789 articles found
PIT • Infielder • #8
1 day ago
Lowe, who was acquired from the Rays in the offseason, hit a two-run homer in the first and a solo shot in the third for his ninth career multihomer game. Obviously, his quiet spring, when he went 6-for-30 with no RBI, didn’t mean much of anything. The Pirates like him batting second in spite of his history of mediocre OBPs, and as long as that lasts, he’ll have some extra fantasy value.
PIT • Outfielder • #15
1 day ago
Cruz’s season was off to a good start for about 10 minutes; he singled as the Pirates’ leadoff man in the first and then scored on Brandon Lowe’s homer. In the bottom of the inning, though, he misjudged Brett Baty’s fly over his head, leading to a three-run triple, and then lost Marcus Semien’s fly in the sun for a double. Because of the miscues, Skenes failed to make it out of the first in what eventually turned out to be an 11-7 loss. Cruz seems to be in a pretty good place offensively right now. However, if he continues to struggle defensively, it might send him back into the platoon role in which he finished last season.
PIT • Pitcher • #30
1 day ago
If this game had taken place two days ago, Skenes would have been lifted after 30 pitches and brought back out for the second inning. Alas, that couldn’t happen in the regular season. Skenes made his own trouble by walking Francisco Lindor and Luis Robert Jr. in the first, but the first two hits he allowed were soft singles and the third was a bases-loaded triple that Oneil Cruz misplayed in center. The fourth was a double that Cruz lost in the sun. There was nothing wrong with Skenes’ stuff today, but the Pirates simply couldn’t risk continuing on with him at 37 pitches in the first in the first game of the season. Most likely, Skenes will make his next start Wednesday against the Reds. The Pirates, though, would have the option of bringing him back early if they’d like.
PIT • Infielder • #8
4 days ago
The Pirates are going to be starting four pure left-handed hitters against righties: Oneil Cruz, Spencer Horwitz, Lowe and Ryan O’Hearn. Their OBPs over the last two years are .311 for Cruz, .355 for Horwitz, .309 for Lowe and .351 for O’Hearn. So, guess which two Don Kelly seems to prefer batting first and second in his lineup? Well, it was Cruz first, Lowe second, O’Hearn fifth and Horwitz seventh today. Lowe was dropped to fifth a couple of times during the middle of the month, but he’s only hit second recently. It’s not a disaster or anything, but Lowe’s typical line is that of a good No. 5 hitter, and it seems like he’s mostly hitting second because, well, he’s a second baseman and that’s what second basemen did back in Kelly’s day.
PIT •
5 days ago
With Carmen Mlodsinski being named the fifth starter and both Jose Urquidy and Hunter Barco making the Opening Day roster, it seems like Clevinger may be the Pirates’ seventh or eighth starter right now. This spring, he allowed eight runs on 10 hits in 14 1/3 innings while striking out 15 and walking 10. He has pitched only 21 2/3 MLB innings since 2023.
PIT • Pitcher • #45
5 days ago
Barco, MLB’s 95th-ranked prospect, made his MLB debut last season with just three innings out of the bullpen. He will presumably start this season in the bullpen as well, with Carmen Mlodzinski already named the team’s fifth starter. That means Barco will be the presumed sixth starter and long reliever and should get a chance to start if Mlodzinski falters. Barco looked good this spring, allowing four runs (three earned) on five hits in 9 1/3 innings while striking out 12 and walking six. He might not be worth adding right now in his current role, but fantasy managers should watch Mlodzinski’s early starts closely to see if Barco will get a shot.
Source: Colin Beazley
PIT • Pitcher • #23
5 days ago
Although he generated just four whiffs on 33 swings, Keller was able to strike out five today. He ends the spring with a 4.80 ERA and a 20/8 K/BB in 15 innings. He’s slated to face the Mets in the Pirates’ second game of the season on Saturday, but he doesn’t come recommended in mixed leagues.
PIT • Catcher • #14
5 days ago
Quite the barnburner of a catching competition in Pittsburgh this spring. Bart is 5-for-34 with 16 strikeouts and a .392 OPS. Henry Davis homered today, pushing him all of the way up to .138 with a .631 OPS in 36 plate appearances. Endy Rodríguez actually did hit this spring, going 8-for-26 with two homers, but the Pirates demoted him anyway. Rafael Flores Jr., who was the return in the David Bednar deal with the Yankees, has also been sent down after going 2-for-25. The Pirates will just keep rolling with Bart and Davis for now and will likely let the hot hand, should one ever emerge, dictate playing time.
PIT • Pitcher • #50
5 days ago
The 27-year-old right-hander will make his first start on Sunday against the Mets. Mlodzinski did a nice job during Grapefruit League play, registering a 2.92 ERA, 1.38 WHIP and a 14/2 K/BB ratio over 12 1/3 innings of work. It’s possible that he could carve out some fantasy value in deeper mixed leagues if he holds onto that rotation spot.
Source: Colin Beazley
PIT • SS
6 days ago
On the pitching side, Devenski had a shot at making the team’s Opening Day bullpen, but struggled to a 6.75 ERA and 1.69 WHIP over 5 1/3 innings during Grapefruit League play. Williams had a solid spring offensively, hitting .258 (8-for-31) with a homer and seven RBI, but that wasn’t enough to secure a spot on the Pirates’ Opening Day bench.
PIT • Pitcher • #45
6 days ago
Griffin hit just .184 in his Grapefruit League action, but he was able to hit four homers and had some exceptional exit velocities during his time in big-league camp. There’s reports that the two sides are working on a long-term extension, but he’ll almost assuredly begin the season in the minors. Griffin is one of the few prospects in baseball who is worth rostering in redraft leagues even if he is opening the season in Triple- or Double-A.
PIT • Pitcher • #45
6 days ago
Griffin hit just .184 in his Grapefruit League action, but he was able to hit four homers and had some exceptional exit velocities during his time in big-league camp. There’s reports that the two sides are working on a long-term extension, but he’ll almost assuredly begin the season in the minors. Griffin is one of the few prospects in baseball who is worth rostering in redraft leagues even if he is opening the season in Triple- or Double-A.
PIT • Outfielder • #15
6 days ago
Cruz took Blue Jays reliever Jorge Alcala deep in the sixth inning for his second big fly of the spring. He singled and swiped second base, his fifth steal of the spring, earlier in the contest with Toronto ace Kevin Gausman on the hill. The 27-year-old center fielder has put together a strong spring, hitting .417 (10-for-24) through nine games.
PIT • Pitcher • #30
6 days ago
Skenes scattered one hit and three walks, requiring 65 pitches (36 strikes) to navigate four shutout frames in his final spring tune-up. The 23-year-old reigning NL Cy Young Award winner kicks off the season on Thursday with a challenging road tilt against the Mets at Citi Field. He’s one of the top three pitchers off the board in the first or second round of every fantasy draft this spring.
PIT • Outfielder • #51
7 days ago
This qualifies as a bit of a surprise since Garcia was off to a sizzling-hot start this spring, batting .405 (15-for-37) with two homers and three steals in 17 games. The calculus for the Pirates likely involves having the 23-year-old corner outfielder playing regularly on the doorstop of the majors as opposed to languishing in a part-time role at the highest level. His departure means that veteran offseason acquisition Ryan O’Hearn will open the year as Pittsburgh’s starting right fielder with Marcell Ozuna at DH.
PIT • Pitcher • #45
7 days ago
Mayo adds that the two sides have discussed a potential nine-year deal worth more than $100 million. Griffin, the consensus top prospect in baseball, was the talk of the Grapefruit League earlier this spring and remains in the mix to break camp as Pittsburgh’s starting shortstop. The 19-year-old phenom would become just the 18th teenage position player to reach the majors in the past 40 years, and only the sixth since 2005, according to Baseball America’s J.J. Cooper. He would be the first to debut on Opening Day since Ken Griffey Jr. back in 1989. A long-term agreement would remove any financial obstacles to him starting the year in the big leagues. His sky-high power/speed combo following a 20-homer, 60-steal campaign in the minors last year gives him one of the highest ceilings of any player available outside the early rounds of fantasy drafts this spring.
Source: MLB.com
PIT • Infielder • #19
7 days ago
The 28-year-old infielder smacked a one-out triple off of Jose Suarez in the second inning and scored the game’s first run on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Nick Yorke. That would be the extent of the Bucs’ offense. For the spring, Triolo has hit a solid .270 (10-for-37) with zero homers, four RBI and one stolen base in 41 plate appearances.
PIT •
8 days ago
On the plus side, the 35-year-old hurler recorded four of his six outs via the strikeout, while issuing one walk. All of the damage done against him came on the lone hit that Clevinger allowed — a two-run blast by Samuel Basallo in the third inning. He got 10 swings and misses on just 34 pitches in the ballgame, five of them on his cutter, while posting a strong CSW of 38 percent. If he finds a way to latch onto the Pirates’ Opening Day roster, it’s expected to be as a long man in the bullpen. Either way though, don’t expect him to hold any sort of fantasy value.
PIT • Pitcher • #30
8 days ago
Stunner. He’ll oppose Freddy Peralta in the opener. Skenes’ 2026 fantasy forecast could take a major step forward if the Pirates are able to generate more offense behind him this year. He’s become a routine first-round pick even without generating much in the way of wins, but if the runs lead to wins, his ceiling could be higher in 2026.
Source: Colin Beazley
PIT • Infielder • #5
8 days ago
Rodriguez hit .173/.246/.250 in 57 plate appearances last year. He managed a .308/.400/.577 Spring Training line in 28 at-bats, but has missed so much time over the past couple of years that the Pirates likely wanted to see him get an extended run of at-bats. It’s possible he factors into the Pirates plans in the summer if he hits well at Indianapolis.
Source: Colin Beazley
PIT • Pitcher • #60
9 days ago
Santana is the odds-on favorite to open the season as Pittsburgh’s closer after recording 16 saves to go along with a 2.18 ERA (3.50 xERA), 0.87 WHIP and 60/17 K/BB ratio across 70 1/3 innings last year. The 29-year-old is a top 15-20 range fantasy closer in drafts this spring.
PIT • Pitcher • #67
9 days ago
Ashcraft’s slider and curveball were phenomenal, and he maintained his sinker velocity into the middle innings, carving up a fully loaded Detroit lineup in one of the more impressive outings of the spring. The 26-year-old has posted a stellar 2.03 ERA and 16/1 K/BB ratio across 13 1/3 innings of work in Grapefruit League action. He appears locked into Pittsburgh’s season-opening rotation and is a savvy late-round sleeper candidate in all fantasy drafts this spring.
PIT • Outfielder • #15
10 days ago
He also struck out twice but has a perfectly fine 4/4 K/BB ratio in six games this spring. So far this spring, Cruz is swinging way less and chasing far less often than we’ve seen from him in the past. He’s also continuing to hit the ball hard when he does make contact. It’s unclear if swinging less will actually benefit Cruz because it gives him fewer chances to do damage, but he’s clearly trying to make adjustments at the plate after hitting .200/.298/.378 last season, and that’s something we like to see. He still feels like a decent value at his ADP, but don’t expect a batting average far over .230.
PIT • Pitcher • #23
10 days ago
Keller also walked four and struck out six while throwing just 58 percent of his pitches for strikes, but registering a 39 percent whiff rate. Keller’s best pitch on the day was his sweeper, which he threw for strikes and had a 50 percent whiff rate on, but he really struggled to command his fastballs. His four-seamer was also down over one mph from where we saw it last season. Given Keller’s inconsistencies over the years and the young arms emerging in Pittsburgh, it’s hard to feel comfortable drafting Keller in most fantasy formats.
PIT • Pitcher • #51
10 days ago
Sisk came to the Pirates at the trade deadline last year as part of the Bailey Falter trade. The 28-year-old had a 3.57 ERA and a 25/10 K/BB ratio in 17 2/3 MLB innings. He will pitch for the Pirates at some point this season.
PIT •
10 days ago
All players were non-roster invitees to spring training and long shots to make the roster. They will now take the time to decide their next step.
PIT • CF
11 days ago
Fletcher was an intriguing name when the Pirates signed him in December, but then they also added Marcell Ozuna, Ryan O’Hearn, and Jhostynxon Garcia to make the corner outfield and DH spots a bit crowded. Fletcher will now head to minor league camp as he determines the next step for his career, and whether it will be in the Pirates’ minor league system or somewhere else.
PIT • Infielder • #48
11 days ago
Valdez was trying to win a backup infielder job in spring training, but went just 2-for-26 in 12 games. He will head to Triple-A and play some games at 1B and 2B to keep himself in the team’s mind as a potential backup should injuries crop up.
PIT • Pitcher • #45
12 days ago
The 19-year-old phenom made the Pirates avoid a shutout in this one, clobbering a 403-foot (102.5 mph EV) solo shot off of Luis Guerrero to lead off the ninth inning. He has hit just .212 (7-for-33) overall on the spring, but four of those seven hits have left the yard. It remains to be seen if he’ll be the Pirates’ starting shortstop on Opening Day or if he’ll get at least a few more weeks of seasoning at the Triple-A level first.