Category: sports

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Pirates Morning Report: Exciting 5th Win A Row

Final Score: Pirates 7 Cardinals 6

Why The Pirates Won: This time it was the Pirates bats that kept battling back from 3-0, 4-3, and 6-5 deficits, to pull out their 5th win in a row. The bats came alive for 7 runs on 11 hits, 5 walks, and a hit batsman. Every time the pitching staff gave up the lead the Pirate offense was able to take it back. The Pirates went with the opener, and they pretty much got rocked in the early going, although Bailey (It Was My) Falter did not pitch too bad giving up a solo home run, for the only hit in 3 and 2/3 innings. The backend of the bullpen, the “killer B’s”, Borucki, Bolton and Bednar shut down the Cardinals the rest of the way but not without some super tense moments. This was one of the most exciting games of the year, made even better by the fact that the Pirates pulled it out in the top of the 9th inning.

The Key Moments Of The Game: The 9th inning was quite a finish. In the top of the ninth Josh (I AM Not Going To Take Back About What I Wrote About Him) Palacios had another big moment for the Pirates. After McCutchen got hit by a pitch Palacios was called on to pinch hit for Connor Joe. On a 3-1 pitch, he took a low inside the plate fastball and drilled it over the fence for a home run, giving the Pirates a 7-6 lead. In the bottom of the 9th David Bednar made it interesting and almost gave his Dad a stroke. In four pitches, he gave up a single and hit a batter. The Cardinals did us a favor and sacrificed the runners over to 2nd and 3rd. It is a good thing that Endy Rodriguez was catching, or the Cardinals may have had the bases loaded, if lead ass Delay had been behind the plate. Bednar and Lars Nootbaar went to battle. On a 10 pitch at bat, where the 4th pitch was ball 3, Bednar threw a beautiful 97 MPH fastball that caught the inside part of the plate above the knees for a called third strike. That left Paul Goldschmidt to face with 2 outs. This was a 9 pitch battle with Goldschmidt grounding out to short to end the game. One final note, Endy Rodriguez made numerous blocks during these combined 19 pitch at bats. A great 5th win a row.

Next Game: This afternoon, Cardinals in St. Louis. Can the Pirates make it 6 in a row? At least they will have a starting pitcher going today with Johan Oviedo taking the mound. Regardless of what happens today the Pirates have had a very nice road trip, indeed. We will probably see the B team out there today and Bednar will probably not be available. In case no one’s noticed, Ke’Bryan Hayes has been 1 for 9 and that was an infield hit, since his scheduled day off. Another bone head move by management.

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Pirates Morning Report: Takes Overtime To Get 4 In A Row

Final Score: Pirates 4 Cardinals 1 10 innings

Why The Pirates Won: The Pirate pitching staff has come alive. It could just be the competition, but for a staff that gave up 10 runs 2 games in a row, these last 4 games have been impressive. The Pirates have given up 0, 1, 1, and 1 run per 9 innings during the 4 game winning streak. Last night it was Mitch Keller who pitched a solid 6 innings giving up 1 run on 5 hits. His only negative was control issues walking 3 but did strike out 8. The bullpen only gave up the phantom run in the 10th while limiting the Cardinals to 1 hit and a walk. The Pirate offense was just as weak only getting 1 run on 4 hits in the first 9 innings. In the 10th, the Pirates showed what winning streaks are made of by scoring all three runs without getting a hit out of the infield. Bryan Reynolds hit a sacrifice fly to knock in the 3rd run and it was the only ball that left the infield. It doesn’t hurt to have a little luck to get the 4th win a row.

Key Moment Of The Game: The bottom of the 3rd with the Pirates leading 1-0, the Cardinals opened the inning with 2 quick singles on 5 pitches. Lars Nootbaar hit a line drive that Ke’Bryan Hayes leaped up and grabbed. This would be the first of 3 line drives that Hayes would snare in the game. Paul Goldschmidt struck out. Nolan Gorman hit a little bloop that was banged out at 67 MPH to center field, that Liover Peguero made a spectacular over the shoulder catch that most likely saved 2 runs, since there were 2 outs. I doubt that Josh Van Meter would have made the play. Keller gave up the home run in the 6th that tied the game, but if Peguero does not make that play the Pirates lose.

Next Game: Tonight, Cardinals in St. Louis. It looks like the Pirates are going the opener route again, as they seek their fifth win in a row. I don’t know who will follow up. maybe Ortiz, but I do know it won’t be Bido. It is nice to see the team get a little momentum even though it has been against the bottom fodder, but that bottom fodder beat the Red Sox last night 13-2. You still have to play the games. Let’s hope the offense perks up a little tonight. The Pirates go for one for thumb!

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Pirates Morning Report: Getting The Sweep

Final Score: Pirates 4 Royals 1

Why The Pirates Won: A strong start by Andre Jackson going 5 and 2/3 innings giving up only 1 run, 2 hits, walking 2, while striking out 7. It looked like that he would strike out everybody starting out by striking out the first 5 batters he faced, then 2 more in the third. The bullpen had one of their better outings pitching a scoreless 3 and 1/3 innings giving up 2 hits, walking only 1. The Pirate offense made the most of their 6 hits getting 5 of them in the first three innings. There were a lot of collars worn last night as 5 Pirates failed to get a hit. The home run ball helped with Bryan Reynolds and Jack Suwinski hitting solo homers. This is a nice three game win streak the Pirates have put together. We will see if they can continue in St. Louis.

Key Moment Of The Game: The Pirates scored a run in the top of the first on the Reynolds’ home run. They opened the 2nd with a bang. Back to back doubles by Liover Peguero and of all people Vinny Capra, followed by a Suwinski single giving the Pirates a quick 3-0 lead. Capra was playing third base on a “scheduled” day off for Ke’Bryan Hayes. The Pirates hottest hitter by far had to have a day off. Wouldn’t it have been nice if they had unscheduled his day off. By the way, don’t look now but the Pirates do not play today. I think that management was just trying to give the Royals a chance and Capra really messed that up. The Pirate bats went really quiet the rest of the way getting only 2 more hits. Fortunately, one of them was the 7th inning homer by Suwinski to give the Pirates a 4-1 lead.

Next Game: Tomorrow, Cardinals in St. Louis. The sweep of the Royals put a kink in management’s plans to make another run at getting the No. 1 pick in the draft. Mitch Keller is starting for the Pirates in St. Louis so there is a least a half way chance the Pirates might make it 4 in row. Although it looks like McCutchen, Suwinski, Rodriguez, and Peguero have a scheduled day off. I can guarantee you the Alika Williams and Josh Palacios will be in the lineup with their On Base Average of .284 and .258 respectively. Management does not give up easily.

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Pirates Morning Report: Strange Winning Pattern

Final Score: Pirates 6 Royals 3

Why The Pirates Won: For the fourth game in about the last 10 days the Pirates started a game by not getting a man on base for an extended period. They have gone 5 and 1/3, 6 and 1/3, 3 and 1/3 and last night went 4 innings before getting a man on base. What is interesting is they won 3 of those 4 games. In this game they went into the 8th inning trailing 1-0. They were able to score 2 in the 8th and 4 in the 9th to win going away. The Pirates had an opener game with Colin Selby starting and going a perfect 2 innings. Luis Ortiz pitched his best 5 innings in a long time giving up just 1 run on 3 hits, 2 walks, while striking out 5. Colin Holderman pitched a clean 8th, with Cody Bolton finishing the game despite the fact that Greg Brown wanted to waste David Bednar and bring him in with the score 6-3. Doesn’t he realize we are playing the Royals, probably not.

Key Moment Of The Game: Key moment brought to you by Ke’Bryan Hayes. It doesn’t get more key than a 2 run, 2 out, home run in the top of the 8th inning, when trailing 1-0. The Pirates added on nicely in the 9th with a 3 run rocket by Liover Peguero that even Greg Brown knew was a home run right away. This proved to be the margin of victory as the Royals did add 2 runs in the bottom of the 9th.

Next Game: Tonight, Royals in Kansas City. Can the Pirates sweep the lowly Royals. They are sending Andre Jackson to the mound. If he pitches well, it will be interesting to see how high the Pirates let his pitch count get. He should be stretched out pretty well by now. The Pirates have an off day tomorrow. It will be a much better off day if they can win their third in a row.

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Pirates Morning Report: Boy, Do The Royals Stink

Final Score: Pirates 5 Royals 0

Why The Pirates Won: Johan Oviedo pitched one of the best games of the year shutting out the Royals on just 2 hits, walking 2 and striking out 5. The most amazing thing about the performance was that the Royals never got a man into scoring position. Thanks to a double play, he faced only 18 batters over the last 6 innings. The Pirate offense had a nice game getting 5 runs on 12 hits and 4 walks. They scored a run in the 2nd, a run in the 3rd, and added on nicely in the 7th and 8th. Ke’Bryan Hayes went 4-4 with a WALK, and finally became a league average hitter. If he can maintain that he could become a major asset to this team. I am one never to judge wins. After all the Oakland A’s took 2 out of 3 against the Pirates and then went into Milwaukee and swept the Brewers. However, this does not change the fact that the Royals really stink. They are the perfect definition of a team in malaise. That’s not to say that they won’t win the next 2 games, because the Pirates are just a notch above them, but they are just playing out the string if last night was any indication.

Key Moment Of The Game: The Pirates were nursing that 2-0 lead going into the top of the 7th and really had not done much since the 3rd inning. The inning opened well enough with Alfonso Rivas getting a double to left. Then Alika (Why Am I Playing In The Major Leagues) Williams laid down a horrible bunt and Rivas was thrown out at third base. Bae flied out and it looked like the Pirates had messed up another opportunity. But alas, singles by Hayes, McCutchen and an infield hit by Palacios where the pitcher was slow to cover 1st base netted the Pirates 2 runs, which pretty much iced this game. A nice start to the road trip.

Next Game: Tonight, Royals in Kansas City. As of now the Pirates don’t have a starting pitcher listed on the web site. At least the bullpen is well rested. Could we get a sweep on the road? Only the Shelton knows for sure.

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Pirates Morning Report: Setting Small Goals

Final Score: Pirates 1 Cubs 10

Why The Pirates Loss: It was a total team effort. They couldn’t hit, couldn’t pitch, and couldn’t field. The Pirates could only manage 4 hits and 2 walks. It was amazing that they had 5 at bats with runners in scoring position. Of course, they were 0 for 5. Josh Palacios got 2 of those hits to bring his sparkling batting average up to .211. I thought Ben Gamel was bad. The Pirate pitching staff gave up 10 runs for the second straight game, all of them earned. They “only” walked 3 this game. This will be one of the goals for today’s game, try and keep the Royals in single digits. They put one of the worst fielding teams you could imagine on the field yesterday just to ensure defeat. Even though there were no errors committed, there were many balls that should have been caught or fielded that were not. It is part of the Pirate philosophy, on the job training at the Major League level. What purpose the minor leagues serve for the Pirates, God only knows, or maybe the Shelton knows.

Key Moment Of The Game: When the Pirates took the field. That lineup brought back memories of 2022 it was so bad. I think the Pirates have an eye on that draft lottery again. Despite the last 2 lopsided wins for the Cubs, they left town very sad, knowing they only have 3 more games with the Pirates. They are cursing the balanced schedule.

Next Game: Tonight, the Royals in Kansas City. It’s hard to believe but the Pirates are going on a 6 game road trip where both teams have worse records than them, the Royals and Cardinals. The Pirates will have to dig deep to find ways to lose to these two teams. If by some way they could take 2 out of 3 from the Royals, they would have their best month since April. The anticipation is unbearable.

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Pirates Morning Report: Give Him A Bus Ticket

Final Score: Pirates 6 Cubs 10

Why The Pirates Lost: Osvaldo Bido gave one of the worst pitching performances of the year and that’s saying something with this staff. Osvaldo started the top of the third inning with the Pirates leading 1-0 and in a short, or should I say long, 2 and 1/3 innings he gave up 8 runs. He gave up those runs, the Cubs certainly did not earn them. In the top of the third he walked 4 batters, 2 of which forced in runs. In that inning, the Cubs scored 3 runs on just 1 hit. Then in the top of the 5th he gave up 5 runs on a walk, 2 singles, a double, and a triple and the Pirates were behind 8-1. The Cubs were able to get those 8 runs on just 5 hits. He did keep the ball in the ballpark. Hopefully this morning he is getting on a bus for Altoona. He doesn’t even belong in AAA let alone in the Majors with his sterling 6.36 ERA. The Pirates tried to make a game of it scoring 5 runs in the bottom of the 7th, 4 of them after 2 were out. The Cubs added 2 in the top of the 9th for enough cushion to take the excitement out of the game. The Pirates are now 3-3 on this homestand.

Key Moment Of The Game: When Osvaldo Bido took the mound, the game was over. Oscar Marin came out and told him to throw strikes, but he did not listen. That should be enough to send him down to Altoona. You have to wonder why they left him in the game. Who knows, only the Shelton knows. I am sure the Cubs wish they had about 10 more games with the Pirates.

Next Game: This afternoon, Cubs in Pittsburgh. At least today, the Pirates know who is starting, Baily Falter, who has not pitched bad since coming to the Pirates. He had a great outing last time out pitching 6 innings giving up only 1 run on 3 hits. We will see if he can throw strikes at least.

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Pirates Morning Report: They’re Playing The Cubs

Final Score: Pirates 4 Cubs 5 in 10 innings

Why The Pirates Lost: They’re playing the Cubs. The Pirates did not play a bad game, but it was not good enough to beat the Cubs, losing to the Cubs for the 7th straight time. The offense was not great, but they did manage to score 4 runs on just 6 hits and 5 walks. Josh Palacios crushed a home run into the Allegheny to tie the game 3-3 in the bottom of the third but did little else the rest of the game. He has had some big moments for the Pirates, but the bottom line is this, is slash line is 207/247/384, with an OPS+ 68. He is 32% worse than a league average hitter. He needs to go. The opener pitching rotation worked pretty well, although I do not know why they did not use Borucki to start the game. He was up during the game, so he was available and has had good success as the opener. Andre Jackson after getting off to a slow start pitched very well giving up just the 2 runs on 6 hits, walking no one, striking out 2. Overall, not a bad performance by the Pirates, but it fell one run short.

Key Moments Of The Game: It may be simplifying things just a bit, but this game boiled down to 2 bloops that contributed to or directly led to Cubs’ runs. The first was by Yan Gomes in the top of the 2nd. He blooped a ball that had an exit velocity of under 60 MPH into right field that got him on base, eventually scoring the 3rd run of the game. The second came in the top of the 10th by a Pirate nemesis, Ian Happ. This blooper was scorched at 71.4 MPH and then was muffed by Connor Joe to let another run score, providing the margin of victory for the Cubs. It would be hard to say if the runner on third, where he would have been if not for the Joe error, would have scored on the fly ball to Suwinski. We will never know. What we do know is that the Cubs continue to beat the Pirates. If this continues the Cubs should send 1% of their playoff checks to the Pirates.

The Next Game: Tonight, Cubs in Pittsburgh. The other Pirate major league starter Mitch Keller will take the mound tonight. This is Star Wars night. Maybe in another universe, the way the Pirates think would make sense. Will the Cubs make it 8 in a row? Who knows, only the Shelton knows.

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Pirates Morning Report: Pirates Return The Favor

Final Score: Pirates 4 Cardinals 6

Why The Pirates Lost: In the first game of the series the Cardinals started a AAA pitcher who really was not doing all that well, so the Pirates thought they would return the favor. Luis Ortiz was called up from AAA despite the fact that he had not really pitched all that well since being sent down in July. The Cardinals rocked him pretty good, and he did not help himself by walking 5 batters in 3 and 1/3 innings. In that time, he gave up 5 runs on 7 hits and was fortunate that it was not worse. His fastball never came close to 100 MPH which it did many times last year. After falling behind 5-0 the Pirates tried to fight back, getting the score to 5-2 with the 2nd run coming on a Ke’Bryan Hayes home run. Although the Pirate offense did score 4 runs, they were 0 for 9 with runners in scoring position and left 10 men stranded. No big two out hits yesterday.

Key Moments Of The Game: Trailing 5-2 going into the bottom of the 6th the Pirates were able to load the bases with one out. Jason Delay hit a weak ground ball that was able to score one run and move the runners to 2nd and 3rd with 2 outs. Up steps Ke’Bryan (I Pay Greg Brown 500 A Day To Say All Those Good Things About Me) Hayes to the plate. He gets ahead of the count 2-0 but can only hit a weak ground ball to second to end the inning. At least the pitch was a strike. In the top of the 9th the Cardinals were able to score a big insurance run without hitting a ball out of the infield. Jason Delays protective cup must weigh a ton. It is the only explanation I know of, that could explain on how slow he is to get out, and field a ball out in front of the plate. The Pirates were able to score a run in the bottom of the 9th, but that insurance run took a lot of pressure off the reliever.

Next Game: Tonight, the Cubs in Pittsburgh. The Pirates have lost all six games to the Cubs so far this season. It would be nice to see them turn that around. It will be interesting to see how a team that has a lot to play for performs against a team that is just playing out the string. Again, the Pirates do not know who the starting pitcher will be.

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Pirates Morning Report: Look Out Two In A Row

Final Score: Pirates 6 Cardinals 3

Why The Pirates Won: Johan Oviedo pitched an inefficient but effective 5 innings giving up just 1 run, 5 hits, 1 walk while striking out 5. His fastball did touch 97 MPH occasionally and overall, it was a decent performance compared to his last two outings. It took him 97 pitches to throw 5 innings. The Pirate batters, after going 9 up and 9 down against Adam Wainwright, put up a run in the 4th and put a big 5 spot in the bottom of the 5th. The score was 2-1 in the bottom of the 5th with 2 outs and runners on 2nd and 3rd. Bryan Reynolds lined a double down in the right field corner, followed by a line drive home run into the left field seats by Andrew McCutchen to quickly make the score 6-1. The bullpen was shaky again but was able to preserve the win. The Pirates have won 2 in a row. The next thing you know you will be hearing about hurricanes in California.

The Key Moment Of The Game: The Pirate bullpen already had given up a run in the top of the 6th inning to make the score 6-2. In the top of the 7th the Cardinals really got things going. With 2 outs the Cardinals singled home a run to make the score 6-3. Out goes Dauri Moreta and in comes Colin (I Don’t Like To Throw My 100 MPH Fastball) Holderman. He promptly gives up a single and a walk to load the bases for Willson Contreras. Contreras had just doubled his last at bat to drive in run number 2. The first pitch was close and called a strike. The second pitch was ball. The third pitch was simply a ball that was called a strike. It was at least 4 inches low. Now in the hole 1-2, Contreras struck out on a high 99 MPH fast ball and then was ejected from the game. A nice break for the Pirates. Holderman pitched a clean 8th, which was more surprising than the Pirates winning 2 in a row. Bednar got the save and the Pirates will be looking for the sweep today.

Next Game: In about 90 minutes, Cardinals in Pittsburgh. The desperate for starting pitching Pirates are going with Luis Ortiz today, who has not been lighting up at AAA. It will be interesting to see if his fastball his back to being close to 100 MPH. Could these Pirates possibly win 3 in a row. Who knows? Only the Shadow knows.