Two Years in the Making Taillon Finally Showing What He Can Do

Pirates starting pitcher Jameson Taillon has been hindered by injuries the past two seasons setting his major league debut back two years. However, he is here now and showing just the spark he can add to the Pirates starting rotation this season.

The Pittsburgh Pirates got both good news and bad news prior to yesterday's game against the Mets. Of course, we will start with the bad news as the Pirates announced prior to the game yesterday that they had to place starting pitcher Gerrit Cole on the 15-day disabled list with a right tricep muscle strain.

Cole had been the ace of a struggling Pittsburgh Pirates starting staff with a record of 5-4 with a 2.77 ERA striking out 100 and walking 28 in just over 117 innings pitched. Cole left the Pirates 9-3 loss to the Cardinals on Friday night. While Cole is not off to the hot start he had a year ago, he has still been a vital part to the Pirates success this season and in the past.

However, with the loss of Cole, a new era begins as the entrance of Jameson Taillon into the Pirates rotation begins. Taillon made his major league debut last week against the New York Mets as he went 6.0 innings allowing just three runs on six hits while walking three and striking out two. Taillon would get a no decision in that contest as the Pirates would fall to the Mets by the score of 6-5 with Cory Leubke picking up the loss.

In his major league debut, Pirates fans thought they saw just what the future held for their rotation as it contained both Taillon and Cole in what could be a great 1-2 punch for years to come. However, surprisingly Taillon was sent down to the minors after his first start and it lead fans to believe that they would not see Taillon again until the middle of the season.

Fate would end up working in the 24-year olds favor though as Cole goes to the disabled list and Taillon gets the call to face the Mets last night, a team he made his MLB debut against last week. Taillon took advantage of this new found opportunity and pitched the game of his life picking up his first major league victory and shutting out the Mets over eight strong innings of work.

He would have a no-hitter through six innings of work and only had allowed two base runners on a walk and a hit by pitch. Then, in the top of inning number seven, Curtis Granderson lead things off with a single. Both Jordy Mercer and Josh Harrison made a diving attempt for the ball, but neither could corral the slow roller as it rolled into right field. Taillon would not have to worry about the base runner for long, however, as he got Yoenis Cespedes to ground into a double play and Kelly Johnson to ground out to end the inning.

In total, Taillon would go 8.0 innings giving up no runs on two hits while striking out five and walking one on his way to picking up his first major league victory to move to 1-0 with a 1.93 ERA in two major league starts. Taillon came close to a no-hitter one other time this year in triple A as he took one into the sixth inning before it was broken up by the opposing pitcher, but to do it at the major league level is another thing.

If you looked back two years ago none of this looked to be possible as Taillon had to have season ending Tommy John surgery, setting his development back. Taillon was pitching for double A Altoona and had just gotten a promotion to Triple A Indianapolis, but started losing hope. It would be a long hard off-season of rehab and trying to get back to playing level so he could advance in the Pirates minor league system. 

Taillon would come back for spring training 2015 ready to go and show what he could do. He ended up missing the entire 2014 season with Tommy John surgery and was ready to come back and prove he was ready to make the transition to the major leagues. However, he hit another speed bump as this time he was dealing with an inguinal hernia that would have him miss the entire 2015 season as well.

Taillon didnt give up and came into spring training this year healthier than ever and ready to perform. He started the season in Triple A Indianapolis and made the most of the missed time compiling a record of 4-2 with a 2.04. Those stats were enough to get him the call to the big leagues to start his major league career.

Now that he has made it to the show and has performed well, Pirates fans can start getting excited about the future of this Pirates team. And, there is more excitement to come as top prospect Tyler Glasnow still waits in the Pirates wings waiting to make his debut. If all three of these pitchers work out, the Pirates could have a rotation for the ages with Cole, Taillon, and Glasnow at the lead. 

The Pirates have not yet announced Taillon's next start, but if the calendar is right Taillon would next take the mound against the Chicago Cubs on June 19th. It will be a big test for Taillon to see if he can compete with the best team in major league baseball. For now, Taillon can enjoy his early success and be excited for what the future holds for both him and the rest of the Pittsburgh Pirates team.

Pirates Offense Explodes for Ten Runs in Win Over Cardinals

The Pittsburgh Pirates offense broke out for ten runs in todays 10-5 win over the St. Louis Cardinals. Gregory Polanco and John Jaso gave the Pirates the insurance runs they needed as both hit home runs that put the Pirates ahead for good. 

After losing on a walk-off home run by Matt Carpenter yesterday, the Pittsburgh Pirates offense turned it on in today's game as they scored 10 runs in the Pirates 10-5 victory today over the St. Louis Cardinals. Gregory Polanco and John Jaso each hit big home runs to help the Pirates secure the victory.

Gerrit Cole started the game and struggled early on as he allowed the Cardinals to load the bases in the first inning while throwing over 30 pitches. However, as the afternoon went on, Cole settled down and turned in what turned out to be a solid start going 6.0 innings giving up two runs on six hits while walking two and striking out seven.

Cole has not been his normal self so far this season struggling early on in starts, and hopefully today is the start of a turn around because if the Pirates are to be successful they need their ace to come through. One of Cole's problems this season has been the number of walks Cole has given up this year. Coming into today's game, Cole had allowed 10 walks in 27.1 innings pitched. Today, he took a step in the right direction today as he only walked two in his 6.0 innings of work.

Cardinals starter Michael Wacha was the opposite of Cole as he retired the first nine Pirates batters on the day, and only threw 16 pitches through the first three innings of work. However, as Wacha's afternoon went on, it got worse as he ended up throwing 6.0 innings giving up four runs on six hits while walking two and striking out six.

The St. Louis Cardinals drew first blood in this contest in the bottom of the third as after Matt Carpenter and Stephen Piscotty singled, Matt Holiday hit into a double play to give the Cardinals a runner at third with two outs. Then, Cole threw his first mistake pitch of the day as Brandon Moss hit an RBI double to right field to score Carpenter and give the Cardinals a 1-0 lead.

The Pirates offense got itself going in the top of inning number five after struggling mightily against Wacha through the first four innings. Things got started when Jordy Mercer drew a one out walk to give the Pirates a runner at first with one out. Then, Chris Stewart hit an RBI double to left field to score Mercer and tie the game at one. The Pirates would add two more in the inning as two batters later, John Jaso inched his third home run of the year over the right field wall to give the Pirates a 3-1 lead.

The offense would keep coming for the Pirates as the next inning Starling Marte hit a one out ground-rule double bringing up St. Louis native David Freese with one out in the sixth. Freese would proceed to hit an RBI single extending the Pirates lead to 4-1. The Pirates would eventually get runners at first and second with two outs, but Stewart popped out to end the inning and strand the runners.

The sixth inning started a back and forth between the Cardinals and Pirates for the next couple of innings. The Cardinals responded to the Pirates in the bottom of the sixth as Jeremy Hazlebaker hit his sixth home run of the year trimming the Pirates lead to 4-2. The back and forth would continued the next inning as both teams continued to score runs in bunches.

In the seventh, Matt Joyce walked followed by a Jaso double to give the Pirates second and third with nobody out. Then Andrew McCuthcen hit an RBI single to left field to score Joyce and give the Pirates a 5-2 lead. Then Gregory Polanco delivered what turned out to be the biggest hit of the day for the Pirates as he hit a three-run home run off of the foul pole putting the Pirates in front for good as they lead 8-2.

Kyle Lobstein, who is normally very reliable, came into pitch the seventh inning to relieve Cole. Lobstein struggled giving up three runs in just 0.2 innings of work. It all started when after one out Carpenter walked, Piscotty singled, and Holiday walked. Brandon Moss grounded into a force out that scored Carpenter and trimmed the lead to 8-3. Arquimedes Caminero came into the game trying to get the final out of the inning, but allowed Yadier Molina to deliver an RBI single to right that scored both Piscotty and Moss to trim the lead to 8-5.

Neftali Feliz came in to get the final out of the inning as he got Hazlebaker to strike out to end the Cardinal threat. The Pirates had to use three different pitchers in the seventh inning to get the job done as the bullpen has been taxed and struggling lately. The Pirates need one of their five starters to step up and give them a long start to save the arms in the Pirates bullpen.

The Pirates would add two more insurance runs in the ninth inning. With two outs, the Pirates had Marte on second when Josh Harrison hit an RBI single to left field and advanced to second on the throw. Then Mercer was walked followed by a Stewart RBI single to cap the scoring and give the Pirates a 10-5 lead.

The Cardinals would not go down without a fight, however, as they managed to load the bases with one out and threatened to come back in the game. Manager Clint Hurdle then called on Mark Melancon to shut the door and he did just that getting Yadier Molina to ground in to a double play to seal the victory for the Pirates.

The Pirates start a three game series with the Cincinnati Reds tomorrow at Great American Ball Park. On the mound for the Reds will be right hander Dan Straitly (1-1 3.56) and the Pirates will oppose with left hander Jon Niese (3-1 5.94). First pitch for the start of this three game series is scheduled for 7:10 p.m.

Offense Held Silent as Pirates Fall to Cubs

The Pittsburgh Pirates potent offense was held at bay tonight by Chicago Cubs starter Jason Hammel tonight in their 7-2 loss. Gerrit Cole started out the game well, but was overcome by the Chicago Cubs only going 4.2 innings and giving up six runs on the night.

The Pittsburgh Pirates and Chicago Cubs started a three game series in PNC Park tonight as the top two teams in the National League Central battled it out in the first of 18 meetings between the two teams this season. The Chicago Cubs got the upper hand in the first game of the series defeating the Pirates by a score of 7-2.

The key to the Cubs victory was great starting pitching by starter Jason Hammel. Hammel kept what has been a potent Pirates offense at bay going 5.0 innings giving up two runs on five hits while walking one and striking out three. Hammel has been one of the starters that has been overlooked in the Cubs rotation, but he has quietly had a very successful year coming into the game with an ERA under 1.00.

The Pirates opposed with Gerrit Cole who started the game out well but deteriorated as the day went on. In the end, he only pitched 4.2 innings giving up six runs, five earned, on six hits while walking four and striking out six. He allowed hits early on but was able to get out of some jams. However, allowing so many hits would eventually come back to bite Cole and once the third inning rolled around the game became more and more out of reach.

 Things were looking good for the Pirates to start the game as they scored the first run of the contest. Andrew McCutchen hit his team leading sixth home run of the season to put the Pirates up 1-0 in the bottom of the first inning. The Pirates would be retired in order to finish the first inning and the score would stay at 1-0.

The Cubs took control of this game in the top of the third inning as things started to unravel for Cole. The inning started off with a walk to Dexter Fowler followed by a line out by Tommy La Stella and a flyout by Kris Bryant to give the Cubs a runner at first with two outs. Then Anthony Rizzo tied the game at one on an RBI double that scored Fowler. The Cubs then took the lead the very next batter as Ben Zobrist hit an RBI single that scored Rizzo and gave the Cubs a 2-1 lead.

The Cubs would later put the game out of reach in the fifth inning as with one out Bryant walked and Rizzo doubled to give the Cubs runners at second and third with one out. Then Zobrist drove in his second run of the game as he hit a sacrifice fly that scored Bryant and gave the Cubs a 3-1 lead. Cole's night ended as he hit Addison Russell and walked Matt Szczur loading the bases for the Cubs. 

AJ Schugel came in for relief and did not do much better than Cole did. The first batter he faced, David Ross, hit an RBI single that scored both Rizzo and Russell to put the Cubs ahead 5-1. The Cubs would add one more in the inning on a caught stealing error that scored Szczur and gave the Cubs a 6-1 lead.

The Pirates tried to get back into the game in the bottom of the fifth and almost did as they threatened with runners at first and second with nobody out after Jordy Mercer singled and Jason Rogers walked. John Jaso moved the runners over on a ground out to first and McCutchen drove in his second run of the ball game with an RBI groundout that scored Mercer and made the score 6-2.

The Cubs would score their final run of the ball game in the top of the seventh after Zobrist was hit by a pitch and Javier Baez singled and advanced to second on a throwing error to give the Cubs second and third with one out. Then, a wild pitch by Lobstein allowed Zobrist to score and gave the Cubs a 7-2 lead.

One bright spot for the Pirates on the night was the work they got out of the bullpen. Kyle Lobstein came in to relieve Schugel and pitched 3.0 innings giving up only one run on three hits while striking out a batter. Arquimedes Caminero finished up the game for the Pirates pitching a scoreless inning giving up a hit and a walk and striking out a batter.

The Pirates have a tough task ahead of them tomorrow in game two of this three game series against the Cubs as it will be Jake Arietta (5-0 1.00) versus Jon Niese (3-0 5.08). Niese has been one of the most consistent of the Pirates starters this season and is coming off of an outing where he got a no decision against the Colorado Rockies. Arietta has been just as good this season as last season and is coming off of his worst start of the year where he went 5.0 innings giving up one run on three hits while walking four and striking out six. First pitch for tomorrow's contest is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.

McCutchen Powers the Pirates Past Rockies in 9-4 Win

The Pittsburgh Pirates used the home run ball to their advantage last night as they hit five home runs on their way to defeating the Colorado Rockies 9-4. Andrew McCutchen provided most of the pop hitting three home runs on the evening.

Andrew McCutchen had the best night of his season for the Pirates last night as he went 3 for 5 with three home runs and five RBI in the Pirates 9-4 win over the Colorado Rockies. With his average sitting at a measly .211 coming into the game, many fans were asking when we would see the breakout numbers we are used to from McCutchen.

Well that happened last night as he got the best of Rockies starter Jorge De La Rosa hitting two of his three home runs off the starter. The Pirates added two more home runs and some clutch hitting to get the 9-4 victory. They pounded on De La Rosa and reliever Christian Bergman for seven runs on eight hits through a combined 5.2 innings pitched.

Gerrit Cole did not have his best stuff going on the day, but did just enough to pick up the victory in the ball game. He went 6.0 innings giving up four runs, two earned, on eight hits while walking two and striking out three on the night. In the early going, Cole has not been the dominant pitcher he was last season, but the offense has scored him some runs as of late and it has helped him tremendously.

The scoring started right away with McCutchen's first home run of the night, a solo shot that gave the Pirates an early 1-0 lead. That was followed up quickly as the next batter, David Freese, hit his first Pirates home run and cushioned the lead to 2-0 Pirates. The Pirates hit back-to-back home runs for the second time this season as Gregory Polanco and Sean Rodriguez went back-to-back in the first game against Arizona.

The scoring would continue in the first as after a walk to Francisco Cervelli and Jason Rogers getting hit by a pitch, the Pirates had first and second with two outs. Josh Harrison would come through in a big way with an RBI single that scored Cervelli and gave the Pirates a 3-0 lead. The inning would end on a strikeout by Polanco as the Pirates sent eight men to the plate in the first inning.

The scoring would continue for the Pirates in the top of the second inning after a strikeout by Cole ad a groundout by Jordy Mercer gave the Pirates two outs. Then McCutchen stepped up and hit his second home run of the night, a 430 foot blast to left center field, that gave the Pirates a commanding 4-0 lead.

The Rockies would respond in the bottom of the second as Ben Paulson singled and moved up to second on a passed ball by Cervelli. A ground out by DJ LeMahieu moved Paulson up to third and he later scored on an RBI single by Brandon Barnes to cut the Pirates lead to 4-1. The Rockies would add another run in the bottom of the fourth as Nolan Arenado hit his eighth home run of the season to cut the lead to 4-2.

The Rockies almost crawled back into this game as they threatened again in the bottom of the fifth. With one out, Bergman and Gerrardo Parra singled and Christhian Adams walked to load the bases for Colorado. Cole almost got out of the inning as he struck out Carlos Gonzalez for the second out, but Arenado singled to left scoring Bergman and cutting the lead to 4-3. The Rockies almost tied it at four but Starling Marte threw Parra out at the plate. The play was challenged and upheld and the Pirates kept their 4-3 lead.

That would all change the very next inning as a Polanco double and a Mercer walk set-up McCutchen with one out and runners at first and second. McCutchen proceeded to hit his third home run of the night, a three-run blast to right field, to extend the Pirates lead to 7-3. Then Starling Marte capped off the inning with a solo home run of his own to give the Pirates an 8-3 lead.

Each team would score one more time in the contest to make the final score 9-4. The Pirates bullpen has been struggling as of late, but last night pitched very well. Arquimides Caminero, who picked up his first major league save in his last outing, pitched a scoreless inning while walking two batters on the night.

He was followed up by Neftali Feliz, who blew a save his last time out. Feliz rebounded last night with a scoreless inning of work while walking one and striking out one. The game was finished by Rob Scahill who had a bounce back outing himself throwing 1.0 inning giving up no runs and walking a batter. The victory improved the Pirates record to 12-9 on the season and has them in second place in the National League Central.

McCutchen's special night landed him in exclusive company in Pirates baseball history. He now joins Roberto Clemente, Willie Stargell, and Ralph Kiner as the only three Pirates players with multiple three home run games. The first time McCutchen hit three home runs in a game was back on August 1, 2009 when he accomplished the feat against the Washington Nationals.

The Pirates and Rockies will play game three of their four game series tonight at Coors Field. For the Rockies, Jon Gray (0-0 9.00) will take the mound. Last time out Gray faced the Los Angeles Dodgers and gave up five runs on seven hits over 5.0 innings of work while walking two and striking out 10. The Pirates will oppose with Jon Niese (3-0 4.24). Niese has had a good season so far and looks to continue that tonight. Last time he took the mound he went 5.1 innings against the Arizona Diamondbacks and gave up four runs on 10 hits while walking two and striking out two. First pitch for game three of this series is scheduled for 8:40 p.m.

Pirates Explode for Eight Run Inning In Trouncing of Padres

The Pittsburgh Pirates scored eight runs in the seventh inning of last night's ball game en route to defeating the San Diego Padres by the final score of 11-1. Pitcher Gerrit Cole shined on the mound throwing six shut out innings in the Pirates victory.

Coming into game three of a three game series with the San Diego Padres, the Pittsburgh Pirates offense had struggled to get anything done against Padres pitching. However, that all changed last night as the Pirates exploded for an eight-run seventh-inning last night as they defeated the Padres by the final score of 11-1.

Offensively, the Pirates had five multi-hit performances and five out of the eight position players in the lineup collected a hit. The four through seven hitters went a combined 8 for 19 on the night and lead the Pirates on the night. Josh Harrison had one of his best games of the season offensively going 2 for 4 with two RBI, a walk, and two runs scored.

On the mound, Gerrit Cole also had a bounce back start and helped stop the Pirates current two game slide. He threw 6.0 innings while giving up four hits and striking out seven batters on the night. Last time out, Cole did not get much run support from his offense and it lead to a 7-4 loss to the Detroit Tigers. However, today runs were not a problem and Cole really did not need them.

The scoring started in the top of the second as right fielder Gregory Polanco laced a two-out double into the right field gap to set the Pirates up. Then Harrison followed with the first of his two RBI on the night as he drove in Polanco with an RBI single to left field to give the Pirates a 1-0 lead. This would be just the start of a night full of offensive production from the Pirates.

The scoring continued in the top of the fourth after Starling Marte lead off with a single followed by two ground outs by Francisco Cervelli and Gregory Polanco. Harrison would step up and deliver again with another two-out RBI single to give the Pirates a 2-0 lead. Then Harrison would cause havoc on the base paths as he stole second base on the next pitch.

Then Padres starting pitcher James Shields lost his command as he through a wild pitch that allowed Harrison to move up to third base. Then he walked Jordy Mercer and, as Mercer was stealing second, Shields threw another wild pitch allowing Harrison to score and putting the Pirates up 3-0. The Pirates causing havoc on the base paths has been a common theme in this series. It lead to a balk call in game one that was overturned but then recalled and came back tonight in the form of too many wild pitches.

Shields struggled for the Padres throwing only 5.0 innings giving up three runs on five hits while walking two and striking out five. The Pirates batters really made him work on the evening as he had already thrown 100 pitches by the fifth inning. This seems to be the Pirates recipe for success this season, work the pitch count and get to the bullpen as fast as you can. The Pirates have been pretty successful in that endeavor as they have been getting on base at a high rate and have been working deep into counts.

In inning number seven is when the flood gates opened for the Pirates offense. The inning started out om a rough note as Harrison reached first base on a dropped third strike and Jordy Mercer was hit by a pitch. Cole would be the first out of the inning as he popped out giving the Bucs  runners on first and second with one outs.

Then the scoring started as John Jaso lined a double to left field that scored Harrison and gave the Pirates a 4-0 lead. Then an intentional walk to Andrew McCutchen loaded the bases with one out setting up the double play opportunity for the Padres. Then the Pirates received three straight RBI hits to expand their lead.

David Freese hit an RBI single to left that scored Mercer and Sean Rodriguez, who ran for Jaso. Then Marte followed that up with an RBI double that was just inches from being a home run that scored McCutchen, and finally Francisco Cervelli singled to center field bringing in both Freese and Marte and giving the Pirates a commanding 9-0 lead.

The inning was capped off when the Pirates added two more runs on a force out play by Mercer that scored Cervelli, and a bases loaded walk to Sean Rodriguez that brought in Gregory Polanco giving the Pirates an 11-0 lead. The final out of the inning was recorded by Matt Joyce who grounded out to first base after pinch hitting for Andrew McCutchen.

In total, Padres pitcher Leonel Campos was only able to get one out in the inning giving up seven runs, five earned, on four hits while walking one and striking out another. Reliever Brad Hand had to come relieve Campos and gave up a run of his own on two hits while walking two in his 1.2 innings of work.

The Pirates bullpen did a good job of keeping the Padres offense at bay through the final three innings of the game. Neftali Feliz came in and threw a scoreless seventh inning striking out one. He was followed by Rob Scahill who gave up the only run of the night. Scahill went 1.0 inning giving up one run on one hit while striking out a batter. Mark Melancon finished the game throwing a perfect inning of work and striking out a batter.

The Padres only run of the night came in the bottom of the eighth inning after Adam Rosales was hit by a pitch and Jabari Blash grounded out to third moving Rosales to scoring position. Jon Jay hit an RBI single to right field that scored Rosales and gave the Padres their only run of the game making the score 11-1.

With the win, the Pirates improve to 8-8 on the season and currently sit in third place in the National League Central behind the Chicago Cubs and the St. Louis Cardinals. The Pirates have been playing good baseball early on, their key will be to become more consistent on the mound so that this offense can keep scoring runs the way it is capable of and win a lot of ball games.

The Pirates return to action tonight as they play the first of a three game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks in Arizona. Patrick Corbin (1-1 2.75) will be on the mound for the Diamondbacks coming off of a rough start against the Colorado Rockies where he gave up four runs on eight hits in 7.0 innings of work. the Pirates will oppose with Jon Niese (2-0 3.50). Niese is coming off his best start as a Pirate when he went 7.0 shut out innings against the Brewers last Saturday night. First pitch from Chase Field is scheduled for 9:40 p.m.

Offense Goes Cold As Pirates Fall to Reds

The Pittsburgh Pirates suffered their first loss of the 2016 season falling to the Cincinnati Reds by a score of 5-1. The offense collected a lot of hits but just couldn't come trough with the big hit when they needed it.

The Pittsburgh Pirates couldn't come through in the clutch this afternoon as they fell to the Cincinnati Reds 5-1. The Pirates had many opportunities offensively, but just couldn't get The big hit when needed

There were a lot of mistakes on the base paths including one very costly one in the seventh inning. With the Pirates down 3-1 John Jaso got thrown out on a groundball trying to retreat to second base. He took off thinking that Matt Joyce would break for the plate, but he stayed put and Jaso was a dead duck.

This missed opportunity, along with some others, was the reason Pittsburgh loss this afternoon. Rasiel Iglesias pitched a good game for the Reds going 5.2 innings giving up one run on eight hits while walking two and striking out five.

Gerrit Cole, on the other hand, struggled in his season debut. He went 4.2 innings giving up three runs on five hits while walking three and striking out four. He dealt with soreness in his side and he has been fighting that all spring.

His command just wasn't there today and he suffered on the mound. There is no reason to worry about Cole though. He will bounce back and be the dominant pitcher he was last season. Cole collected 19 wins last season and was named to his first ever all-star game selection.

The Reds offense got going early as RBI singles by Eugenia Suarez and Jay Bruce gave the Reds an early 2-0 lead. The Pirates were down but, like last night they tried to crawl back into the game little by little.

They had an opportunity with two on and no out in the second, but Josh Harrison lined out and Jordy Mercer grounded into an inning ending double play to end the threat. The Pirates collected a plethora of hits with 10 on the day, but missed opportunities like these was ultimately the deciding factor.

The Reds added another run in the bottom of the fifth when Brandon Phillips hit an RBI single that scored Suarez. Phillips has been a Pirate killer over the first two games of this series going a combined 3 for 6 with RBI and two runs scored. He has driven the Cincinnati offense and helped them get the better of the Pirates.

The Pirates scored their one and only run in the game in the top of the sixth. After a Cervelli single and a Gregory Polanco walk, Josh Harrison stepped to the plate with two outs. He was able to capitalize as he hit a 1-0 pitch into center field to score Cervelli and make the score 3-1 in favor of the Reds.

Iglesias got taken out of the game afterwards and reliever Blake Wood ended the threat getting Mercer to pop out in foul territory to end the inning. The Pirates posed another threat in the seventh inning with the same result.

It all started with a Matt Joyce walk follows by a Jon Jaso double to put runners at second and third with nobody out. Then Andrew McCutchen hit a soft ground ball to First base. Jaso took off for third in contact but realized that Joyce had stayed put at third. As Jaso tried to scramble back to second, he was thrown out and the double play was complete. The inning ended the very next batter as David Freese struck out to end the inning.

Archimedes Caminero pitched great out of the bullpen this afternoon throwing 1.1 innings giving up no runs and only allowing one hit on the day. In his first three outings, he has been very good out of the bullpen not giving up a run in 4.0 innings of work while striking out four and only walking one batter.

Kyle Lobstein followed him coming off of his win on Tuesday night in extra innings against the Cardinals. He threw 2.0 innings giving up two runs on two hits while walking one and striking out one.

The big blow to Lobstein came in inning number eight when Eugenio Suarez hit a two run home run that gave the Reds a 5-1 lead and ultimately put the game out of reach for the Pirates. It was a mistake pitch as Lobstein left the fastball right down the middle and Suarez took advantage of the mistake.

The five six and seven hitters in the Pirates order went a combined 7 for 10 on the day, but the struggles of the beginning of the lineup did not help the Pirates cause today. You can't win them all and today just wasn't the Pirates day.

The Bucs conclude their series with the Reds at Great American Ball Park tomorrow at 1:35 p.m. It will be Tim Melville for the Reds versus Jeff Locke for the Pirates as both pitchers will be making their season debuts.

Marte/Diaz Power Pirates Past Tigers in 9-5 Spring Training Win

Starling Marte and Elias Diaz each homered in the Pirates 9-5 spring training win over the Detroit Tigers at McKechnie Field in Bradenton Florida.

With the wind blowing out at McKechnie Field in Bradenton Florida, the ball was jumping off the bat and going over the wall. The Pirates and Tigers combined for five home runs on the afternoon in the Pirates 9-5 victory. Today was also the spring training debut for Gerrit Cole, who was dealing with some rib discomfort earlier in the spring.

For Cole, the big factor in today's game was testing that rib and seeing how it felt in game action. Looking at the numbers for Cole does not tell the whole story of the game today. Cole threw 2.0 innings giving up two runs on two hits and striking out one batter. Cole's outing would have been very good if it was not for two bad pitches.

The first batter of the game Anthony Gose started out the game taking a 1-2 pitch from Cole over the wall for the first run of the game. The ball was a routine fly out on any other day, but the wind helped the ball get over the wall. His second mistake came later when former Pirate Casey McGehee crushed a Cole fastball over the wall in left-center field.

Other than those two pitches, Cole had a pretty good outing. He located the ball where he wanted for the most part and was throwing in the mid to low 90's all afternoon. For Cole, this game was a chance to get back into the swing of things facing live batters. While not the opening day starter, Cole will be ready to go for his first start of the season shortly after that. He is looked upon to lead the pitching staff and build off of his successful 2015 season.

Non-roster invitee Jim Fuller was next and he threw a perfect 1-2-3 third inning retiring the side quickly and efficiently. Tony Watson followed and got a little roughed up in his one inning of work. He gave up two runs on three hits while striking out two batters. The big blow to Watson was a two-run home run by Steven Moya. Watson has had a good spring in limited work and will be just fine by the start of the season.

Rob Scahill was next and threw 2.0 innings giving up one run on two hits while walking one and striking out one. Scahill is looking for a spot in the middle of the Pirates bullpen to help bridge the gap between starters and the back-end of the bullpen. For Scahill, it has been an up and down spring with some good outings, like today, and some bad outings, For Scahill it will be a tough battle but he has a shot at making the Pirates 2016 bullpen.

Three non-roster invitees finished out the game as AJ Schugel, Guido Knudson, and Kelvin Marte threw three scoreless innings to end the game. The three pitchers combined to only give up three hits in the last three innings of work and were able to hold the Tigers minor league hitters at bay.

Overall, the pitching staff did pretty well today despite giving up five runs. The wind didnt help matters on the mound, but besides a couple of bad pitches, the Pirates pitchers were effective today. They got the work they needed to get done finished and kept the Pirates in the ball game when it counted later in the game.

The true story of the day however was the offense. The Pirates scored 4 of their nine runs via the long ball today and showed the ability to hit with runners on base. many times we saw batters moving runners over or getting that timely extra base hit right when the Pirates needed it. This will be key as the season goes on with the decrease in power numbers. Small ball will be the strategy the Pirates have to work with in order to succeed in 2016.

The big performer on the day was Starling Marte. He went 2 for 3 on the afternoon with three RBI and a run scored. The big hit for Marte came in the third inning when he hit a three run home run off Tigers starter Matt Boyd that gave the Pirates a 4-2 lead scoring Jordy Mercer and Andrew McCutchen. Marte would add a single later in the day to complete his afternoon.

That four run third inning really helped the Pirates establish themselves in the game. Up to that point the Pirates only had one hit, a lead off single by Josh Harrison, and they looked pretty down at the plate. Then, with one out, Harrison hit his second double of the day which was followed by a bloop single by Mercer putting runners at first and third with one out. Then McCutchen produced an RBI single that put the Pirates on the board. Then Marte hit the big three-run home run to conclude the inning.

Elias Diaz also had a good day as he went 2 for 4 with a two-run home run and 3 RBI on the day. His home run came in the eighth inning and scored Dan Gamache. It gave the Pirates the insurance runs they needed and put them ahead for good making the score 8-5. Diaz's bat has been coming around this spring as he is currently hitting .471 in grapefruit league action. He will start the year as the everyday catcher down in Triple A Indianapolis so he can grow and continue to develop.

Today was a good day for the Pirates offense as they broke out and scored nine runs on the day. It is a good sign for things to come. I was especially excited to see the long ball coming into play with the home runs from Marte and Diaz. While power will not be the forte of the 2016 Pirates, it is always nice to see it when it helps the Pirates win a big ball game.

Up next the Pirates will travel to JetBlue Park to take on the Boston Red Sox. The Red Sox will send right-hander Joe Kelly to the mound. Kelly is currently 1-0 with a 2.08 ERA in spring training in two games pitched. The Pirates will counter with right-hander Ryan Vogelsong, who is currently 0-1 with a 5.40 ERA in five innings pitched. First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 p.m.