First Call: Checking the Jose Quintana trade watch; former Pirates pitchers shine; ex-Penguin gets an honor

An ex-Pittsburgh Penguin is getting a special night. A bunch of ex-Pirates stepped up on the mound Thursday. And Jose Quintana may be an ex-Pirate soon.

All of that in Friday’s “First Call.”

Marleau’s moment

An ex-Penguin is getting quite an honor. Patrick Marleau’s No. 12 will be retired by the San Jose Sharks on Feb. 23 before a game against the Chicago Blackhawks.

The @SanJoseSharks announced they will retire Patrick Marleau's jersey on February 25, 2023 pic.twitter.com/eghZ3E4iFn

— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) July 28, 2022

Marleau announced his retirement in May. The forward spent 21 of his 23 seasons with the Sharks. Marleau finished his NHL career with 1,197 points (566 goals and 631 assists), plus 72 postseason goals in 195 playoff games.

Marleau leads the NHL with the most games played (1,779) in league history — with a 12-game edge over Detroit Red Wings Hall of Famer Gordie Howe.

During eight regular season games and four playoff contests as a Penguin in 2020, Marleau scored one goal and had one assist.

Where will he go?

Jose Quintana is scheduled to pitch for the Pirates against the Philadelphia Phillies.

Let’s see if he is still a Pirate before the first pitch.

We have heard that the Toronto Blue Jays may be interested in acquiring Quintana before the trade deadline on Aug. 2. Now Fansided’s Robert Murray says the New York Yankees and Chicago White Sox may be interested in his services.

Quintana spent the first six years of his Major League career with the White Sox.

The Pirates would love to get a big haul for Quintana. He’s got a 3.70 ERA with 85 strikeouts. Plus, he’s left-handed and only costs $2 million.

Related

• Super-utility man Josh VanMeter ready, willing to play every position for Pirates this season
• Pirates 1st-round draft pick Termarr Johnson, spotted at PNC Park, appears close to signing
• Bligh Madris returns to Pirates, adding a new position to improve his chances of staying

Ex-Buccos back on track

For ex-Pirates Jameson Taillon and Clay Holmes, their fortunes may be spinning back in the right direction in the Bronx.

Taillon pitched six scoreless innings for the Yankees as they beat the Kansas City Royals, 1-0, on Tuesday. He struck out eight K.C. batters and walked only two. That got Taillon’s ERA down to 3.72. Prior to that start, Taillon had given up 23 earned runs in his last six outings.

As for Holmes, he got credit for the win to improve to 5-1. He also has 17 saves and an ERA of 1.20 out of the bullpen. He’s avoided allowing a run over his last five outings. That’s a good way to rebound from what had been his season’s only loss and blown save in back-to-back outings back on July 9 and 12.

Yankees star slugger Aaron Judge provided the only offense with a solo homer in the ninth inning.

ALL RISE! pic.twitter.com/rHLuBShd4e

— New York Yankees (@Yankees) July 29, 2022

That was his 39th of the year.

Even more on the mound

Another ex-Pirate, Tyler Anderson, pitched seven innings of shutout baseball for the Los Angeles Dodgers as they rolled over the Colorado Rockies, 13-0.

Anderson struck out four while allowing four hits and no walks. He is 11-1 on the season with a 2.61 ERA. Anderson has allowed just one run (unearned) over the last 19 innings of his three most recent starts.

Only two pitchers have more wins than Anderson — in the American League, Houston’s Justin Verlander (13) and, in the National League, Atlanta’s Kyle Wright (12).

The Dodgers have the best record in MLB at 66-32. The Yankees are next at 67-33.

Former Pirates Gerrit Cole (Yankees) and Chad Kuhl (Rockies) pitch on Friday.