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Well Pirates’ fans, the wait is finally over!  Tomorrow afternoon at PNC Park, the Pittsburgh Pirates will take the field in a meaningful game for the first time since they were ousted by the St. Louis Cardinals in the N.L. Divisional Series in October.

The 2013 season was miraculous for a number of reasons – the Pirates clinching their first winning season since 1992, Andrew McCutchen and Clint Hurdle shining brighter than their competitors on an individual level, and, of course, we all still get chills when thinking about the first playoff game in the history of PNC Park, that incredible 6-2 victory over the Cincinnati Reds.  CUETO! CUETO! CUETO!  Ok ok, enough of that.

Despite all the heroics of last year, this team still has a number of question marks and potential obstacles to ove...

Posted in News & Features

All good things must come to an end, and tonight the great story that was the 2013 Pittsburgh Pirates has seen its final chapter written.  The Buccos came up short tonight in a 6-1 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals. 

Cards starter Adam Wainwright was lights out tonight in pitching a complete game.  He would allow one run on eight hits, while striking out six and walking one batter.  That lone run came in the seventh with Pittsburgh down 3-0.  Pedro Alvarez would hit an infield single off the first base bag to bring home that lone run.  In doing so, Alvarez became the first player in MLB history to record an RBI in his first six playoff games. 

The Pirates offense had their chances but diving catches, double plays and a disputed call at first shut the door on them throughout the nigh...

Posted in Game Recaps & Reactions

Wow, what a series this has been.  The Pittsburgh Pirates and St. Louis Cardinals have played each other as tough as could be possibly imagined.  After a blowout win by the Cards in Game One and blowout win for the Bucs in Game Two, they have battled each other in two incredibly close games at PNC Park in the past two days.  And not unexpectedly, they split those two games as well.

Today, it was a pitchers’ duel at it’s very best…and Michael Wacha and the Cardinals were just a little better, outlasting Charlie Morton and the Pirates, 2-1, forcing a win or go home Game Five at Busch Stadium.

Wacha was brilliant today, taking a no-hitter into the eighth inning.  Morton was also up to the challenge, holding the Cards in check throughout most of the game...

Posted in Game Recaps & Reactions

No one will ever mistake PNC Park for Wimbeldon but in game three of the National Leage Division Series, it sure felt like a tennis match.  The Pittsburgh Pirates jumped out to an early lead only to see the St. Louis Cardinals tie it up.  That sequence would be repeated one more time before the Buccos put them away in the eighth for a 5-3 win.

Key hits were the answer for Pittsburgh all game long.  In the first inning, with two outs, Andrew McCutchen would walk and Justin Morneau would hit an infield single then move up ninety feet on a fielding error.  That would allow Marlon Byrd to continue his hot postseason with a two RBI single past third.

St. Louis has their own hot postseason bat in Carlos Beltran.  He would tie the game in the fifth on a single to center.  After Russell Mart...

Posted in Game Recaps & Reactions

Throughout the course of this long, 162 game regular season, we, as fans, tend to over-dramatize things, calling numerous games “must wins”.  But after a 9-1 blowout loss in Game One of the NLDS yesterday afternoon at Busch Stadium, the Pittsburgh Pirates needed to beat the St. Louis Cardinals this afternoon.  And so a day after their veteran pitcher was tagged and bounced in the third inning, they turned to their rookie prospect ace Gerrit Cole.

Cole continued his incredible work on the mound today, keeping the Cardinals in check, while the offense came alive off St. Louis starter Lance Lynn, as the Pirates beat the Cards 7-1 to bring the series even at a game a piece.

In the biggest game of his young career, Cole pitched phenomenally, giving up just one run on two hits and one wal...

Posted in Game Recaps & Reactions

The Pittsburgh Pirates went from the highest of highs, to the lowest of lows in under 48 hours.  After an unreal night at PNC Park Tuesday night they kicked off the National League Division series Thursday afternoon against the St. Louis Cardinals.  St. Louis showed why they won the division with a convincing 9-1 victory at Busch Stadium.

The first two innings were pretty even for both ball clubs, but the third inning saw the Cardinals jump out to a 7-0 lead.  It all began when Bucco starter A.J. Burnett walked his mound opponent Adam Wainwright.  That was followed by a single and then a three run homer by Carlos Beltran.  The onslaught continued with a double, hit batter, and walk to load the bases.  Jon Jay then was walked to bring in the fourth run of the inning and Burnett’s day...

Posted in Game Recaps & Reactions

It had been a long time coming for the Pittsburgh Pirates and their fans.  They hadn’t experienced a playoff game since 1992, and after second half collapses the previous two seasons, the Bucs had finally earned the right to play in the postseason.

Tonight, the Pirates looked like a team that had plenty of playoff experience, jumping on top of the Cincinnati Reds early and never letting up on their way to a 6-2 victory.

Francisco Liriano pitched a solid game, holding the Reds’ hitters in check, while Russell Martin led the offense with two homeruns, controlling the game throughout the evening in front of an incredibly raucous crowd at PNC Park.

Liriano gave up one run on four hits with one walk and five strikeouts through seven innings, while Tony Watson and Jason Grilli pitched the ...

Posted in Game Recaps & Reactions

They may have had their B squad in the lineup today, but the Pittsburgh Pirates came to play and finished the regular season with a series sweep of the Cincinnati Reds.  The Buccos had Cincinnati figured out in the first two games of the series, and were able to continue that trend today.

With today’s game not having any say in the playoffs, Brandon Cumpton was awarded the start in the season finale.  He did a very good job over the course of his five innings of work.  He kept the Reds off the board, allowing two hits while striking out three and walking one batter. 

The bullpen stepped in after that with Stolmy Pimentel pitching two innings and striking out a batter.  Cincinnati scored their two runs in the eighth off of Jeanmar Gomez who gave up three hits and walked a batter. 

Posted in Game Recaps & Reactions

Perhaps the Pittsburgh Pirates offense has awakened.  And if it has, it couldn’t come at a better time for the Bucs, who clinched home field advantage for the teams’ Wild Card playoff game on Tuesday night with an 8-3 victory over the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ballpark.

The Pirates tallied thirteen hits, including six homeruns, on their way to a comfortable blowout victory over Bronson Arroyo and the Reds.  Neil Walker led the way with two long balls, while Andrew McCutchen, Marlon Byrd, Pedro Alvarez, and Andrew Lambo each had a round-tripper as well. 

Walker and Cutch went back-to-back in the third to get the Bucs on the board at 2-0...

Posted in Game Recaps & Reactions

It doesn’t get much better than this.  Three games decide whether or not the Pittsburgh Pirates will host the first playoff game in the history of PNC Park and standing in their way is the team they will face in that wild card game, the Cincinnati Reds.  This series has been tight all year and each of these three games should come down to the wire.

Batman himself, A.J. Burnett, was on the bump for the Buccos and the Dark Knight did not disappoint.  He would cruise through eight innings of work allowing one run on five hits, while striking out six and walking one batter.  That lone run came in the fourth when Todd Frazier hit a solo home run off the left field foul pole to cut the Pittsburgh lead to 2-1...

Posted in Game Recaps & Reactions