Pirates/MLB category, Page 240
Kevin Gorman: Josh Bell is face of the Pirates, who hope his bubble won’t burstVideo
Josh Bell makes it a point to practice in game-like conditions so he always pops in a mouthful of bubble gum for batting practice, mimicking his motions for facing major-league pitching. When he left the batting cages for a photo shoot Thursday to promote the Pittsburgh Pirates’ new road jerseys,...
Jameson Taillon concerned by Astros’ cheating scandal, optimistic about Tommy John recovery
Jameson Taillon speaks carefully and thoughtfully on the two issues confronting the sport he loves and the right arm that helps him pursue it. The Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher, who will spend the 2020 season recovering from his second Tommy John surgery, is the team’s union representative. In that role and...
16 months after Tommy John surgery, Pirates RHP Chad Kuhl on track for seasonVideo
Chad Kuhl had an eventful offseason in which he got married and traveled to the Caribbean to attend another wedding. The outlook for 2020 is a conventional, normal season for Kuhl. And considering he hasn’t pitched in 19 months, that’s all Kuhl is asking for. Kuhl’s recovery from Tommy John...
Former Pirates 1st-round pick Will Craig drops 25 pounds in effort to improve defenseVideo
In an effort to prove he could travel all around the field, Will Craig bypassed doing any traveling around the world. “We were going to plan a trip to somewhere in the Caribbean (over the offseason), but it was right in middle of my (losing-weight) process, so I said ‘I...
Kevin Gorman: Trading Starling Marte might force the Pirates to finally use the R-wordVideo
The Pittsburgh Pirates touted their unveiling of new road jerseys at PiratesFest on Friday at PNC Park as “rewriting the script,” which is one way to use an R-word without using the R-word. Refresh. Recalibrate. Rewrite. Anything but rebuild. The Pirates have a new management team attempting to create a...
Pirates OF Gregory Polanco at ‘100%’ physical health in return from shoulder injuryVideo
Ben Cherington tapped the knuckles of his clenched hand onto a table not once but twice Friday as he was discussing the status of Pittsburgh Pirates starting right fielder Gregory Polanco. The first time Cherington knocked on wood was when he declared Polanco “at 100% right now from a basic...
Pirates’ Derek Shelton gushes about pitcher Chris Archer
In his 59-day reign as Pittsburgh Pirates manager, Derek Shelton ate a Primanti’s sandwich with Joe Musgrove. (Musgrove bought.) Shelton spent some time discussing Broadway songs with pitcher Steven Brault. (“I don’t really know any,” Shelton said.) At the end of a 21-minute chat with reporters Friday, Shelton said he...
GM Ben Cherington: Pirates expect to add another catcher before spring training
Ben Cherington acknowledged Friday the Pittsburgh Pirates went into the offseason knowing it needed to add catchers. Even after signing two with major league experience, Cherington said he isn’t done. “We are continuing to look for more catching,” the Pirates general manager said while speaking to reporters Friday at PNC...
Mt. Lebanon’s Don Kelly’s job safe with Pirates, despite ties to AstrosVideo
Don Kelly’s status with the Pittsburgh Pirates was not impacted by his ties to the Houston Astros, Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said Friday. Kelly, a former Mt. Lebanon and Point Park standout, was named the Pirates’ bench coach Dec. 7, five weeks prior to MLB commissioner Rob Manfred disciplining...
The script is back: Pirates unveil updated road jerseysVideo
It was met with great fanfare and well received when Pitt went back to the Script five years ago. Now, the Pittsburgh Pirates are doing the same. The Pirates unveiled updated road jerseys Friday, and the new aspect is actually an old one. The word “Pittsburgh” across the chest of...
Pirates to replace Steve Blass with Kevin Young, Matt Capps, Michael McKenry on broadcasts
Following Steve Blass as Pittsburgh Pirates broadcaster would have been a tough act for any individual. So three former players will do it. Former Pirates players Kevin Young, Matt Capps and Michael McKenry will rotate as color commentator analysts for games on television and radio this season, the team announced...
New Pirates catcher John Ryan Murphy seeks bounce-back yearVideo
It seems only fitting John Ryan Murphy will be in the Pittsburgh Pirates’ spring training camp next month. The veteran catcher, who signed a minor league contract Jan. 10 as a free agent, was born and raised in Bradenton, Fla. He attended many Pirates Grapefruit League games at what was...
Pitt, WVU baseball will bring the Backyard Brawl back to PNC Park
The Backyard Brawl is returning to PNC Park. The Pittsburgh Pirates and the Pitt and West Virginia athletic departments announced Thursday that the schools’ baseball teams will meet April 29 at the home of the Pirates. It’s the second consecutive season the two rivals will meet at PNC Park. West...
Pirates name Dave Turgeon manager of the Altoona Curve
The Pittsburgh Pirates named Dave Turgeon, who is entering his 10th season as a coach in the team’s system, to manage the Double-A Altoona Curve. He replaces Michael Ryan, who was fired last season. Turgeon spent last season as manager of the Peoria Javelinas in the Arizona Fall League, where...
Pirates’ Josh Bell says he’s looking forward to new cultureVideo
When Josh Bell turned his head and looked out a window of the Clelian Heights School, the sun was shining over Greensburg. Snow was melting. If you didn’t know better, you would think it was baseball season. The Pittsburgh Pirates All-Star first baseman, the bat in his hand looking the...
PNC Park undergoing $1.9M seat rehab ahead of 2020 Pirates seasonVideo
As the Pirates gear up for the annual PiratesFest event this weekend, workers are preparing PNC Park for the upcoming season with a $1.9 million seating rehab. The Sports & Exhibition Authority of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County, which owns the stadium, last year approved the replacement of bottoms, backs and...
Mark Madden: Baseball Hall of Fame voters indulge agendas
One voter left former New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter off his Hall of Fame ballot. It kept Jeter from being the second unanimous choice in the institution’s history. New York is ablaze with outrage. New York should be grateful. The manufactured outrage gives the city a platform to burnish...
First Call: Watt brother to host ‘SNL’, Chris Archer rips Astros, Todd Graham’s new job, Kansas hoops brawl
In Wednesday’s “First Call”: J.J. Watt to host SNL. Chris Archer fires at the Houston Astros. A major basketball brawl. A new home for Todd Graham. Live! From New York … How big of a personality is Houston Texans star J.J. Watt? Big enough to host “Saturday Night Live” on...
John Perrotto: Bonds, Clemens, Ramirez worthy of Hall of Fame
The facts are the facts. Barry Bonds hit 762 home runs, more than any player in major league history. He also won seven National League MVP awards — two with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1990 and ’92 — and was selected to 14 All-Star Games. Roger Clemens won 354 games...
Pirates invite 11 to spring training
The Pirates announced 11 more players who will attend spring training as nonroster invitees this season, including four who pitched for the major league club in limited duty last season. Righties Montana DuRapau, Luis Escobar and James Marvel and lefty Williams Jerez pitched for the Pirates last season. The other...
Pirates’ 1st Hall of Fame class will include Steve Blass, and who else?
This year’s voting results for baseball’s Hall of Fame will be announced Tuesday night, and Derek Jeter almost certainly will headline the Class of 2020. Later this year, at a date to be determined, the first class of the Pittsburgh Pirates Hall of Fame will be announced. Details are scant...
Pirates’ projected 2020 payroll ranks 2nd lowest in MLB at $69M
Bob Nutting, fairly or not, has developed a reputation of being a cheap owner in the eyes of many Pittsburgh Pirates fans. That perception of Nutting likely isn’t going away anytime soon. The Pirates are projected to have a $69 million payroll to open the 2020 season, according to Tribune-Review...
Analysis: Mitch Keller, Ke’Bryan Hayes lead list of top 10 Pirates prospects
One of the primary reasons Ben Cherington was hired as general manager by the Pittsburgh Pirates in November was because ownership believes he can build a strong player development system. The Pirates certainly can use help in that department. They generally are considered to have one of the weaker farm...
Pirates announce CARE-a-van stops will feature All-Star Josh Bell, new manager Derek Shelton
The Pittsburgh Pirates announced the schedule for the Pirates CARE-a-van, which will have stops at 35 public and private community events in 18 cities from Jan. 22-24 leading up to PiratesFest on Jan. 25 at PNC Park. The CARE-a-van features four busloads of Pirates players, including All-Star first baseman Josh...
OF Guillermo Heredia might be welcome addition to Pirates
In a three-day span at the MLB winter meetings last month, teams spent a combined $814 million on three free agents: Gerrit Cole, Anthony Rendon and Stephen Strasburg. The Pittsburgh Pirates’ largest expenditure on the free-agent market so far this offseason is the $1 million, one-year they gave outfielder Guillermo...
