Buccos Cove

When the Pittsburgh Pirates needed a starter, Chase De Jong stepped in in a big way in yesterday's series finale against the Rockies. He dazzled on the mound and may just shake up the Pirates rotation moving forward. In the early part of the season, the Pittsburgh Pirates have dealt with injuries, especially to their starting rotation. Chad Kuhl has been out since the end of April and recently Trevor Cahill recently went on the IL with a calf strain. Because of this, the Pirates needed a starter for the series final with the Colorado Rockies on Sunday. Going with what the Pirates had done already this season, there was speculation that it would be Miguel Yajure, Cody Ponce, or Chad Kuhl coming back from the IL. Yajure was on four-day rest and Ponce was on five-day rest, making him the most likely option. However, the Pirates surprised everyone when they promoted Chase De Jong to the Major Leagues, and designated Ildemaro Vargas for assignment to male room on the 40-man ...

The Pittsburgh Pirates embark on their shortest road trip of the season as they head to Kansas City today for a series with the Royals. Both teams have seen a slight drop-off since their last series, and are looking to rebound on this Memorial Day evening. Memorial Day is a day when we remember all of those who sacrificed everything to preserve the freedoms we have today. Usually, it means an afternoon of family barbeques and baseball, followed by a fire in the evening. However, for the Pittsburgh Pirates, there is work to be done as they go on the road to face the Kansas City Royals. It isn't your typical afternoon game, as the two teams square off at 8:10 pm, and it is the shortest road trip of the year for the Pirates at just two games. These two teams faced off in late April and were two of the hottest teams in Major League Baseball. However, since then, both teams have come back down to Earth a little, the Pirates more so than the Royals. However, the Pirates did b...

Yesterday, Ka'ai Tom came off the 10-day IL as the 27th man in the Pirates doubleheader against the Colorado Rockies and went 1-3 with a home run. As he returns to the roster, it will likely be a battle between Tom and Gamel for playing time in left field. The Pittsburgh Pirates have many players on the Injured List who are currently working their way back into the lineup. The first of those players made their return on Sunday as Ka'ai Tom came off the 10-day Injured List as the Pirates 27th man in the doubleheader against the Colorado Rockies. Tom got the start in left field in game two, and ended up contributing, going 1-3 with a home run on 27th birthday, in a 4-0 win that less to a sweep of the doubleheader. Tom's overall average isn't that impressive, at .169, but he has done some good work during his time in a Pirates uniform. However, with the Pirates, that average is slightly better at .209 with two home runs, eight RBI, and an on-base percentage of ...

After being delegated to the alternate training site for the 2020 season, Pirates fans we're excited to see top prospect Quinn Priester back on the mound. After a slow start to the year, the Pirates top pitching prospect has turned it on over his last couple of starts. If you have been following some of the Pirates top prospects down in the Minor Leagues as of late, you know that most of the news hasn't been good. Pirates #1 prospect Nick Gonzales just hit the Injured List with a broken finger, and #7 prospect Travis Swaggerty is now out for the year with a dislocated shoulder. After missing out on the 2020 season due to the pandemic, this is not a promising sign for either player. However, there is some good news on the prospect front as well down in Low-A Greensboro. Quinn Priester, who started the year with a bad opener, is turning things around. In his first start, he allowed six runs, three earned, over three innings and had a 9.00 ERA. His ERA sat at 7.71 afte...

With the impromptu off-day, the Pittsburgh Pirates starting rotation is about to get jumbled up. Between returning injured players and needing off days, the rotation is about to get a shake-up moving forward. With the Pittsburgh Pirates on a six-game losing streak, they were looking for a new start as they were set to begin a three-game series with the Colorado Rockies on Friday night. However, Mother Nature made sure that wouldn't happen as rain ended up postponing the series opener a day. With all that has gone on recently, it is probably just what the Pirates needed as they try to hit the reset button and start a new. Normally, doubleheaders can really mess up a starting rotation, but in the Pirates case, Saturday's games may actually help the rotation. With injuries to two of the five states and pitchers from Triple-A succeeding in the Big Leagues, it is another chance for more players able to get opportunities at the Big League level. The Sunday starter for the...

During the Pittsburgh Pirates' current six-game losing streak, the team has suffered from both on-field mistakes and mental mistakes. The team is looking to hit the reset button and get back to fundamentals as they open a new series tonight.   The Pittsburgh Pirates have not had a lot of things go right for them during this current six-game losing streak. They have given up a total of 46 runs over these six games and have only been able to muster 10 runs themselves. The young inexperience of this team has been exposed over the last several games, as they are trying to play competitive games in the midst of a rebuild. The reality of this team is that there are many players currently on the team who will not be here come July as the Pirates look to acquire more talent for the future. This means that more young and inexperienced players will get shots throughout the season. No matter where the record goes, the one thing you want to see from the Pirates is good, fundamental...

The month of May has been hard for the Pittsburgh Pirates, as they have managed to go just 6-19 in the 25 games played so far. However, they are looking to end things on a good note as they welcome in the Colorado Rockies for a three-game series. It is no secret that the month of May has been a tough one for the Pittsburgh Pirates as a whole. After finishing April 12-10, and highly exceeding many fan's expectations, the Pirates have turned around and went just 6-19 over their last 25 games, and are coming off a series where they got swept by   the Cubs. They have had a lot of tough competition this month, with two series against the Cardinals, two against the Cubs, and one against the Padres, that have really exposed the inexperience of this Pirates team. That, plus several injuries to key players, has left the Pirates limping through the month of May. However, several of those key players are on the mend right now, and after coming into May like a lamb they are hoping ...

The Pittsburgh Pirates had a busy off-season where they were acquiring young talent to help them build back up what was a depleted farm system. One of those acquisitions is working his way back to the Big Leagues as Jose Soriano works through a rehab assignment at Low-A Bradenton. It was a busy off-season for General Manager Ben Cherington and the Pittsburgh Pirates as they set out on a full rebuild of the team. This started by acquiring young players to add to the farm system who, while not making an immediate impact, would be able to come up in the future and help turn this Pirates team into a winner. One aspect of that busy off-season was the Rule 5 Draft, where teams get their choice of Minor Leaguers who have been in their team's system for years and have run out of places to go. The Rule 5 Draft pick that we have seen already for the Pirates is right-hander Luis Oviedo, who has looked good for jumping to the Big Leagues from Low-A Ball. However, he was not the Pir...

Following the 2020 season, Clay Holmes was released by the Pittsburgh Pirates and looked all but don't with his pro baseball career. However, he was resigned a month later and is thriving with his last chance on a Major League roster. When Clay Holmes was drafted in the 9th round of the 2011 MLB Draft, he came with a lot of promise behind him. He, along with Gerrit Cole and Jameson Taillon, were supposed to be the next young core of pitchers to lead the starting rotation. While Cole and Taillon each had successful runs for the Pirates, Holmes's career went slightly different as injury and ineffectiveness plagued his development. He made his MLB debut in 2018, and when he is healthy, he has never had an ERA under the 5.58 mark. 2020 was supposed to be the year where he turned things around, but a broken foot before the pandemic and a forearm strain after it limited him to one game. The Pirates ended up releasing Holmes following the season, and it looked like the end...

If there is one position the Pittsburgh Pirates have had success in developing, it is in the outfield. In 2021, there is a young high school outfielder who could be available in the first three rounds bringing great athleticism to the Pirates organization. Over the past couple of years, the Pittsburgh Pirates have had several prospects go through their Minor League system with varying degrees of success. However, if there is one position they have done a good job of developing, it is the outfield. Over the last several seasons, the Pirates have had some of the best outfielders in the league from Nate McLouth (2000) to Andrew McCutchen (2005) to Starling Marte (intl. Free agent) the Pirates have had success with developing outfielders. That development will be put to the test once again in the coming years with guys like Travis Swaggerty and Cal Mitchell not too far away from the Big Leagues. With Ben Cherington and his new regime taking over for their second draft, there is...

During the stretch in April where the Pirates were overachieving above all expectations, the one thing that had been solid was their starting pitching. However, during their current slide, it has been their pitching that just can't seem to catch a break. It all started on what looked like a beautiful night for baseball in Atlanta, Georgie back on May 21st at Truist Park. Tyler Anderson took the mound having a strong season, as he looked to be a stopper for the Pirates and get them back on track. However, it wasn't meant to be, as Anderson was tagged for nine earned runs, including three home runs, in what was a horrific 20-1 loss for the team. Since then, the Pittsburgh Pirates pitchers, and particularly their starting pitchers, have not seemed to catch a break. Over the last seven days, the Pirates starter's ERA has been the worst in baseball at 8.65, and the team as a whole has allowed a combined 37 total runs. The Pirates were hoping to start a new against th...

In all of Minor League Baseball, there have been few pitchers who have been more dominant than Roansy Contreras. Through his first three starts, he has a 0.00 ERA and is Named the Double-A Northern League Pitcher of the Week. During the off-season, General Manager Ben Cherington pulled off a trade that sent Jameson Taillon to the Need York Yankees for a package of four prospects. The prospects have had varying degrees of impact in the organization, including Miguel Yajure making two starts with the Big League club so far. However, the highlight of this trade has been down in Double-A Altoona, where he has been absolutely dominating the Northern League. Pirates fans got a glimpse of Roansy Contreras this spring when he appeared in two games and struck out five batters, while walking two, over two innings of work. However, he has done that and a lot more over in Altoona, as he leads the Double-A starting rotation. Over his first three starts of the season, Contreras has yet t...

After limping their way out of Atlanta, the Pittsburgh Pirates return home to take on the Chicago Cubs for the fourth time this season. We look at what to expect as the Pirates try to turn it around in the confines of h  Park. On April 30th, 2021, the Pittsburgh Pirates were performing above many people's expectations, sitting at 12-10. However, May has been a different story as their record has dropped to a season-low 18-28 and have gone just 6-18 over their last 24 games. The slump came to an apex this past weekend when they not only lost three out of four games to the Atlanta Braves, and were embarrassed on the scoreboard. they were outscored 37-9 in the four-game series, and aside from game one, couldn't get any offense going. The once good starting pitching couldn't turn in a strong start, and the offense had a lot of trouble producing runs. However, the Pirates are looking to turn things around when they head to PNC Park to play 13 of the next 15 games. It...