MILWAUKEE -- The Pirates’ desire to improve their bullpen has kicked up a few notches, and it’s led to them acquiring one of the best relievers on the market, Pittsburgh trading for right-hander Luke Weaver from the Mets on Monday afternoon. ESPN's Jorge Castillo broke the news, which was subsequently

MILWAUKEE — A magical July for Esmerlyn Valdez made the Pirates right fielder’s first MLB award appear, as he was named the National League’s Rookie of the Month on Monday. Valdez led all rookies in home runs (eight), total bases (54), slugging percentage (.587) and extra-base hits (14) in the

CINCINNATI — The past two starts represented modest-yet-important progress for Mitch Keller. What happened Sunday in Cincinnati was unquestionably a step in the wrong direction. Keller recorded just six outs in the series finale at Great American Ball Park and allowed seven earned runs during a 10-2 Pirates loss. The

CINCINNATI — As Camilo Doval spoke for the first time as a Pirate Sunday morning at Great American Ball Park, there was plenty of laughter in the corner of the clubhouse between Gregory Soto, Yohan Ramirez and others. That's not quite Doval's personality — he's much more reserved — but

CINCINNATI -- Two days before Monday’s MLB Trade Deadline, the Pirates made the first of what could be several moves to address the bullpen and other key areas for the stretch run, acquiring right-hander reliever Camilo Doval for a pair of prospects on Saturday. Those two are catcher Omar Alfonzo

CINCINNATI — As he prepared for his first professional hacks earlier this week at PNC Park, Derek Curiel chatted with home clubhouse manager Kiere Bulls, who asked what the No. 5 overall pick in the 2026 MLB Draft needed for batting practice. When the conversation concluded, Curiel rejoined his tour

CINCINNATI — The silence in the visitors’ clubhouse at Great American Ball Park Friday night spoke volumes. There was obviously frustration over another loss, Pittsburgh’s fourth straight, this one by an 8-7 score to the Reds. The key play was one they absolutely should have made, and Brandon Lowe and

CINCINNATI — Comb through the Pirates’ 3-2 loss to the Reds on Thursday at Great American Ball Park, and you’ll find plenty of storylines. Some were encouraging. Others not so much. Yohan Ramirez, Hunter Barco and Noah Murdock combined to give the Pirates seven innings of two-run ball. Nick Gonzales

CINCINNATI — Jake Mangum knows a sideways look or awkward conversation could be coming. When the Pirates return to Great American Ball Park on Thursday, it’s technically the scene of the crime — theft. Or Mangum asking a visiting clubhouse attendant for a traffic cone ... and then the team

Twenty-four hours earlier, Brandon Lowe stood in the same spot and described one of the unfortunate realities of baseball, especially when the stakes are raised. “Baseball’s a very interesting game,” Lowe said. “It can humble the crap out of you. I say this all the time. It’s the only game

Brandon Lowe knows the look and feel of winning baseball, the need for resilience, the execution, how it energizes the crowd. The Pirates second baseman also believes this team has what it takes to reach that step of the journey and succeed. Which is why the focus for him this

When Josh Harrison returned to PNC Park last month — his first time back since 2023 — the Pirates fan favorite tried to stay low-key. It didn’t work. Harrison bounced from conversation to conversation, only catching glimpses of the game, but there was one interaction that stood out more than

The external competition was obvious. After two losses to open their biggest homestand in a decade, in the thick of a playoff race, the Pirates needed to salvage a game Sunday against the Cubs. They accomplished that goal with an 8-7 victory at PNC Park, but there was an internal

Jay Johnson has won two NCAA national championships as the head coach of LSU's baseball program, but he described Saturday as "one of the coolest nights of my coaching career." That's because instead of winning games and titles -- a big part of the past five years for Johnson at

Given how much time he’s missed over the past few seasons, pretty much the last place Endy Rodríguez wants to be is on a rehab assignment. But the Pirates catcher remains upbeat, especially considering the injury that knocked him out of the lineup has subsided. “I feel pretty good,” Rodríguez

NEW YORK — The length of a baseball season allows for many different types of days. There are doubleheaders, which the Pirates can’t seem to avoid, plus getaway days, rain delays, slogs and quick games. One Yohan Ramirez has yet to experience: a bad day. The Pirates reliever might be

The Pirates have added right-handed relief help, and they’ve more than likely moved on from one of their top relievers from 2024-25 to make it happen. Pittsburgh acquired right-hander Ron Marinaccio, 31, from the Padres on Wednesday in a trade for international signing bonus pool considerations and designated reliever Dennis

NEW YORK -- Late Wednesday night did not offer much opportunity for perspective. The Pirates suffered a 2-0 loss after they struck out 12 times, bringing their daily total to 29. The decision to replace Bubba Chandler with Brandon Eisert after 6 1/3 innings and 84 pitches obviously proved costly.

NEW YORK — When Pirates players dispersed for the All-Star break 10 days ago, there was arguably no bigger question mark than Mitch Keller. The right-hander had lasted just three innings in his previous start. Over his last 11, Keller had a 7.03 ERA while ceding 11 home runs in

NEW YORK -- One has nothing to do with the other, Dennis Santana insisted. But given the frustration Santana showed in the eighth inning Monday, yelling at Yankees shortstop José Caballero for taking too long to get in the batter’s box, it’s hard to believe it’s entirely independent of how

NEW YORK -- When David Bednar returned to the home clubhouse at Yankee Stadium after playing catch on Monday afternoon, there was a surprise waiting at his locker. Twenty-four of them, in fact. Before the Pirates arrived in New York, Bednar half-jokingly asked Pittsburgh’s assistant clubhouse manager Nik Cook and

CLEVELAND — Back with another collection of tidbits from Sunday’s Pirates Insider Show … Ben Cherington described the Pirates’ bullpen issues this season as “a pretty focused area” when it comes to improving the team. But the general manager emphasized that immediate fixes would have to come internally. Asked how

CLEVELAND — The biggest game of Billy Cook’s career was amazingly preceded by the biggest moment of his personal life. While many of his Pirates teammates were vacationing or otherwise relaxing last week over the All-Star break, Cook got married. Yes, married. “It wasn’t a courthouse thing,” Cook said. “We

CLEVELAND — The story of the game was the Pirates bullpen blowing another save, but Jared Jones’ frustration was impossible to ignore back on June 27 against the Reds at PNC Park. It was Jones’ sixth start back from internal brace surgery. Cincinnati tagged him for four runs (three earned)

PHILADELPHIA -- Forget Paul Skenes’ velocity, Braxton Ashcraft’s ascent or the Pirates' bullpen struggling. The wildest first-half storyline with this team has been a screeching and squealing offensive U-turn, Pittsburgh going from worst to (tied for) first in runs scored and flipping this facet from weakness to strength. It should’ve