Pedro Alvarez is a streaky hitter.
For Pirates fans, he could be at the start of a hot streak.
Alvarez hit his first two home runs of the season — one Thursday and one Friday.
Here’s his homer Thursday:
Pirates fans showed their support for the city of Boston with their rendition of ‘Sweet Caroline.’
Here’s the clip:
– Rick Green
With apologies to Andrew McCutchen, the cover boy for “MLB The Show” and the hot-starting Starling Marte, the best thing going with the Pittsburgh Pirates is A.J. Burnett.
Burnett took a no-hit bid into the seventh inning Wednesday night, giving up a double to Carlos Beltran in a 5-0 win.
Burnett whiffed four of the first nine batters and struck out eight total. He was on.
Here’s Clint Hurdle on Burnett last night:
Actually, he’s been on all season.
James McDonald was the bad James McDonald for the Pittsburgh Pirates Monday night.
He was so bad, the Bucs were down 8-1 to the St. Louis Cardinals before McDonald left with one out to go in the second inning.
The Pirates’ might have gotten a moral victory by making the score 10-6, but the highlight of the night — which sums up the game for the Pirates — was this fan’s catch with an oversized glove:
– Rick Green
Sunday’s game against the Cincinnati Reds seemed like so many for the Pittsburgh Pirates.
They trailed 5-0 going into the bottom of the seventh inning and seemed destined for another loss.
Then they woke up.
The Bucs scored four in the seventh to make it 5-4. The Reds added a run in the top of the eighth to make it 6-4 to restore a little bit of order.
Then the Bucs went crazy.
The Pirates scored six runs in the bottom of the eighth to take control and beat the Reds 10-7. (Cincinnati added a run in the ninth.)
Catcher Michael McKenry hit two home runs (one in the seventh, one in the eighth), Starling Marte hit his first of the year and Travis Snider added two hits.
Jonathan Broxton took the loss for the Reds while Jared Hughes got his first win for the Pirates.
That’s a sweep for the Bucs (6-6) to get back to .500. The Reds are 5-7.
That’s an impressive win for Pittsburgh after a dismal start to the season.
– Rick Green
It got interesting at the end, but the Pittsburgh Pirates prevailed 6-5 over the Cincinnati Reds Friday night.
After taking a 5-2 lead, the Pirates gave up a run to the Reds in the sixth inning and two in the seventh.
Andrew McCutchen responded with his second home run of the season.
Jason Grilli pitched the ninth, giving up a hit and a walk before striking out Brandon Phillips on a 3-2 pitch.
The Pirates improved to 4-6 while the Reds dropped to 5-5.
Tony Watson (1-0) picked up the win in relief of A.J. Burnett, who struck out eight in six innings. He was charged with three earned runs.
It’s a solid win for the Bucs after taking 2-of-3 from the Diamondbacks. The team easily could have folded after giving up the tying runs.
– Rick Green
When we last saw Pirates pitcher Gerrit Cole, he was miffed about not making the team’s opening day roster.
I guess it’s understandable when you look at that pitching staff and how it’s performed so far.
Some might have thought Cole wasn’t quite ready, but the biggest reason he didn’t make the team out of spring was his arbitration clock.
After two starts, Cole doesn’t look quite ready for the bigs.
His first start with Indianapolis, on April 5, he lasted four innings. He gave up three runs and five hits, while striking out two.
Cole started Wednesday, and it wasn’t much better.
He lasted just two innings, giving up four hits and walking two. He gave up a home run but did strike out four. Former Erie SeaWolves player Jordan Lennerton hit the blast off Cole.
The season total: 0-1, six innings pitched, 6.00 ERA, nine hits, two walks and seven strikeouts.
– Rick Green (follow me @ETNrgreen)
So much for a winning streak.
The Pittsburgh Pirates got shellacked by the Arizona Diamondbacks Wednesday afternoon 10-2.
Starter Jonathan Sanchez gave up nine runs in 3.1 innings, including two home runs. Sanchez dropped to 0-2 while his ERA rose to 12.96.
The Pirates managed just five hits, with all five coming off D’backs starter Wade Miley (2-0).
Jose Tabata’s averaged dropped to .077 and Russell Martin’s to .043, while Gaby Sanchez improved his average to .1o0 after a 1-for-3 day.
After taking the first two against the D’backs (5-3 Monday, 6-5 Tuesday), I had some hope that the Pirates (3-6) could get the sweep.
That didn’t last long after Arizona (6-3) scored three runs in the first and three in the second.
Up next for Pittsburgh: three games at home against the Reds.
– Rick Green (follow me @ETNrgreen)
Want to try to look at the positives in the Pittsburgh Pirates’ latest shutout, a 1-0 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers Saturday night?
Well, starter A.J. Burnett (0-2) gave up just one run and struck out nine batters. He’s pitched well enough to be 2-0 so far this season.
And the bullpen kept the Pirates in the game against the Los Angeles Dodgers (3-2).
On top of that, Starling Marte had two hits in the game, both coming off of Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw (2-0).
Of course, those were the only two hits of the game for the Pirates (1-4).
You have to give them some credit — at least they’re consistent.
They had just two hits in Friday’s 3-0 loss to the Dodgers.
The Pirates will try to right the ship Sunday against Hyun-Jin Ryu (0-1). Jeff Locke is scheduled to take the mound for the Buccos.
The Pirates’ early woes on offense continued Friday night in Los Angeles.
After scoring six runs in three games against the woeful Cubs, the Pirates made it six runs in four games after being shut out by the Dodgers 3-0 Friday night. The Pirates managed two hits against the Dodgers.
The loss dropped Pittsburgh to 1-3.
Starling Marte is hitting .143, Neil Walker .154, Pedro Alvarez .133 and Russell Martin is searching for his first hit.
That might not seem that bad, especially in such a small sample size, but there are two more games to go against the Dodgers.
Then some relief?
Not quite.
The Buccos’ road trip continues against the Arizona Diamondbacks for three games before returning home to face the Cincinnati Reds for three.
After that, the Cardinals arrive in Pittsburgh for three games, then the new-look Braves play at PNC Park for four more.
The Pirates close April on the road against the Phillies (4 games), Cardinals (3 games) and Brewers (3 games).
That’s not a very favorable schedule to start the season.
If you’re looking for a repeat of last season’s early success, the Pirates better get some hitting.
And soon.
– Rick Green (follow me @ETNrgreen)
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