyler Beede brought plenty of pedigree to the Pittsburgh Pirates. What Beede wants more than anything is a fresh start after Tommy John surgery sidetracked his once-promising...

The Pittsburgh Pirates had no answer for Chicago Cubs leadoff batter Willson Contreras in the first inning — or left-hander Wade Miley for the first seven innings. Contreras hit a double and a grand slam in an eight-run first, and Miley tossed a one-hitter over seven scoreless innings as the...

The Pittsburgh Pirates made a pair of moves at catcher Monday, claiming Tyler Heineman off waivers from the Toronto Blue Jays and designating Andrew Knapp for assignment. Heineman, 30, is a 5-foot-10, 190-pound switch hitter who has slashed .221/.284/.324 with four doubles, one home run and four RBIs in 30...

From the end of the dugout where Derek Shelton watches games, the Pittsburgh Pirates manager can hear the constant chatter coming from their biggest player, in terms of size and volume. With every pitch, Daniel Vogelbach is earning a reputation as hitter’s hitter, someone who analyzes everything from a pitcher’s...

INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 17-16) blitzed Charlotte (White-Sox), 11-5. LF Oneil Cruz (.185) went 2 for 5 with a three-run homer, his third, and five RBIs. 1B Mason Martin (.246) was 1 for 5 with a homer, his fifth. C Jason Delay (.255) went 4 for 5 with two doubles and two...

On a day when Hunter Greene no-hit the Pittsburgh Pirates for seven-plus innings, Jose Quintana quietly matched the Cincinnati Reds rookie zero for zero in the line score. Quintana celebrated 10 years of major-league service Sunday – a major milestone for the 33-year-old left-hander – by tossing seven scoreless innings...

The Pittsburgh Pirates found Hunter Greene to be unhittable, as the Cincinnati Reds rookie right-hander mixed a 100-mph fastball with an electric slider for seven-plus scoreless innings on Sunday. So the Pirates drew a line by drawing balls. After three consecutive walks to load the bases with one out in...

INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 16-17) was smashed by Charlotte (White-Sox), 12-2, managing just two hits. RHP Miguel Yajure (6.75) started and lasted just two-thirds of an inning, giving up two runs on one hit, a home run, with four walks. RHP Matt Eckelman (0-3, 13.11) came on and surrendered six runs on...

Zach Thompson looked spent as the Pittsburgh Pirates 6-foot-7 right-hander stood on the mound, enduring a muggy, 78-degree day from the first pitch and a scoreless streak that gained gravity with every inning. Thompson faced the first 19 Cincinnati Reds batters Saturday night without allowing a hit, until Brandon Drury...

Ke’Bryan Hayes knows the old baseball adage — home runs are thrown, not hit — so the Pittsburgh Pirates third baseman isn’t focusing on the fact that he has yet to hit a homer this season entering Saturday. Hayes has good reason to pay more attention to the positive numbers...