Moments after the baseball sailed over Orioles left fielder Dylan Beavers’ head, Jake Mangum came running out of the Pirates dugout holding an orange traffic cone over his head. Nick Yorke screamed and flipped his helmet off before celebrating with teammates.
Yorke’s walk-off double sealed a come-from-behind, 3-2 victory over Baltimore Saturday at PNC Park, offering a chance for a Sunday sweeper on Easter. But it also furthered a season-long trend for these Pirates: We’ve seen a bunch of different players — and inanimate objects — play big roles.
On this night it was Yorke — who entered the game in the eighth as a pinch-runner — and Mangum, whose pinch-hit, infield single brought home the tying run. It was also the bullpen shutting the door, plus Konnor Griffin the night before and a host of others during the first two series.
"This clubhouse is special,” Yorke said. “The new additions are great. But we've got a lot of homegrown guys that can ball out too.
“Every other night, it feels like someone is doing their job. We're all just trying to come in, do our jobs and win ballgames."
Eight games into the season, the Pirates are 5-3. It’s the first time they’ve been over .500 since Aug. 4, 2024. More impressive has been how they’re doing it, the many different parties contributing.
Brandon Lowe homered for the third time in New York to contribute to a 4-3 win in 10 innings on March 29. That also included Ryan O’Hearn and Henry Davis RBI singles in the 10th, plus well-executed relay.
Oneil Cruz hit two homers March 31 in an 8-3 win at Cincinnati — known now as the Traffic Cone Game — while Bryan Reynolds and O’Hearn also went deep. Cruz and Reynolds had a long-ball redux the next night.
It was Griffin’s turn for the home opener, the 19-year-old phenom in his MLB debut crushing an RBI double that became the big hit in a 5-4 win.
That’s also not a complete list. But it has been impressive and widespread.
“The way they’re buying into the team concept of finding a way to win, it’s been really cool to see,” Pirates manager Don Kelly said “That’s what we’re gonna have to do as we go through the season.”
As for my nine observations:
• The speed and hustle of Mangum made his single — with a sizzling exit velocity of 64.5 mph — happen. That’s his game. It’s also hard to not be impressed with Mangum as a teammate: always positive, willing to do whatever and delivering max effort all the time. His at-bat gave the Pirates some juice going to the ninth.
• Speaking of selflessness, Dennis Santana embodies it. He could demand to be a capital-C closer. Instead, he couldn’t care less. He’s willing to pitch wherever, creating a two-headed matchup monster with Gregory Soto when the Pirates have a lead.
On Saturday, Santana breezed through the ninth. His quick outing helped the Pirates maintain momentum, then Bryan Reynolds’ one-out double set the stage for Yorke’s heroics.
Santana so far this season: 2-0 in six appearances, no runs allowed in six innings, just one hit, two walks, four strikeouts and an .059 batting average against.
• Santana isn’t alone when it comes to relievers stepping up at key times. Mason Montgomery notched two key outs in the series opener. Justin Lawrence was unhittable against the Reds. Isaac Mattson has recovered from a rough debut outing in New York. Soto has fanned 11 in 5 1/3 innings.
Overall, the Pirates bullpen has a 3.60 ERA, tied for 11th-lowest in MLB despite working the fourth-most innings.
“The bullpen’s been fantastic,” Kelly said. “They continue to compete.”
• So much for any concern about O’Hearn handling right field. Looks like he’s been playing there for years. He made a pair of sliding catches in this one, first to take a hit away from Orioles second baseman Blaze Alexander in the third, then robbing catcher Adley Rutschman closer to the line to end the seventh.
O’Hearn has worked a ton on his outfield defense dating back to the spring. The key: finally having the time to do it.
“For him to have the awareness to be able to slide right there, knowing he was getting close to the wall, that’s a vet play,” Kelly said of O’Hearn’s second catch.
• Sneaky good job by Hunter Barco, who worked 2 1/3 innings following Carmen Mlodzinski. Didn’t allow a hit or a run but did walk three. The walks need to decrease — same for the entire staff — but he limited hard contact.
• We’ve seen Mlodzinski be better with his control, which I thought was a bigger issue than the Orioles figuring him out. Overall, it also wasn’t a bad start: 4 2/3 innings, two earned runs, three walks and five strikeouts.
I’m sure this narrative will gain some steam, but I’d still stick with the starting experiment and see how the next one goes.
• Interesting postgame session with Marcell Ozuna, who dribbled a single to lead off the eighth. That was just his second hit in 27 at-bats, bringing his 2026 average to .074. Ozuna has been frustrated by the lack of production, too.
“I deserve to be booed,” Ozuna said. “I don’t mind. I’m going to keep grinding and do my best.”
Apparently Ozuna stayed at PNC Park late into the night Friday, frustrated he hasn’t been able to bust out of this funk. He talked openly about wanting to impress the fans and show them what he can do, along with putting too much pressure on himself.
“I feel like I’m trying to do too much,” Ozuna said. “I’m trying to hit my first homer as a Pirate. After that [single], I said, ‘Alright, continue to do your job, especially when you’re winning.’ I like to win games.”
• It was interesting to hear Ozuna say he had something similar happen before. In 2023, he started the year hitting just .073 (four for 55) over his first 17 games. But after a similar single when facing Sandy Alcantara, something clicked.
Ozuna hit nine home runs and had a .986 OPS in May, then finished the season with 40 homers, 100 RBIs and a .905 OPS.
“After that [single],” Ozuna said, “I was a different man.”
• Despite the boos and frustration, Ozuna has still been a leader and mentor. He hasn’t sulked or made it about him. The longtime pro understands that if he doesn’t produce, fans will get upset.
Along with him putting in the work, can’t ask for much more.
“He's a great teammate,” Kelly said. “He’s looking out for other guys, and he's trying to pick other guys up even though he's not feeling the best himself at the plate.
“Having played with Marcell, he's gonna get it rolling, and it's gonna be fun to watch.”
Jason Mackey: Jason.Mackey@pirates.com and @JMackey_PGH.