Pirates/MLB category, Page 232
MLB-proposed East division could be daunting for Pirates but preferable to playing in Florida
Baseball is contemplating a comeback, one that would scrap the traditional American and National leagues for the 2020 season in favor of a more geographical and travel-friendly setup. The new normal is anything but. MLB has explored multiple options, with the latest splitting teams into three 10-team divisions for a...
Pirates GM Ben Cherington: ‘I wake up every day believing we are going to play games’Video
Ben Cherington is planning for the possibility that MLB will play a regular season in 2020. What the Pittsburgh Pirates general manager doesn’t know is when, where or how. One thing is certain: He isn’t dwelling on doomsday scenarios. “I wake up every day believing we are going to play...
Pirates become 1st MLB team to suspend retirement benefits for baseball operation staffVideo
The Pittsburgh Pirates became the first known MLB team to suspend retirement benefits for baseball operations employees in a cost-cutting reaction to save jobs amid the coronavirus crisis. Pirates general manager Ben Cherington confirmed Tuesday afternoon a report by The Athletic that the club has suspended 401(k) contributions in an...
Latrobe umpire Jansen Visconti waiting for MLB to startVideo
If Jansen Visconti had his way, he’d be calling balls and strikes in Chicago on Monday instead of fishing for trout on Fourmile Run in Ligonier. Fishing is a new sport Visconti has picked up since MLB shut down the 2020 season March 13 because of the Coronavirus. Who knows...
Trevor Williams teams up with Pirates Charities for $30,000 donation for Food Bank drive
Pirates pitcher Trevor Williams is teaming up with Pirates Charities for a $30,000 contribution to fund a drive-up food distribution with the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank. The donation is being made through the Home Plate Project, an MLB-wide initiative in partnership with Garth Brooks’ Teammates for Kids Foundation and...
Pirates find welcome distraction in communicating through social media videosVideo
During the downtime of quarantine amid the coronavirus crisis, Pittsburgh Pirates manager Derek Shelton has taken a deep dive into the rabbit hole of watching videos on social media. Granted, many of them are of major league baseball players showing ingenuity in practicing their craft, from one hitter taking batting...
If and when baseball returns, Pirates manager Derek Shelton plans to ‘cherish’ his debut
As MLB contemplates ideas of how to conduct its 2020 season, the Pittsburgh Pirates are preparing for the possibility of playing games sometime this summer. Even if that means Pirates manager Derek Shelton’s major-league regular-season managerial debut could come in an otherwise empty stadium instead of before baseball fans. “Honestly,...
Pirates ‘very encouraged’ by progress of right fielder Gregory Polanco’s shoulderVideo
The Pittsburgh Pirates are monitoring the recovery of right fielder Gregory Polanco through social media and are “very encouraged” with the progress of his left shoulder. Todd Tomczyk, the Pirates’ director of sports medicine, was optimistic about Polanco’s progress in a conference call with Pittsburgh reporters Wednesday afternoon. Polanco’s 2018...
Derek Shelton needs no reminder that Pirates aren’t playing, only a look at his phone
Derek Shelton doesn’t need a reminder that he’s missing his first season as a major-league manager. He gets one every day. The Pittsburgh Pirates first-year manager still has the regular-season schedule set up on his phone, so he receives daily notifications of what he’s missing because of the coronavirus. “How...
Pirates in predicament of paying employees but possibly reducing salaries
With no set return for baseball in sight amid the coronavirus crisis and despite MLB commissioner Rob Manfred giving teams the green light to furlough or lay off employees, the Pittsburgh Pirates committed Tuesday to pay their baseball operations staff through May. Pirates president Travis Williams announced the club is...
Pirates manager Derek Shelton ‘more than happy’ to take pay cut to help team sustain
If the Pittsburgh Pirates resort to reducing the salaries of their highest-paid employees, Derek Shelton is on board with taking a hit for the team before he ever manages a major-league game. Shelton commended Pirates president Travis Williams and general manager Ben Cherington for being “extremely clear” with how they...
Pirates to pay baseball staff through May, exploring possibility of tiered salary reductions
The Pittsburgh Pirates will pay baseball operations staff through May 31 and are exploring the possibility of tiered salary reductions for their most highly compensated employees. MLB Network’s Jon Heyman first reported that the Pirates would pay employees through at least May 31 while the sport is shut down amid...
VideoChart: Winningest MLB franchises since 1900Video
Our latest VideoChart ranks the MLB franchises that have won the most regular-season games each year since 1900. Which team has the most? Where do the Pittsburgh Pirates rank? Want to see more animated stats? Check out all of our VideoCharts here....
Pandemic temporarily derails big break for ex-Greensburg Central Catholic baseball star Warren Schaeffer
He used to hang out with Tourists and Drillers, Yard Goats and Dust Devils, Sky Sox and Nuts. And Hokies, especially the Hokies. Warren Schaeffer, who grew up in Vandergrift, was a PIAA champion at Greensburg Central Catholic and a four-year starting shortstop at Virginia Tech, finally has hit a...
Rare Honus Wagner rookie card sells for a record $192,000 at online auction
A rare Honus Wagner rookie baseball card, one with a photo of the Pittsburgh Pirates Hall of Fame shortstop dressed in a suit, was auctioned Sunday night to a private collector for $192,000. The card was one of two issued in the W600 Sporting Life cabinet cards series, with the...
Former Pirate Rinku Singh describes journey from baseball to pro wrestling
Pirates fans never got to see Rinku Singh pitch in a Major League game at PNC Park. But now they can watch him on a big stage. As a blossoming wrestling star. Singh grew up in Bhadohi, India. He and fellow Pirates minor league teammate Dinesh Patel were thrust onto...
Derek Shelton has one clear goal to protect Pirates pitchers amid coronavirus shutdown
No one in the baseball world is happy right now. No season to start. No games to be played. Everyone is just sitting around idle. Although sitting around idle is still better than having your entire offseason of work go up in smoke. Then having to do it over and...
Former Pirate, World Series MVP Steve Pearce retiresVideo
BOSTON — Steve Pearce, the career journeyman and former Pittsburgh Pirate who broke loose to become the unlikely MVP of the 2018 World Series, said he’s done playing after an injury-plagued season for the Boston Red Sox. “You know what? It has been a good run. I have 10 years...
To celebrate Jackie Robinson, Pirates will make deliveries to people affected by covid-19
Need toilet paper, or, perhaps, lunch? Pirates Charities will help those in need Wednesday while celebrating the 73rd anniversary of Jackie Robinson breaking the MLB color barrier. MLB typically marks the occasion of the Dodgers infielder’s memorable achievement by having every player wear Robinson’s No. 42. The games are canceled...
Tim Benz: New MLB idea to save season is better, but some flaws can’t be fixed
The latest model to lay out some version of a potential Major League Baseball season in 2020 appears to be an improvement over the first one we saw. But it is still fraught with specific problems, unavoidable pitfalls and significant overarching questions about health during the coronavirus pandemic. Please don’t...
Pirates’ Roberto Clemente game-used bat, Honus Wagner rookie card up for auction
Pittsburgh Pirates fans will have an opportunity to own some rare prized team memorabilia – if they have about six figures worth of disposable cash lying around. A 1959 Roberto Clemente game-used bat and a 1902 Honus Wagner rookie card are up for auction at robertedwardauctions.com. According to a release...
MLB players, including Pirates’ Cole Tucker, to play video game tourneyVideo
NEW YORK — Blake Snell, Juan Soto and Bo Bichette are among the baseball stars switching over to PlayStation with America’s pastime on hold. Thirty big leaguers — one from each team — have signed on to play a round-robin regular season on the “MLB The Show” video game with...
Pirates 22nd most valuable MLB team, according to Forbes; Yankees topVideo
NEW YORK — Forbes estimates the New York Yankees are baseball’s most valuable franchise at $5 billion, up 9% over last year and 47% more than the No. 2 Los Angeles Dodgers at $3.4 billion. The Pittsburgh Pirates dropped 1% to $1.26 billion, 22nd in MLB. The Yankees are second...
U mad, bro? The shut-in is making readers enraged about Bill Cowher, NFL Draft, MLB plans
The longer this coronavirus quarantine goes on, the angrier people are getting. Myself included. As you will find out shortly. I can’t blame myself. Or anyone else. This stinks. No sports. No movies. No shows. No concerts. No outdoor gatherings. And for me, no escape from Twitter. Which makes me...
Mark Madden: Playing all MLB games in Arizona sounds far-fetched, but we could use some normalcy
MLB’s proposal to sequester all 30 teams and their attendant personnel in Arizona by way of starting the season there sometime in May sounds far-fetched. But if games are played in empty ballparks, it’s going to be easy to hear the Houston Astros wallop that trash can. They won’t get...
