Buccos Cove

After a pandemic shortened 2020 season, Pittsburgh Pirates manager Derek Shelton is finally getting to manage in front of fans. Today, we look at how he has handled things to start year two as we evaluate the job he has done so far leading the Pirates. When Derek Shelton was hired as the manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates in November of 2019, it was the culmination of a 15-year long journey in Major League Baseball. However, things didn't go exactly as planned, as Shelton had to manage in front of no fans while navigating a shortened 60-game season. 2021 is nowhere and things are beginning to get back to normal both for Shelton and the Pirates. With a full Spring Training under their belts, the pitchers are stretched out and ready to go, and we are beginning to see Shelton's managing style. There have been some good and some bad throughout his year-plus on the job, but like the young Pirates team, he is also a young manager still learning what it takes to be able to ...

An update from Pittsburgh Pirates Director of Sports Medicine Todd Tomczyk said all signs are encouraging as Ke'Bryan Hayes recovers from a wrist injury. However, the rookie's return leaves the Pirates with some tough decisions ahead. With all the success the Pirates offense has been having as of late, they are about to get a big piece back in their lineup. After being out since April 3rd with a wrist sprain, rookie third baseman Ke'Bryan Hayes was eligible to come off the 10-day Injured List yesterday. Pittsburgh Pirates Director of Sports Medicine Todd Tomczyk said that all signs are encouraging in Hayes's recovery as he is fielding groundballs, swinging a bat, and running the bases. However, he ruled out a return for the Padres series but did not say whether or not Hayes could return to the team in Milwaukee. The Pirates haven't suffered as bad as some thought since Hayes's absence, going 4-6 during that time, but will only benefit from getting a ...

With a team of young players like the Pittsburgh Pirates have, there are growing pains that you expect throughout the season. However, the team has been lacking in some of the fundamentals of the game and it has been hurting them in the long run. It wasn't the Home Opener that the Pirates dreamed up on Thursday afternoon as they fell to the Chicago Cubs at PNC Park 4-2. The loss dropped their record to 1-6 on the season, and they have now lost six games in a row heading into today's off day. Now, with a young team, we didn't expect the wins and losses to matter as much as player development does. However, this game was just another example of how the biggest thing the Pirates lack is the fundamentals of the game. The Pirates had several opportunities throughout the game to break things open, but couldn't find the clutch hit they needed. Now, any close loss can be frustrating, but when it is a loss where the fundamentals have escaped you it is that much more ...

Even though we are into the 2021 Regular season, the battle for centerfield rages on between Dustin Fowler and Anthony Alford. We look at the match-up so far and see who has the upper hand heading into the first full week of games.  The Pirates have been known for their centerfield play, from Andrew McCutchen to Starling Marte, even as far back as guys like Omar Moreno and Andy Van Slyke. However, in 2020, the position took a step backward when the Pirates signed outfielder Jarrod Dyson to man the position. While his defensive play was good, he could not hit to save his life. Thankfully, the Dyson experiment lasted just half a season as Ben Cherington was able to trade him to the Chicago White Sox for International Poll money. However, that move left the Pirates without a long-term option in center field. However, two of the newer additions to the Pirates are vying to take over that position long-term. Over the first three games of the season, the battle for the Pittsbu...

Opening Day is just two days away, and the Pittsburgh Pirates Opening Day roster is starting to take shape. We look at the latest round of cuts and what effect they have on who might make the Pirate's Opening Day roster in Chicago. As the Pittsburgh Pirates Spring Training schedule begins to wind down, roster cuts need to be made as the Pirates determine their Opening Day roster. On Monday, the Pirates made a round of cuts that offer some more clarity into what that Opening Day roster in Chicago may look like. While there were some surprise moves by the Pirates, these moves also help open a path for younger players to make their impact on the team right now. However, other moves might have opened the door for veterans to make the team as the Pirates look for someone to be leaders in the clubhouse. However, just because a player was cut from Spring Training doesn't mean that they won't have an impact on the Pirates sometime during the 2021 season. On Monday, the ...

Opening Day 2021 is less than a month away as the Pittsburgh Pirates try and figure out who will head with the team to Chicago on April 1st. We try and predict who will be in the Pirate's Opening Day Batting Order against the Cubs. Grapefruit League action is officially underway as the Pittsburgh Pirates prepare for the 2021 season. There is still a lot of work to do, but everyone is looking ahead to that season opener on April 1st against the Chicago Cubs. Before that, the Pirates have a lot of questions to answer around the field as they decide who is in and who is out as part of this rebuild. There are a few players who have guaranteed their spots like Bryan Reynolds, Ke'Bryan Hayes, and Gregory Polanco, while there are several other players still fighting for their opportunity. There will be a lot of movement during the season with young guys making their debuts throughout the year, but it all starts with the starting nine on Opening Day. Today, we start our ser...

As the newest member of the Pittsburgh Pirates, Dustin Fowler enters camp with a chance to reinvent himself. He is battling for a spot in centerfield after coming over in a trade with the Oakland Athletics on February 24th. General Manager Ben Cherington has made it clear that he is determined to add talent to help rebuild this organization. The Pirates lacked depth last season, and it showed as the team finished dead last with a 19-41 record over the 60-game season. One of the most recent depth moves made by Cherington was when he added 26-year-old Dustin Fowler to the outfield depth. Fowler came over in a trade with the Oakland Athletics where the Pirates sent over cash in exchange for the outfielder's services. Fowler was once a promising prospect in the Yankees system, but a ruptured right patella tendon set him back, and he hasn't been given a full opportunity since. His last full look in the Major Leagues came during the 2018 season when he was a fourth outfie...

Anthony Alford looked good on offense during his Spring Training debut, but reports are his elbow surgery is affecting his throwing. If Alford isn't ready to go for Opening Day, the Pirates will have to tap into their outfield depth to replace him on the field. During the course of the off-season, one of the big questions for the Pittsburgh Pirates was who will be playing in centerfield? With an initial look at the roster, the question seemed to be answered by Anthony Alford, who the Pirates had picked up off waivers from the Blue Jays during the 2020 season. Alford played five games for the Pirates and hit .250 with a home run and four RBI before smashing into the centerfield wall and fracturing his elbow. He had surgery to repair the fracture during the off-season and carried his offensive momentum into the first Spring Training game of the year when he went 1-2 with a solo home run against the Blue Jays on Monday. However, the reason he wasn't in the outfield was...

On Wednesday night, the Pittsburgh Pirates continued to add to their outfield depth, acquiring Dustin Fowler from the Oakland Athletics for cash. Fowler brings more depth and a left-handed bat to the Pirate's outfield mix. Last season, the position that lacked the most Major League depth for the Pirates was their outfield. It got so bad that when Gregory Polanco went down with COVID-19 at the beginning of last season, the Pirates had to convert Cole Tucker to the outfield to pick up the slack. It was an experiment that clearly did not work, and Ben Cherington learned from that mistake. He has brought in a slew of outfielders this off-season to provide depth at the position, including Troy Stokes Jr. and Brian Goodwin. However, that wasn't enough for the Pirates General Manager as he made another move for an outfielder Thursday evening that adds some more competition to Big League camp. The Pirates were able to acquire 26-year-old outfielder Dustin Fowler from the Oa...