Saturday, March 24, 2018

Pirates - Rays; Phils Bop Bucs 8-2; Rotation Sets Up; Cuts; Notes

Today: The Rays close out the Pirates three-game home stand at LECOM Park at 1:05. Ivan Nova hooks up with Blake Snell. The Bucs also plan to throw Tyler Glasnow and Dovydas Neverauskas into the fray. The game will be on AT&T SportsNet and 93.7 The Fan.


Yesterday: The Phils clocked the Pirates 8-2 yesterday. Steven Brault, Tyler Jones and Altoona's Tate Scioneaux were bashed before George Kontos, Kevin Siegrist, Jordan Milbrath and Richard Rodriguez stopped the bleeding. J-Bell, Corey Dickerson, Bryce Brentz and Kevin Newman each had a pair of hits (all but Dickerson banged a double), but the Bucs stranded 10 runners.

Notes:
  • Elias Diaz showed up his big league arm when he picked a runner off third and threw out another trying to steal yesterday.
  • The roster is coming together: Clint told the beat gang that Ivan Nova, Trevor Williams & Chad Kuhl will go against the Tigers to open the season. Jameson Taillon will pitch the home opener against the Twins. Joe Musgrove is penciled in to start during the following series vs Cincinnati, which will be the first set that requires a fifth starter. Steven Brault and Tyler Glasnow will start the season in the bullpen. He added that it's likely that J-Hay, Fraze and periodically Corey Dickerson, will alternate at leadoff.
  • OF Jordan Luplow & C Jacob Stallings were optioned back to Indy while Tyler Jones and Richard Rodriguez were assigned to minor league camp. With Luplow and Moroff gone, the final bench spot is mano-a-mano between Jose Osuna & Bryce Brentz.
  • The longest tenured Bucco in camp is Josh Harrison, who debuted in 2011 with Clint. Right behind him are Jordy Mercer & Starling Marte, who joined the big team the following year.
  • 24-year-old West Virginia Power SS Andrew Walker has received a 50-game suspension for violating the Minor League Drug Prevention and Treatment Program. If our count's right, he's the fourth Pirate organizational guy to get busted this season, and that ain't good.
  • The Yankees released Wade LeBlanc, who was signed to a minor league deal by NY after the Pirates let him walk as a FA.He was quickly signed to an MLB deal by Seattle.
  • Michael Saunders, who was in camp briefly before the Dickerson deal, was released by KC.

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