Tag: Clint Hurdle

As one of the slowest times on the sports calendar, the Major League Baseball All-Star break brings about a lull that often leads to the discussion of off-the field topics. Sure, many fans would prefer to focus on what’s happening on the field, but with no games to be played, attention tends to shift for […]

Who’s the face of the Pirates? If that sort of figurative, unanswerable question appeals to you, it’s a heck of a debate as we pass the midpoint of the 2018 season. If I had to wager a guess, I’d say the team hoped it would be Josh Bell at this juncture. That day might still […]

PITTSBURGH — From the moment Anthony Rizzo changed course on his way to home plate in the eighth inning Monday, any sports fan (or human being) could predict the likely postgame reaction. The Cubs were going to say Rizzo’s takeout of Elias Díaz was fine. The Pirates were going to say it wasn’t. Chalk one […]

PITTSBURGH — Everywhere we turn in Major League Baseball media coverage these days, we see repeated references to two large-scale phenomena: Optimized launch angle and increased strikeout rate. As a team that constantly seeks every inefficiency available in its quest to win on a budget, the Pirates have likely considered the possible benefits of swimming […]

PITTSBURGH — On Friday, Rays manager Kevin Cash announced that his club would do something not often tried in Major League Baseball: Deploy a relief pitcher as his starter. Cash told reporters that Sergio Romo, who had never started a game in his 11-year big-league career, would the mound for the first inning Saturday night […]

PITTSBURGH — I asked about a month ago if it was too early to adjust our expectations for the Pirates. At that time, the team was 8-2 and opening a few eyes as to the potential of this year’s group. My contention was that a hot 10-game stretch was indeed enough to allow us to […]

PITTSBURGH — Baseball is a team sport, but not necessarily a synergistic one. A batting lineup can run hot or cold, but that has little impact on how well arms and gloves can limit the opposition. There can easily be a disconnect between scoring and defending, perhaps more so than any other team sport. Even […]

We could argue that a team like the 2018 Pirates needed to fashion a fast break out of the starting gate to have a realistic chance at contention. Perhaps ‘need’ is a strong word here, but with young players taking on additional responsibility after two high-profile players were traded in the offseason, early positive feedback […]

PITTSBURGH — We can act like the Pirates exist in a sports-entertainment vacuum, but the reality is that there is only so much capital — mental and financial — to go around. Cutting to the chase, there’s only a finite amount of time the early-stage Pirates have to attract attention before a goodly amount of […]

PITTSBURGH — Pirates general manager Neal Huntington and manager Clint Hurdle both spoke to the media for the first time Tuesday since signing twin four-year contract extensions that will keep the duo in charge of the Pirates through the 2021 season. Both men made it clear that they are, in fact a duo. Their contracts […]