Pirates/MLB category, Page 285
‘Scary’ pitching staff offers hope for Pirates this season
Clint Hurdle referenced the baseball axiom that arguably is the oldest in a sport that has no shortage of them. Good pitching will beat good hitting. “Over 140 years of baseball,” Hurdle said at PiratesFest late last month. The Pittsburgh Pirates are hoping that cliché proves true in 2019 because...
Pirates add outfield depth by signing Melky Cabrera to minor-league deal
The Pittsburgh Pirates are adding outfield depth by signing 14-year veteran Melky Cabrera to a minor-league contract with an invitation to spring training, as first reported on Sunday by The Athletic. Cabrera, 34, is a switch hitter who slashed .280/.335/.420 with six home runs and 39 RBI last season with...
Taillon hopes development of slider takes him to next level
Clint Hurdle wasn’t sure what was more powerful: the slider Jameson Taillon wanted to add to his arsenal or his determination to use it. But, in Hurdle’s eyes, the mindset as much as the right arm is what makes Taillon one of the top pitchers in the National League. About...
5 things to watch at Pirates spring training
An optimist would point out the Pittsburgh Pirates are coming off a season in which just six National League teams had better records. But in a town in which the World Series drought reaches four decades this year, cynicism reigns — so it’s probably more appropriate to say just five...
Clint Hurdle confident Pirates lineup ready for power move
Clint Hurdle smiled. After 16 seasons as a major league manager, he is at ease in addressing tough questions. Plus, he just faced a group of inquiring season-ticket holders, so Hurdle expected the gathered media at PiratesFest to ask him about the Pittsburgh Pirates’ lack of power. “It’s a great...
Lonnie Chisenhall notes similarities between Pirates, perennially playoff-bound Indians
When Lonnie Chisenhall made his major-league debut in 2011, the Cleveland Indians were on the verge of following up two losing seasons with one in which they won 80 games. He’s recently joined the Pittsburgh Pirates under similar circumstances: the Pirates just followed up two losing seasons by last year...
Nick Kingham recognizes his career with the Pirates is at a crossroads
Nick Kingham leaned back against a chair in a PNC Park dining area, at ease in chatting with a handful of reporters at PiratesFest late last month. “I love this right now,” Kingham said of relaxed conversation with a group of people who ranged between casual acquaintance to total stranger....
Jung Ho Kang among 3 Pirates players to watch during spring training
Looking at the Pittsburgh Pirates spring training roster, it is likely 20 or more of the players who are there for Opening Day will be holdovers from last season. As such, Pirates fans figure to be familiar with the 2019 roster. That does not mean there won’t be any intrigue...
Pirates sign injured veteran RHP Tom Koehler
The Pittsburgh Pirates agreed to terms on a minor league contract with former Marlins starter Tom Koehler on Wednesday. The right-hander will report to minor-league camp and spend most of the 2019 season continuing rehab from surgery on right shoulder last summer. Koehler, 32, had a 4.39 ERA in 161...
Pirates sign veteran utility infielder Nick Franklin to minor-league deal
The Pittsburgh Pirates signed veteran utility infielder Nick Franklin to a minor-league contract Wednesday, adding another bench option to their spring-training roster. A former first-round pick, the 27-year-old Franklin has appeared in 301 major-league games for four teams over the past six seasons. He’s played at least an inning at...
Pirates’ Corey Dickerson optimistic entering ‘contract year’
During this month last year, Corey Dickerson was joining his third team over a span of 37 months. As he enters his final season before hitting free agency, it’s very possible – likely, even – that Dickerson will be on a fourth team in five years by this point next...
Pirates gear headed to Bradenton for spring trainingVideo
It wasn’t only the balmy temperatures that made it feel a little like spring this morning. Pittsburgh Pirates clubhouse staff and workers from Recker Transfer began around 7 a.m. at PNC Park loading equipment and other items onto a truck bound for Bradenton, Fla., for the start of spring training....
Once again, Pirates’ Opening Day outfield will change
The Pittsburgh Pirates have used 18 Opening Day outfield alignments over the 19 seasons since the turn of the century. An injury will force them to make it 19 combinations in 20 years. With Gregory Polanco expected to miss the first one to two months of the season as he...
Pirates bring back Francisco Liriano on a minor-league deal
Francisco Liriano, who had the best season of his 13-year career with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2013, returned to the team Monday. At least, he’ll be with the Pirates at spring training in Bradenton, Fla., trying to win a spot in the starting rotation or bullpen. He signed a minor-league...
Steven Brault back in familiar spot: competing for fifth starter in Pirates’ rotation
Groundhog Day was Saturday. But Steven Brault can relate to Bill Murray’s iconic Phil Connors character every time he reports to Bradenton, Fla., in the spring. If the Pittsburgh Pirates are preparing for a season, it must mean Brault is competing for a spot at the back end of their...
Pirates legend Bob Friend dies at 88
Bob Friend, who spent 15 seasons as one of the Pittsburgh Pirates’ most durable pitchers, died Sunday in Pittsburgh, team president Frank Coonelly announced. Friend was 88. Friend holds the franchise record for career innings pitched (3,481), starts (477) and strikeouts (1,682). He pitched in 568 games, earned a berth...
Pirates lineup gets jolt from ex-Indians Lonnie Chisenhall, Erik Gonzalez
Twenty-two percent of the Pittsburgh Pirates’ 2019 projected opening day lineup was imported during the offseason down Interstate 76. Barring injury or an unexpected spring roster move, Lonnie Chisenhall and Erik Gonzalez are expected to be the names manager Clint Hurdle writes in at right field and shortstop, respectively, when...
Pirates prospect Cole Tucker could add flavor to infield
With his bushy hair, wide smile and gregarious personality, no one would describe Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop prospect Cole Tucker as vanilla. “I’m not that vanilla,” Tucker said at PiratesFest last week. “I’ve got some sprinkles in my game.” Tucker, though, considers “vanilla” a compliment. After all, two of his role...
Pirates want new hitting coaches to ‘recalibrate’ offensive philosophy
The Pittsburgh Pirates exceeded most expectations in 2018, but within 24 hours of the season’s completion they fired both of their hitting coaches. The result of an offense that ranked 20th in the majors in runs, 25th in home runs and in the bottom half of MLB in slugging percentage,...
Pirates expect better Kevin Newman for spring training
Kevin Newman’s baptism into the majors was less than inspiring for fans of the Pittsburgh Pirates. After fans watched Newman post a .209 average and .478 OPS with 23 strikeouts, no stolen bases and underwhelming defense in 31 games over seven weeks, many wondered if he was just another overhyped...
Kevin Gorman: Pirates need more pop out of Josh Bell’s bat
Clint Hurdle talked about how home runs, more often than not, are thrown and not hit in the major leagues. Josh Bell reminisced about how he never tried to hit a home run in the minor leagues. The Pittsburgh Pirates aren’t expecting opposing pitchers to serve up home runs for...
Pirates add RHP Brandon Maurer, OF J.B. Shuck on minor league deals
The Pittsburgh Pirates added depth to their pool of players competing for opening-day roster spots Wednesday, signing pitcher Brandon Maurer and outfielder J.B. Shuck to minor league deals. Maurer, a 28-year-old right-hander, has a 5.36 ERA over 289 career appearances with three teams over the past six seasons. Shuck, 31,...
Now the Pirates’ longest-tenured player, Starling Marte evolving as a veteran
Hard to believe it for the one-time manchild who homered on the first major-league pitch he saw, but Starling Marte is now 30. Long playing in the shadows of veterans and stars such as Andrew McCutchen, Marte suddenly is one of the Pittsburgh Pirates’ oldest players. Still arguably the team’s...
Pirates and Jung Ho Kang are hoping for a comebackVideo
For his first public appearance at PNC Park in almost 2½ years, Jung Ho Kang relied on a translator Saturday to communicate with fans and media. There was one question among those thrown at him during his 13 minutes with reporters that Kang did not need to wait for assistance...
Kevin Gorman: Pirates need to turn World Series talk into title
Just when the January weather had turned frigid, and fatigue was starting to set in on the Pittsburgh Steelers and the daily dose of Antonio Brown’s antics, the Pittsburgh Pirates provided a delicious diversion. They are going to win the World Series! Nothing compares to the optimism of the offseason,...
