Ever since the Pirates selected Gerrit Cole with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2011 MLB Draft, the expectations were through the roof. So far, Cole has met all of the expectations. He became the first pitcher to ever defeat to Cy Young Award winners in his first two starts when he bested Tim Lincecum and Zack Greinke, and also earned a third consecutive victory against Jered Weaver and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Against the Angels, Cole hit 100 miles-per-hour five times or more. Only one ... Read More
Archives for June 2013
Pirates take second straight from Halos
The Pittsburgh Pirates continued their strong recent road play with a 6-1 interleague victory over the Los Angeles Angels on Saturday night at Angels Stadium. Pittsburgh has won four of six games on its current nine-game road trip, including the first two of its series in Anaheim. With the victory and St. Louis falling to the Rangers, the Pirates (45-30) are two games behind the Cardinals and have the second-best record in Major League Baseball. Starting pitcher Francisco Liriano (6-3) ... Read More
Pittsburgh Power Offensive Struggles Continue In 50-35 Loss to Orlando
Turn out the lights, the party’s over. While not mathematically eliminated from the playoff chase, the Pittsburgh Power (3-10) have eliminated all margin for error after losing 50-35 to the Orlando Predators (5-8) Saturday night. The loss also clinched a third straight non-winning season for the Power. The story of the game was more offensive struggles for the Power. Pittsburgh turned the ball over on downs three times in the first half and when you add in Steven Sheffield’s two ... Read More
Wild Things pull out 1-0 victory behind Blackwell
With the summer air settling in in western Pennsylvania, the Wild Things were able to pull out a slim victory. The Wild Things, behind Shawn Blackwell's seven strong innings of shutout ball, rode a one to nothing lead into the winner's circle. Blackwell didn't allow a single hit until the top of the fourth inning. In the first inning, he hit a batter, watched his catcher drop a third strike, and allowed a base runner to reach third base on a wild pitch, but was still able to get out of the ... Read More
Possible trade partners for Kris Letang
Kris Letang will surely be traded over the summer. The question is no longer if he will be traded but rather where will he end up? When the Penguins traded Jordan Staal, it was a pretty easy deal to negotiate. Staal wanted to go to the Carolina Hurricanes, a non-divisional opponent at the time with prospects and cap space. At this time, Letang has not requested a specific team and he likely wont say anything as long as contract negotiations continue between Pens GM Ray Shero and Letang's ... Read More
Who will be the odd man out on the pitching staff
What a start for Gerrit Cole’s career. Two times he has faced a Cy Young winner and two times he has defeated a Cy Young winner, not to mention Jered Weaver. But there was something interesting being discussed during last night’s game. When A.J. Burnett and Wandy Rodriguez return from the disabled list, is Cole going to be the one going to Triple-A? First, let’s look at the candidates (I assume Ryan Reid will already be DFA’d). Vin Mazzaro: Mazzaro is in the midst of his best season in the ... Read More
Pirate of the Week: Pedro Alvarez
The one Pirate that every Pirates' fan loves to hate, Pedro Alvarez has been on fire as of late. He may not hit for a high average, but not many power hitters do. For his strong play over the past week, Alvarez is awarded with our Yinzer of the Week award. The Pirates played eleven games in a row, and over the past seven days, Alvarez has had at least one hit in every game except for one. He had two games with multiple hits and three games with multiple RBIs. Last Sunday the Pirates overcame ... Read More
Cole remains perfect with win over Angels
In a game that was close to his heart, Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Gerrit Cole literally felt right at home in defeating the Los Angeles Angels 5-2. The Newport Beach, California born Cole had his best start to date and displayed a fastball that topped out at 101 miles per hour and according to Root Sports color commentator Bob Walk ‘a 92 mile per hour change up’. This was all while earning his third win in as many starts to open the season. Regardless of what pitch was thrown, Cole showed ... Read More
Week 14 Preview: Pittsburgh Power At Orlando Predators
The scenario is simple for the Pittsburgh Power’s playoff hopes. Win this week and pull even with the Orlando Predators for the fourth playoff spot. Lose and fall two games plus a tiebreaker behind with five games to go. In other words, they better find a way to win this game which is easier said than done. Power starting quarterback Steven Sheffield is expected to return to the lineup this week which should be a welcome addition to an offense which had four interceptions, three lost ... Read More
Wild Things end five game skid, beat Rascals 5-2
On Prom Night from Console Energy Park, the Wild Things did what everyone aims to do on Prom Night. Take something home. In this case, the Wild Things took home a win. The first three and a half innings were all slow jams for both teams, but in the bottom of the fourth, Washington blew the game wide open with a fast song. Shain Stoner singled to start the inning off. After Stewart Ijames flew out for the first out, Mark Samuelson drove Stoner in with an RBI double. Jovan Rosa then singled to ... Read More