Buccos Cove

As we await the start of the 2020 MLB season due to Corona Virus concerns, we will take a look at every player on the Pirates roster and outline what they will bring to the table and projections for the 2020 season. I hope this brings some positive reading to the current situation and helps us all as we wait for baseball. Of the four players acquirred in the deal that sent Gerrit Cole to the Houston Astros, the one fans probably didn't know much about was prospect Jason Martin. He was just a double A outfielder when he came to the Pirates in 2018 and had a lot of room to develop. However, he was the first Pirates prospect called up to the show and he made an immediate impact in his first couple games. He helped the Pirates in a time of need, and now has all the tools he needs for success as he continued to develop in Triple A. Martin appeared in just 20 games for the Pirates last season, hitting .250 with no home runs and two RBI. The numbers don't jump off the page

As we await the start of the 2020 MLB season due to Corona Virus concerns, we will take a look at every player on the Pirates roster and outline what they will bring to the table and projections for the 2020 season. I hope this brings some positive reading to the current situation and helps us all as we wait for baseball. During the Pirates 2019 season, fans got a glimpse of what the future would look like at Shortstop when Cole Tucker got called to the Major Leagues after spending five seasons in the Minor league system. He started his career with a bang hitting a game-winning two-run home run in his Major League debut to give his team a 3-1 win over the San Francisco Giants. From then on, Tucker was instantly a fan favorite and started spliting time at shortstop with teammate Kevin Newman as the Bucs were getting him ready to take over. While his strong defensive play shined bright, his offense had trouble following at the Major League level. In 56 games, the 23-year old

As many of us are quarantined at home during the pandemic, almost everyone is turning to streaming services like Hulu and Netflix to pass the time. "Hope: One in a Billion" is just one of the things you can watch on Netflix to hear the inspiring story of a former Pirates Minor Leaguer. Like many of you reading this article, the stay at home orders have forced me to work from home. I was scrolling through Netflix looking for something to put on in the background and decided to search baseball movies, since I was missing the sport we all love. That is when I saw a familiar face in one of the thumbnails for a documentary called "Hope: One in a Billion." It was former Pittsburgh Pirates infielder Gift Ngoepe, and it told the story of his journey from Johannesburg, South Africa to becoming the first player from Africa to play in Major League Baseball. On Wednesday, April 27th, Gift Ngoepe would make his MLB debut with the Pirates coming in as a defensive repl

As we await the start of the 2020 MLB season due to Corona Virus concerns, we will take a look at every player on the Pirates roster and outline what they will bring to the table and projections for the 2020 season. I hope this brings some positive reading to the current situation and helps us all as we wait for baseball. Over the last several seasons, Pirates fans have been hearing about the rise of Ke'Bryan Hayes through the Minor League system. The Pirates number two overall prospect has had a quick rise through the system, making it all the way from high school player to Triple A in just five seasons. Many thought his call to the Major Leagues would come last September, but that was not the case as he continued to work on things in Triple A. Now that 2020 is just around rhe corner, Hayes is primed to take his spot as the Pirates starting third baseman this season. Ever since he was drafted out of Concordia Lutheran High School in Tomball, Texas, the Pirates liked Ha

Throughout the 2020 MLB The Show Players Tournament, Cole Tucker had not seen a multi-win day through the first four weeks of play. However, that streak would be broken on the final day of the tournament as he picked up two wins in one day for the first time in the tournament, finishing Monday 2-2. Over the month of April, the MLB, The MLB Players Association, and SONY Entertainment teamed up to bring you the 2020 MLB The Show Players tournament to offer a distraction during these trying times. Cole Tucker has been providing lots of entertainment throughout the tournament with big plays and even bigger reactions, but he hasn't really put up results on the scoreboard. However, that all changed on the final day of tournament play as he picked up two wins in one day for the first time since the tournament began. Tucker ended the tournament with a four game slate after one of his games from Sunday got rescheduled for the final day of the tournament. Of those four games, Tuc

As we await the start of the 2020 MLB season due to Corona Virus concerns, we will take a look at every player on the Pirates roster and outline what they will bring to the table and projections for the 2020 season. I hope this brings some positive reading to the current situation and helps us all as we wait for baseball. A few seasons ago, the shortstop position was one that lacked depth for the Pittsburgh Pirates. Entering the 2016 season, their only Major League ready option was Jordy Mercer and Cole Tucker was the best promising prospect, but he was still in Class A Bradenton at the time. That is when the Pirates got to work, selling off some of their top pieces to rebuild for the next Pirates playoff runs. While many fans weren't happy with the trades that took place, the moves were all made to ensure the Pirates had the depth they need to ensure success for many years. One of the pieces the Pirates acquirred during that sale of players was shortstop Oneil Cruz. Cr

As the MLB The Show 20 Players Tournament comes winding down, Cole Tucker is looking to finish out strong. He picked up a win for the second day in a row, but still went 1-3 on the day dropping his tournament record to 5-20. The MLB The Show 20 Players tournament is coming down to the wire as the season is in its final two days of competition. The contenders are separating themselves from the rest of the field, while other guys are looking to just finish out the season on a high note. Cole Tucker is one of the guys who is trying to have fun, but he had a chance to play spoiler on Sunday night taking on some of the top competition in tournament play. Of his four games on Sunday, two came against players who are currently on the top eight players list competing for a chance to play in the playoffs. He started off the day against the man who leads the Players League, Joey Gallo and the Texas Rangers. Trevor Williams got the start and things did not go well right from the get g

As we await the start of the 2020 MLB season due to Corona Virus concerns, we will take a look at every player on the Pirates roster and outline what they will bring to the table and projections for the 2020 season. I hope this brings some positive reading to the current situation and helps us all as we wait for baseball. In terms of power and production, first baseman Will Craig has been one of the top players throughout the Pittsburgh Pirates Minor League system. He has a career .259 average with 51 home runs and 264 RBI in 449 Minor League games. With numbers like those, you would think that the 22nd overall pick in the 2016 MLB Draft would have made his Major League debut by now. However, Craig is a unique case because he is being blocked at the Major League level by all-star first baseman Josh Bell. The Pirates have tried Craig in the outfield as well to find him a path to the Major Leagues but, with the emergence of Bryan Reynolds least season and Gregory Polanco comi

As the MLB The Show 20 Players tournament comes down to its final three days, the competitors are vying for playoff spots while everyone else is trying to play spoiler. Cole Tucker jumped out of the bottom spot in the league with a .500 day on Sunday. Things are starting to heat up in the MLB The Show 20 Players tournament as it comes down to the final three days of competition. The top eight players will advance to the playoffs while the rest will be sent home with $15,000 dollars for their local Boys and Girls Club chapter. As of now, the top eight in the standings are Blake Snell (TB), Joey Gallo (TEX), Bo Bichette (TOR), Gavin Lux (LAD), Jeff McNeil (NYM), Lucas Giolito (CWS), Tommy Kahnle (NYY), and Fernando Tatis Jr. (SD). One name not on that list is Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Cole Tucker. It hasnt been a good tournament record wise for Tucker, but he has provided some highlight real moments and reactions that have kept us entertained. Entering play on Saturday nig

As we await the start of the 2020 MLB season due to Corona Virus concerns, we will take a look at every player on the Pirates roster and outline what they will bring to the table and projections for the 2020 season. I hope this brings some positive reading to the current situation and helps us all as we wait for baseball. Over his professional career, Jameson Taillon has dealt with his fair share of injuries and set backs. Whether it was Tommy John Surgery, shoulder troubles, or even a battle with cancer, Taillon found a way to battle back and get ready to produce at a high level. The 2020 season offers a rather unique challenge for the 28-year old as he will have to battle back from yet another curveball thrown his way. However, this time it will be harder as few pitchers have been able to come back from this setback and still be successful. It all began with a start on May 1st, 2019 against the Texas Rangers in Arlington, Texas. Taillon was coming off of a shaky start and

As we await the start of the 2020 MLB season due to Corona Virus concerns, we will take a look at every player on the Pirates roster and outline what they will bring to the table and projections for the 2020 season. I hope this brings some positive reading to the current situation and helps us all as we wait for baseball. After spending three and a half seasons in the Pittsburgh Pirates minor league system, Edgar Santana made his Major League debut during the 2017 season. He pitched well, posting a 3.50 ERA in 19 games, and did enough to get back to the roster in 2018. He took the league by storm dropping his ERA nearly thirty points while more than quadrupling his workload at the Major League level. However, the Cinderella story came to a crashing halt as Santana left his appearance on September 21st with an injury that would end his rookie season. It turned out to be much worse than both the Pirates and Santana thought and would require the left-hander to have right Ulnar

As we await the start of the 2020 MLB season due to Corona Virus concerns, we will take a look at every player on the Pirates roster and outline what they will bring to the table and projections for the 2020 season. I hope this brings some positive reading to the current situation and helps us all as we wait for baseball. Over the last three seasons, right-handed pitcher Yacksel Rios has spent at least some time on a Major League roster pitching for the Philadelphia Phillies and the Pittsburgh Pirates out of the bullpen. However, he hasn't been able to stick on either roster bouncing back and forth between the MLB and Triple-A levels. With a 6.20 career ERA at the Major League level, Rios has gotten hit around way too much at the big league level and still needs time to develop into an everyday reliever. Last season, he appeared in 14 games at the major league level and posted a career-high 6.92 ERA in 13 innings of work while striking out 12 and walking eight. While he has s

After a slow start to the MLB The Show 20 Players Tournament, Cole Tucker is looking to finish out his schedule strong and have fun while doing it. He faced some friendly competition on Wednesday, his second day in a row playing, and dropped all three games. The MLB The Show 20 Players Tournament has not gone the way Cole Tucker thought it would go on the scoreboard. He had just three wins in his first four days of play, but played some exciting games throughout the tournament. He looked to reverse his fortunes on Wednesday as he added three more games to his ledger and played in back-to-back days for the first time during the tournament. However, it did not go his way once again as he dropped all three games and fell to 3-16. He would start his day with a game against Ryne Stanek and the Miami Marlins as he was looking to get off to a hot start, like he did the day before. Chris Archer got the start and right away things didn't go Tucker's way. He gave up one run i

As we await the start of the 2020 MLB season due to Corona Virus concerns, we will take a look at every player on the Pirates roster and outline what they will bring to the table and projections for the 2020 season. I hope this brings some positive reading to the current situation and helps us all as we wait for baseball. Over the last several seasons, the Pittsburgh Pirates have started another rebuild as they are stockpiling minor league talent trying to get back to the winning organization they were in the early 2010's. They picked up several top prospects from around the league, trading away guys like Andrew McCutchen, Gerritt Cole, and Starling Marte to acquire talent. One of those hard-throwing prospects they picked up was Cody Ponce in a July 29th trade that sent Jordan Lyles to the division rival Milwaukee Brewers. Ponce's career in the Brewers organization had seemed to go stagnant, as 2019 marked his third straight season pitching in Double A. The move to the Pi

After being shutout in his third day of play, Cole Tucker got back in the win column on day four of the MLB 20 The Show Players Tournament. He moved his record to 3-13 and now just looks to finish the season strong while having fun. For Pirates shortstop Cole Tucker, the MLB 20 The Show Players Tournament has not turned out the results he was looking for. After four days of play, he sits at just 3-13 and sits in last place in the National League Central Division. However, he is having fun doing it and it is giving the fans a break from the everyday normal of staying at home as we wait for baseball to come back. Tucker was able to get back in the win column after being shutout on day three of the tournament. He started his day with a match-up against Niko Goodrum of the Detroit Tigers and, after a scoreless first inning, he got on the board with a bang. Gregory Polanco stepped up with one out in the second and crushed a solo home run over the right-center field wall to give

As we await the start of the 2020 MLB season due to Corona Virus concerns, we will take a look at every player on the Pirates roster and outline what they will bring to the table and projections for the 2020 season. I hope this brings some positive reading to the current situation and helps us all as we wait for baseball. Entering camp as one of the few lefties on the Pittsburgh Pirates pitching staff, Sam Howard is fighting for a spot in the 2020 bullpen. After spending the last six years in the minor leagues, Howard made his debut for the Colorado Rockies last season, appearing in 20 games. However, his effort wasn't good enough and the Rockies ended up designating him for assignment. With very little left-handed relief options at their disposal, the Pirates swooped in and claimed Howard off waivers on October 30th 2019. In his first true run in the Major Leagues, Howard pitched to a 6.63 ERA in 19 innings of work while striking out 23 and walking 10. You have to take