Pirates/MLB category, Page 216
Kevin Gorman’s Take 5: Fair or foul? Safe or out? Close calls cost Pirates in loss to Indians
To the Pittsburgh Pirates, this loss wasn’t what it seemed. Jarrod Dyson was safe at second in the ninth. Carlos Santana’s home run was foul in the 10th. Pirates manager Derek Shelton was sure of both scenarios that the cameras didn’t catch — or couldn’t convince the umpires to reverse...
Pirates pitcher Derek Holland pays tribute to actor Rob Schneider with cardboard cutouts
There might not be fans in the stands to see the Pittsburgh Pirates play at PNC Park, but Derek Holland made sure there was a celebrity sighting for Tuesday night’s game against the Cleveland Indians. The Pirates left-handed pitcher had cardboard cutouts of actor and comedian Rob Schneider strategically placed...
Pirates lose in extra innings again, as Carlos Santana’s three-run homer lifts Indians in 10th
The Cleveland Indians conducted a rally rhythm from the visitors dugout at PNC Park, a cadence of claps by pounding the padded railing and drums by beating baseballs against water coolers. Cleveland’s musical mischief stopped with the sound of the crack of the bat by Carlos Santana, who crushed a...
Pirates recall right-handed relievers Tyler Bashlor, Nick Mears
The Pittsburgh Pirates were desperate for pitching. Tyler Bashlor was looking for a fresh start. So the right-handed reliever was almost as excited about being traded by the New York Mets on Aug. 2 for cash considerations as he was about being recalled by the Pirates Tuesday from their alternate...
After playing twice in 8 days, Pirates ready to face gauntlet of games
Jacob Stallings couldn’t decide which was weirder, the Pittsburgh Pirates being stuck in isolation in Cincinnati when their weekend series was postponed because of coronavirus concerns or waiting until MLB decided whether they would play a doubleheader Monday. Safety concerns beat the boredom. “Sunday was more stressful and more up...
Tim Benz: Wide mix of reasons for widely mixed results of sports TV ratings since restarts
On Monday afternoon, I visited five websites to track how sports on television ratings were tracking amid the pandemic restarts. I got four different answers. Monday’s news from NBC was that the first two days of the Stanley Cup Playoffs official first round “averaged 620,000 viewers across NBC Sports’ TV...
Tim Benz: Pittsburgh sports history shows how long a full Penguins rebuild may take
The Penguins have already successfully pulled off a mini-rebuild within their current era of championship success. What’s now being called the “core three” of the Penguins team — Sidney Crosby, Kris Letang, Evgeni Malkin — used to have a much broader membership. The perception was that “core” also used to...
Thanks to postponements, Pirates have potential for plenty of uninterrupted baseball
By the time JT Brubaker throws the first pitch Tuesday night at PNC Park, the Pittsburgh Pirates will have more games to play (42) than there are days remaining (41) in the season. With a 4-14 record that is the worst in MLB and eight pitchers on the injured list...
Pirates, Reds won’t make up postponed games Monday
The two games postponed in Cincinnati because a Reds player tested positive for covid-19 won’t be played Monday, the Pittsburgh Pirates announced Sunday afternoon. Manager Derek Shelton said he was not told why there won’t be a doubleheader Monday when both teams are idle. “Major League Baseball has decided, protocol-wise,...
Pirates believe Cole Tucker can rob homers in center, even after his miss against Reds
When Nicholas Castellanos came to bat with two outs and a runner on second base, Pittsburgh Pirates outfield coach Tarrik Brock signaled for Cole Tucker to move in at center field in anticipation of making a throw to the plate. “I felt good about that,” Tucker said, “because I want...
Final 2 games of Pirates-Reds series postponed after Reds player tests positive for covid-19
The Pittsburgh Pirates-Cincinnati Reds games Saturday night and Sunday afternoon at Great American Ball Park were postponed after a Reds player tested positive for covid-19 on Friday. MLB announced that the games were postponed “to allow for additional testing and to complete the contact tracing process.” Contact tracing helps identify...
‘Burgh’s Best to Wear It, No. 16: Al Oliver provided plenty of hits for Lumber Company Pirates
The Tribune-Review sports staff is conducting a daily countdown of the best players in Pittsburgh pro and college sports history to wear each jersey number. No. 16: Al Oliver Thanks to his knack for plucking balls out of the dirt at first base, Al Oliver was given an appropriate nickname...
Jesse Winker homers twice for Reds, who rough up Pirates with four-run seventh inning
Jesse Winker was one of the hottest hitters in baseball, so the Pittsburgh Pirates certainly were wary of the Cincinnati Reds designated hitter. Where Chad Kuhl missed on his pitches, Winker didn’t. The left-handed Winker homered twice off the Pirates righty for his first career multi-homer game to spark the...
Pirates’ Derek Shelton repeats lineup for 1st time this season
Derek Shelton snapped a streak, sort of, when the Pittsburgh Pirates manager filled out the starting lineup for Friday’s game against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park. For the first time this season, the Pirates used the same lineup. “No, it’s not!” Shelton quickly corrected, noting that Jarrod...
Pirates lefty Steven Brault believes he will be more effective in consistent role as a starter
Steven Brault bid adieu to his piggyback partner, preparing to pitch solo after three outings in tandem. Just don’t look for Brault to kiss Chad Kuhl goodbye. “It was a sad breakup. It was tough. It was a very difficult time for us both,” Brault deadpanned. “Now, we we move...
MLB reschedules Pirates-Cardinals postponements as pair of doubleheaders
After postponing games since July 29 because of a coronavirus outbreak, the St. Louis Cardinals will return to playing with a doubleheader Saturday against the Chicago White Sox, and MLB announced a rescheduling of the Cardinals’ games against the Pittsburgh Pirates. The three-game series, originally scheduled for Monday, Tuesday and...
Former Pirate, WPIAL star Neil Walker dusts off skills in emergency MLB pitching debut
Neil Walker completed his WPIAL career at Pine-Richland High School as one of the best athletes in Western Pennsylvania history. He was a three-sport star with the Rams (football, baseball, basketball), playing multiple positions along the way. Walker emerged as one of the best baseball prospects in the country as...
Keone Kela overcomes nerves in season debut as Pirates closer
Keone Kela was full of nerves, pacing back and forth in the bullpen before his long-awaited first appearance of the season. The Pittsburgh Pirates ordained Kela their closer at the start of spring training, but baseball’s shutdown kept him waiting four months to pitch, and a positive test for covid-19...
Kevin Gorman’s Take 5: Aggressive approach helps Pirates reset offense against RedsVideo
A three-day break might have been the best thing for the Pittsburgh Pirates to snap a three-game losing streak, so it was no surprise to hear players treating their trip to Cincinnati as an offensive reset. Before three of their first six batters hit home runs and scored nine runs...
Pirates hit 3 early home runs, hold on to beat Reds
Cincinnati Reds right-hander Anthony DeSclafani hadn’t allowed an earned run this season before playing the Pittsburgh Pirates. That lasted only one pitch. Adam Frazier hit DeSclafani’s second pitch for a leadoff home run, Colin Moran added another solo shot and Gregory Polanco led off a seven-run second inning with a...
Josh Bell spent Pirates’ downtime working to identify why the timing is off with his swing
Josh Bell knows his numbers through the first 16 games are down compared to his hot start last season, and the Pittsburgh Pirates All-Star first baseman isn’t one to make excuses for his struggles. But Bell has spent this week working to identify why he was slashing .213/.246/.328 with two...
‘Burgh’s Best to Wear It, No. 18: Andy Van Slyke was at center of division-winning Pirates teamsVideo
The Tribune-Review sports staff is conducting a daily countdown of the best players in Pittsburgh pro and college sports history to wear each jersey number. No. 18: Andy Van Slyke A 1987 trade that brought Andy Van Slyke to the Pittsburgh Pirates initially was highly unpopular with the franchise’s fanbase....
Pirates’ Chad Kuhl, Steven Brault will start separately in CincinnatiVideo
Derek Shelton will break up the Chad Kuhl/Steven Brault piggyback situation in his starting rotation. The Pittsburgh Pirates’ manager said Kuhl will start Friday in the second game of the series in Cincinnati; Brault gets the start Saturday. Shelton’s reasoning is simple. The Pirates need another arm in the rotation...
Pirates closer Keone Kela returns to bullpenVideo
Keone Kela had a bag of balls, a net to throw them into and plenty of free time while quarantined after a positive covid-19 test. That wasn’t enough, though. Passersby might have seen the Pittsburgh Pirates’ closer under the I-279 bridge on the North Side, throwing baseballs off the pillars....
‘Burgh’s Best to Wear It, No. 19: Pirates’ Bob Friend made durability hallmarkVideo
The Tribune-Review sports staff is conducting a daily countdown of the best players in Pittsburgh pro and college sports history to wear each jersey number. No. 19: Bob Friend Pitching for the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 1950s was like taking the mound for the home teams these days at PNC...
