| News |
|---|
|
Henry Davis Henry Davis Pops ninth homer
Mon, Sep 7, 2026, 8:47 AM
Davis went 1-for-3 with a solo home run Sunday against the Angels.
Analysis: Davis provided the only run of the game for either team with a solo home run in the third inning. He is working primarily as the backup to Rafael Flores and continues to struggle at the plate, with Sunday's homer being his first since July 12. If there is a positive to take from Davis' season, he has set a new career high in home runs with nine. |
|
Ryan O'Hearn Ryan O'Hearn Closing in on rehab assignment
Sun, Sep 6, 2026, 8:55 PM
Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said Sunday that he's hopeful that O'Hearn (quadriceps) will begin a minor-league rehab assignment "early-ish" during the upcoming week, Danny Demilio of PittsburghBaseballNow.com reports.
Analysis: On the shelf since Aug. 1 due to a left quad strain, O'Hearn resumed taking part in light baseball activities just over two weeks later after sustaining the injury and recently moved his rehab program to Pittsburgh. O'Hearn appears to have steered clear of any setbacks while ramping up and is now ready to move on to the final phase of his recovery by getting in some competitive at-bats in minor-league games. The 31-year-old is believed to be targeting a return from the injured list during next weekend's series in Chicago versus the Cubs, but the Pirates will wait and see how he fares on his rehab assignment before deciding when he'll be activated. |
|
Mason Montgomery Mason Montgomery Up to 10 saves
Sun, Sep 6, 2026, 3:28 PM
Montgomery earned the save in Sunday's 1-0 win over the Angels, allowing a walk while striking out one in a scoreless ninth inning.
Analysis: Montgomery improved to 10-for-12 in save chances this season while extending his scoreless streak to 17.1 innings -- he's allowed just seven hits while striking out 27 in that span. Montgomery's ERA is down to 2.87 on the season with a 1.06 WHIP and 92:23 K:BB across 59.2 innings this season. |
|
Paul Skenes Paul Skenes Rebounds for 10th win
Sun, Sep 6, 2026, 3:10 PM
Skenes (10-11) earned the win Sunday over the Angels, allowing four hits and a walk over 5.1 scoreless innings. He struck out two.
Analysis: While Skenes wasn't exactly dominant Sunday, he managed to hold the Angels scoreless in a strong bounce-back performance after he gave up five runs in 4.2 innings against the Giants his last time out. It's Skenes' first win since July 19 -- he'd gone 0-3 with a 5.77 ERA across 34.1 innings in his previous seven outings. Overall, the 24-year-old Skenes sports a 3.83 ERA with a 1.15 WHIP and 181:45 K:BB across 29 starts (155 innings) this season. He's currently in line for a road matchup with the Cubs his next time out. |
|
Jared Triolo Jared Triolo Losing out on PT with Griffin back
Sun, Sep 6, 2026, 12:09 PM
Triolo is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Angels.
Analysis: Since the start of August, Triolo has been seeing fairly steady playing time between shortstop and third base, but his opportunities have taken a hit since Konnor Griffin was reinstated from the injured list Friday. Triolo will head to the bench for the second time in three games while the Pirates go with Griffin and Jacob Gonzalez as their starters on the left side of the infield. |
|
Jake Mangum Jake Mangum Sitting after four straight starts
Sun, Sep 6, 2026, 12:06 PM
Mangum is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Angels.
Analysis: Mangum will be riding pine for the series finale after he started in each of the Pirates' previous four games while going 3-for-12 with a double, a walk, two runs and two RBI during that stretch. The 30-year-old outfielder has noticed only a slight downturn in playing time since Oneil Cruz returned from the injured list Aug. 18, but Mangum could see his opportunities dwindle a bit more when Ryan O'Hearn (quadriceps) likely come back from the IL during the upcoming week. |
|
Rafael Flores Jr. Rafael Flores Jr. Receiving Sunday off
Sun, Sep 6, 2026, 12:03 PM
Flores is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Angels.
Analysis: The Pirates will go with Henry Davis behind the plate Sunday while Flores rests for the second time in the series. Though he's maintained a solid .794 OPS over 105 plate appearances with the Pirates on the season, Flores has fallen into a bit of cold spell lately, going 4-for-30 with a 28.1 percent strikeout rate over his last nine games. |
|
Nick Yorke Nick Yorke Sent to Triple-A
Sun, Sep 6, 2026, 9:55 AM
The Pirates optioned Yorke to Triple-A Indianapolis on Sunday.
Analysis: The 24-year-old started Saturday against Angels southpaw Yusei Kikuchi, going 0-for-1 with a walk before being replaced by a pinch hitter. Yorke collected four hits with a double, a stolen base and six RBI in his first two games after being called up in mid-August, but he's gone 3-for-20 across the ensuing 11 contests and has now lost his place on the MLB roster. Ronny Simon was recalled from Indianapolis in a corresponding move. |
|
Ronny Simon Ronny Simon Rejoins big club
Sun, Sep 6, 2026, 9:39 AM
The Pirates recalled Simon from Triple-A Indianapolis on Sunday.
Analysis: The 26-year-old was demoted to Indianapolis in mid-August but is back in Pittsburgh ahead of Sunday's series finale versus the Angels. Simon is batting .290 in 34 plate appearances in the majors this year but hasn't provided much pop with just one extra-base hit. |
|
Braxton Ashcraft Braxton Ashcraft Strikes out nine in loss
Sat, Sep 5, 2026, 9:40 PM
Ashcraft (14-6) took the loss against the Angels on Saturday, allowing three runs on seven hits and no walks with nine strikeouts over five innings.
Analysis: Ashcraft opened with three scoreless frames but stumbled late, departing with a 3-0 deficit at just 67 pitches. The 26-year-old has now yielded three earned runs or fewer in seven straight outings, but he's exceeded 90 pitches just once in that span and appears to be having his workload limited down the stretch. He owns a 3.65 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 173:35 K:BB across 165.1 innings this season and lines up for a road matchup with the Cubs next weekend. |
|
Bryan Reynolds Bryan Reynolds Perfect at plate in loss
Sat, Sep 5, 2026, 9:10 PM
Reynolds went 3-for-3 with a solo home run and a walk in Saturday's 6-1 loss to the Angels.
Analysis: Reynolds was the lone bright spot for the Pirates, reaching base in each of his plate appearances and launching a 421-foot blast in the eighth inning. While the long ball was the 31-year-old's first since July 28, he's hit safely in six of his past seven games with four multi-hit efforts. On the year, he's slashing .267/.373/.429 with 16 home runs, 67 RBI, 96 runs scored and nine steals across 624 plate appearances. |
|
Brandon Lowe Brandon Lowe Sitting down Saturday
Sat, Sep 5, 2026, 2:23 PM
Lowe isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Angels.
Analysis: The Pirates will get Lowe a breather Saturday while they face left-handed starter Yusei Kikuchi. Nick Gonzales will slide over to second base as a result, giving Jared Triolo a start at third base. |
|
Konnor Griffin Konnor Griffin Scores once in return
Sat, Sep 5, 2026, 7:45 AM
Griffin went 0-for-3 with a run scored Friday against the Angels.
Analysis: Griffin was activated from the 60-day injured list Friday and hit sixth in the order. He reached base on a fielder's choice in the second inning and scored from first base on a double by Jake Mangum, recording the only run of the game by either team. Griffin should be a mainstay in the Pirates' lineup, and he'll likely be aggressive on the basepaths even if he starts slowly at the plate while shaking off some rust. |
|
Mason Montgomery Mason Montgomery Earns save against Halos
Fri, Sep 4, 2026, 10:59 PM
Montgomery came away with the save in Friday's 1-0 win over the Angels, allowing one hit while striking out one batter in a scoreless ninth inning.
Analysis: Friday's contest turned out to be a pitchers' duel between Jared Jones and Ryan Johnson, with Montgomery being called in for the ninth inning to protect Pittsburgh's one-run lead. He worked around a Mike Trout single to retire the side, finishing things off by getting Travis d'Arnaud to strike out looking. Montgomery has logged a save in back-to-back outings and is up to nine on the year with a 2.91 ERA and 1.06 WHIP over 58.2 innings. |
|
Jared Jones Jared Jones Fans nine over six shutout innings
Fri, Sep 4, 2026, 10:54 PM
Jones (3-6) earned the win against the Angels on Friday, allowing three hits and one walk while striking out nine across six scoreless innings.
Analysis: It was Jones' best start since July 8 against Atlanta, when he struck out eight batters while not allowing a run, hit or walk across six frames. He struck out four consecutive batters both from the second to third innings and between the fifth and sixth frames, en route to tying a season high in punchouts. His Pirates teammates put up only one run, but that turned out to be enough for Jones to come away with his first win since July 18 against the Guardians. He'll take a 4.46 ERA and 1.23 WHIP over 78.2 innings into his next start, lined up for next week on the road against the White Sox. |
|
Rafael Flores Jr. Rafael Flores Jr. Resting Friday
Fri, Sep 4, 2026, 4:35 PM
Flores is not in the Pirates' starting lineup against the Angels on Friday.
Analysis: Flores will get a breather after going 2-for-31 with one home run, three RBI and a 2:8 BB:K over his last six games. Henry Davis will start behind home plate and bat ninth while forming a battery with Jared Jones. |
|
Esmerlyn Valdez Esmerlyn Valdez Sitting again Friday
Fri, Sep 4, 2026, 4:33 PM
Valdez is not in the Pirates' starting lineup against the Angels on Friday.
Analysis: Valdez is out of the lineup for a second consecutive game, with Jake Mangum, Oneil Cruz and Bryan Reynolds starting in the outfield from left to right. VAldez has gone 6-for-37 (.162) with two home runs, four RBI and a 5:21 BB:K over his last 10 outings. |
|
Luke Weaver Luke Weaver Managing poison ivy rash
Fri, Sep 4, 2026, 1:43 PM
Weaver revealed Wednesday that he's been dealing with a severe poison ivy rash for more than three weeks that's made it difficult for him to sleep, Jose Negron of DKPittsburghSports.com reports.
Analysis: The issue has not sidelined Weaver at any point, but he admitted that it's probably affected his performance. After collecting a 1.84 ERA and 45:11 K:BB in 44 frames for the Mets, Weaver holds a 5.79 ERA and 11:4 K:BB over 9.1 innings since being dealt to the Pirates. Weaver also had a sinus cold recently, but he will be available out of the bullpen Friday versus the Angels. |
|
Brandon Eisert Brandon Eisert Demoted Friday
Fri, Sep 4, 2026, 1:35 PM
The Pirates optioned Eisert to Triple-A Indianapolis on Friday, Danny Demilio of PittsburghBaseballNow.com reports.
Analysis: The left-hander was called up by Pittsburgh on Tuesday and will return to Triple-A after firing 1.2 scoreless frames in two appearances. In 34 outings between the Pirates and White Sox this season, Eisert has a 6.00 ERA, 1.39 WHIP and 41:12 K:BB across 36 innings. |
|
Christian Bethancourt Christian Bethancourt DFA'd by Pittsburgh
Fri, Sep 4, 2026, 1:33 PM
The Pirates designated Bethancourt for assignment Friday, Danny Demilio of PittsburghBaseballNow.com reports.
Analysis: The veteran catcher was added to the big-league roster Tuesday after being acquired from the Yankees in mid-August, but he'll lose his place on Pittsburgh's 26-man and 40-man rosters without appearing in a game. Bethancourt hasn't seen action in the majors since 2024 with the Marlins and Cubs. |
Connect With Us:
