Worth noting

By Tom Singer

September 30, 2013

• Cole, who worked his way onto the Pirates' postseason pitching staff with a compelling September, picked up another spoil of his 4-0 record with a 1.69 ERA in the final month: National League Rookie of the Month, the first Pittsburgh player to receive the monthly honor since Pedro Alvarez in September 2010.

• Jordy Mercer took a batting-practice swing in the cage during the Pirates' workout at PNC Park on Monday, and the next thing he saw was McCutchen rubbing his face where the ball struck him.

Mercer's panic eased as he realized the ball had first bounced and had not struck McCutchen on the fly. The center fielder's attitude toward the mishap relaxed everyone even more.

"I'm OK. But I think I hurt the ball. I heard they had to take the ball to the hospital," McCutchen deadpanned.

Tom Singer is a reporter for MLB.com and writes an MLBlog Change for a Nickel. He can also be found on Twitter @Tom_Singer.