Pittsburgh Pirates / MLB category, Page 280
Pirates place Trevor Williams on 10-day injured list
Trevor Williams, who left Thursday’s game in San Diego in the fourth inning with right side strain, became the fourth member of the Pittsburgh Pirates starting rotation to go on the 10-day injured list Friday this season. Williams has been the team’s most reliable starter, leading the Pirates with 54...
Watch Gregory Polanco’s no-doubt home run in loss to San DiegoVideo
The home run was impressive but not enough to put up a win. Gregory Polanco sent a solo homer deep into right field Thursday night in San Diego. That cut the Pirates’ deficit to 4-3 in the seventh. The 423-foot slam was a beauty but the damage had already been...
‘Seinfeld Night’ can be properly hosted by only 1 team … and they’re doing it
Take a wild guess which team is hosting “Seinfeld Night” at their ballpark? Of course, it’s Jerry Seinfeld’s beloved New York Mets. Their July 5th game at Citi Field will have a Seinfeld theme and giveaways. Here's the bobblehead the Mets will give away for this event.Jerry Seinfeld is also...
Pirates’ Josh Bell is ripping up fantasy leagues, too
After a week off, I check in with Jeff Erickson of Rotowire for our usual fantasy sports podcast. We start off by looking at what had been some of the early warning signs for Josh Bell’s huge start to the year. Melky Cabrera’s performance over the first month and a...
Trevor Williams leaves with injury, Pirates bullpen falters in loss to PadresVideo
SAN DIEGO — Ian Kinsler hit a mighty three-run homer to put the San Diego Padres ahead of the Pittsburgh Pirates, and then had a profane outburst as he crossed home and then again in the dugout. Many fans on social media felt it was directed at them, and manager...
Pirates minor league report: May 16, 2019
Pirates INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 20-17) lost 7-4 to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (Yankees). RHP Dario Agrazal (2-1, 2.84) went 32/3 innings, allowing five runs on five hits with three strikeouts and three walks in the loss. 1B Will Craig (.248) went 2 for 4 with a home run and three RBIs. LF J.B. Shuck...
How does start to Josh Bell’s career compare to other Pirates greats?
Here’s a concept to ponder Friday night while watching the Pittsburgh Pirates and San Diego Padres and wondering what additional damage Josh Bell can inflict on a baseball: Compared to the five greatest Pirates hitters of the past 71 years — Ralph Kiner, Roberto Clemente, Willie Stargell, Dave Parker and...
Pirates minor league report: May 16, 2019
INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 20-16) won 6-5 over Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (Yankees). LF Trayvon Robinson (.355) was 2 for 3 with a two-run homer in the third as part of a three-run inning to give the Indians a 5-2 lead. RF Jose Osuna (.350) had two singles with two RBIs. RHP Alex McRae (4-2,...
Chris Archer not sharp in return from injury; Pirates fall to DiamondbacksVideo
PHOENIX — Zack Greinke was cruising along when he felt something wrong. Taking no chances, the Arizona Diamondbacks ace called it a day. Greinke pitched shutout ball into the eighth inning before exiting with abdominal tightness, and the Diamondbacks routed Chris Archer and the Pittsburgh Pirates, 11-1, on Wednesday. Diamondbacks...
Pirates’ Chris Archer returns to start against Diamondbacks
The way was cleared Wednesday for Pittsburgh Pirates veteran pitcher Chris Archer to make his first start since April 26 when he was reinstated from the 10-day injured list. Archer, who had right thumb irritation, was scheduled to start the third and final game of the Pirates’ series in Arizona...
Pirates’ Josh Bell adds 2 more HRs to his list of tape-measure blasts
When measuring the home-run power of a Pittsburgh Pirates slugger, Bob Prince used to say (stealing from others, no doubt), “He could hit it out of any park, including Yellowstone.” Oh, if Prince were alive today. Josh Bell might be limited by Yellowstone National Park’s 3,500 square miles of wilderness...
U mad, bro? Readers attack Mike Tomlin, replay, race, baseball contracts
In “U mad, bro?” this week, we have race, rage and replay. Hence, things get a bit tense. My column about lagging baseball interest got a lot of response. None more interesting than this email from someone simply calling themselves “k l.” “The media believes fewer whites means more diversity,...
Tim Benz: Tweaks the Pirates can make to stay hot
With a 6-2 win over the Diamondbacks Tuesday night, the Pirates have now won four of their last five games. Joe Musgrove got back on track with seven shutout innings. Chris Archer returns to pitch Wednesday afternoon in Arizona. And clearly no one should mess with Josh Bell ever again....
Josh Bell homers twice to lead Pirates past DiamondbacksVideo
PHOENIX — Josh Bell is on the best hitting streak of his career, and the Pittsburgh Pirates are along for the ride. Bell homered twice and Joe Musgrove allowed one hit through seven strong innings as the Pirates beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 6-2 Tuesday night. Phoenix native Cole Tucker hit...
Pirates farm report: May 14, 2019
INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 19-16) beat Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (Yankees), 4-2. RHP Mitch Keller (4-0, 3.83) struck out eight batters, walked two and allowed two runs in six innings to earn the victory. 3B Ke’Bryan Hayes (.260) doubled for a 13th time this season and drove in two runs. LF J.B. Shuck (1.000) singled...
Pirates may be forced to find alternatives to Steven Brault, Nick Kingham
When the Pittsburgh Pirates put Jameson Taillon on the 10-day injured list May 4 with an elbow flexor tendon strain, it sounded serious. There was no way he could return in 10 days, or even a month. The worst fears were realized Monday when Taillon was moved to the 60-day...
Pirates’ Nick Kingham tagged for 7 runs, 10 hits in loss to DiamondbacksVideo
PHOENIX — After a three-game losing streak in which the Arizona Diamondbacks came up empty too often with opportunities to drive in more runs, hitting coach Darnell Coles changed things up in batting practice on Monday. The emphasis on situational hitting worked hours later. Eduardo Escobar homered, tripled and drove...
Pirates send Jung Ho Kang to IL, call up Jake Elmore
Jung Ho Kang’s recovery from his season-long slump must wait for at least 10 more days after he was placed on the Pittsburgh Pirates’ injured list with a left side strain. The Pirates called up infielder/outfielder Jake Elmore from Triple-A Indianapolis on Monday to replace Kang, who hasn’t started a...
Tim Benz: 5 things to love about Pirates’ win to take series vs. Cardinals
There was plenty to like about Sunday’s 10-6 Pirates win over the Cardinals. It was a third-straight victory. It secured a series win over a division rival. The team came out strong early, came back after losing the lead then added on once they got it back. And Josh Bell...
Tim Benz: The biggest reason for lagging MLB fan interest
By now, you have probably read some of the alarm-bell columns discussing Major League Baseball’s attendance issues. As USA Today reports, MLB saw an attendance drop in March-April 2019, on the heels of a 4% season-long decline in attendance in 2018. That was the largest dip in a decade. Furthermore,...
Tim Benz, Mark Madden on Steelers RB situation, Pirates’ series win, Penguins model
In this week’s “Madden Monday” podcast, Mark Madden of 105.9 the X and the Tribune-Review joins me to talk about finding interest in the NHL playoffs without the Penguins’ participation. Are the Bruins more of a model for the Penguins’ reconstruction than the Islanders ever were? We get into the...
5 players who could help make the Pirates contenders this summer
What you are about to read means next to nothing in the context of the entire baseball season. Yet, it’s still worth noting the Pirates have endured injuries to several key players — Jameson Taillon, Chris Archer, Gregory Polanco. Starling Marte and Corey Dickerson, among them — and were still...
Pirates’ Josh Bell taking place alongside league’s best hitters
After 37 games, the Pittsburgh Pirates (20-17) are three games over .500 and owners of an 8-3 record after ending an eight-game losing streak April 30. One of the big reasons is the emergence of Josh Bell as one of the game’s top hitters. Bell tied a career high with...
Pirates farm report for games of May 12, 2019
INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 18-16): Game at Lehigh Valley (Phillies) was postponed by rain. Next: Tuesday vs. Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (Yankees), 7:05 p.m. ALTOONA (Double-A, 18-17): Lost to Erie (Tigers), 14-4. LF Logan Hill (.252) was 2 for 2 with two runs and an RBI. 3B Hunter Owen (.306) was 2 for 4 with...
Josh Bell’s 5 RBIs help Pirates win 3rd straight against CardinalsVideo
ST. LOUIS — Josh Bell put on a show for his mom on Mother’s Day. With his mother, Myrtle, in the stands at Busch Stadium, Bell homered and drove in a career-high five runs to lead the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 10-6 win over the St. Louis Cardinals on Sunday....
