Bravos Get Into the Bullpen, Run Away Late in 12-5 Win

A walk and a single to start didn't look good for Steven Brault. He followed with a pair of K; unfortunately the runners were going on a 3-2 pitch for the second whiff and Eli airmailed the throw to third to let a run in. The Bucs answered. With two gone (both line outs, an omen) against Max Fried, Starling singled and Melky banged one into the LF seats. They weren't done. Eli singled, then Joey O and Tuck doubled. Fraze was walked to get to Steven, who K'ed but was up 4-1. Steven again walked the leadoff guy in the second; he came in on a wild pitch and two bouncers. Fried then singled and went to third on a double before Brault escaped imminent danger on a nice stop by K-Man at third. The Pirates had some two-out lightning left in their half - Starling doubled and scored on Melky's rap, followed by an Eli knock before Joey O ended the fun. Atlanta opened the third with a single and walk, but no damage during this spin. The Bucs got runners on the corners with two away thanks to a Tuck walk and K-Man knock, but the ducks remained on the pond. Quick game; it's taken about 1:30 for three innings.

Melky had a big night - image Pittsburgh Pirates

The fourth went quietly; a one-out bopped batter was erased on a 5-4-3 DP and may have bought Brault, who is at 93 pitches, another inning. Melky, that wily vet, kept it going by reaching on the ol' strikeout/wild pitch ploy, but two line outs kept Fried's ledger clean. Clint called it a day for Steven and Clay Holmes got the call for the fifth. He got three grounders for a clean frame. Touki Toussaint took the ball for the Bravos and gave up a walk. The sixth started off with an error by K-Man, then a four-pitch walk. Ric Rod took over and was touched for an RBI knock with an out. He had Ronald Acuna Jr fanned looking next, but the ump blew a pretty obvious strike call. RR hung tough and eventually coaxed a fly ball out of him. A grounder closed it out. Dan Winkler toed the slab and plunked Reynolds but didn't allow the Bucs to bruise the scoreboard. Kyle Crick was called for the seventh to face the middle of Atlanta's order. Gift runners bit him - a four-pitch walk and an error by Bryan Reynolds on a dropped fly prior to an Austin Riley homer (and not much of one at 341') put the Bravos up a point.

Geoff Hartlieb came in after another walk and gave up a double, but got the third out before any more blood was shed. Lefty Sean Newcomb walked Tuck with an out; he made to third on a passed ball and bouncer. RHP Anthony Swarzak was beckoned to face Jake Stallings with two gone and fanned him. Hartlieb got lit up for a single, double and Josh Donaldson dinger before he got an out in the eighth. The Bucs got a single and walk to man the corners with two gone, but a Redbeard comebacker garnered another goose egg. Rookie Davis took the ball for the ninth. A walk, single and bouncer plated another run; a Freddie Freeman homer that hopped into the Allegheny put two more up on the board. Josh Tomlin put a quick and merciful end to the evening.

Eli's shown no power but he's getting on - image Pittsburgh Pirates

Well, when seven gift runners (four walks, three errors) score and ya give up a two-run and pair of three-run homers, it's gonna be a long night. And it could have been much worse - the Braves were 3-for-19 w/RISP! The FO can whistle past the graveyard all they want. Even the locker room has to know that without some help pitching, management has raised the white flag. The hard part is that in June, there's a pack of clubs also looking for an arm or two, so kicking the can down the road hasn't done the team any favors.

Notes:

• The middle of the order - Starling, Melky and Eli - each had a pair of hits. Pittsburgh stranded 12 runners and weren't so hot at RISP themselves at 3-for-12.
• The Pirates committed three errors, gave up seven walks and bopped a batter.
• Per Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic, who did the dreary math - "Combined stats for tonight's starting pitchers, Braves Fried and Pirates Brault, who each worked four innings: 14 hits, seven runs, five walks, six strikeouts, two wild pitches, one HBP, 176 pitches."
• The sale for tonight's game was 13,963.
• Cervy was moved from the 7-day concussion IL to the regular 10-day IL. It's a paper shuffle as he hasn't been cleared physically yet and the move keeps the active roster spot in play.
• Bad news for Cutch; his MRI showed a torn ACL, and he's done for the season. Hopin' he's back at 100% in 2020.

Draft Day Two (Rounds 3-10) A Crop of College Kids

TODAY'S PICKS:

CF Matt Frazier of Arizona went in the third round ($610,100; slot # 95). He's coming off a broken hand suffered in March; he didn't come back until May, so the Bucs may have stolen a stick here. Matt was originally taken in the late rounds of 2016 out of HS by the A's but went to 'Zona instead.

RHP JC Flowers of Florida State was picked in the fourth round ($460,000; slot #124). He touches 96 and is projected as a reliever. JC was an all-around guy; he also played center field and was a wide receiver for the football squad. (EDIT - the Bucs plan to use him as a starter)

RHP Grant Ford of Nevada was chosen in the fifth round ($343,400; slot #154). He's also projected to be a bullpen arm, which is where he played exclusively in 2019. Grant broke out after a wild child 2018 season, finding his command this season.

RHP Will Matthiesen of Stanford was taken in sixth round ($263,700; slot #184). He in the Pirates classic mold as a twirler at 6'-7". He's another tosser that spent most of his time as a reliever, though The Cardinal transitioned him into a starting role as this season went on. Will's handy with the lumber; he was also a DH and hit over .300. Clint do love to pinch hit his pitchers... (EDIT - In fact, the Pirates plan to use him as an OF'er)

C Blake Sabol of Southern Cal was the seventh round pick ($206,500; slot #214). He's a .270 hitter who's athletic; he played in the outfield some in 2018 before taking over the catcher's job full time. Blake looks like another glove-first receiver, fitting the Pirates schematic. He was drafted late in 2016 by the Indians, opting for the Trojans instead.

RHP Austin Roberts of Sacramento State was next up, picked on the eighth round ($168,500; slot #244). He's closed and started for the Hornets; the Bucs are sure looking hard at college bullpen guys today, trying, we assume, to shore up an organizational thin spot.

SS Ethan Paul of Vandy checked in as the ninth round ($152,300; #274) choice. Interesting pick; the Pirates drafted him last year in the 26th round and couldn't sign him. They like him; we'll see how he likes them (or more specifically, their offer, tho as a senior, he doesn't have much leverage). He played three years at second, sliding over to short in 2019, where he looked solid (he came to Vandy as a SS). Paul hit .325 as a senior, so he's not all leather.

RHP Cameron Junker was the tenth round ($143,900; #304) selection that closed out the day. He was a true starter for the Irish and halved his ERA this season after having a very good 2018 in Cape Cod (6-1/2.28 in eight starts). He's a pitch-to-contact guy; we'll see if he's a late bloomer or not.

Steven Brault v Max Fried, Lineup & Notes

Game: The game starts at 7:05 and will be on AT&T SportsNet & 93.7 The Fan.

Lineup: Kevin Newman 3B, Bryan Reynolds LF, Starling Marte CF, Melky Cabrera RF, Elias Diaz C, Jose Osuna 1B, Cole Tucker SS, Adam Frazier 2B, Steven Brault P. J-Bell gets a well deserved day off; with yesterday, he'll have a couple of days to rest his legs. Redbeard and El Coffee get a seat against a lefty.

Lookin' to nail down that fifth spot... Photo Joe Guzy/Pirates

Pitchers: LHP Steven Brault (2-1/5.87) opens the Bravo set against LHP Max Fried (7-3/3.19). Steven was solid against the Dodgers for 5-1/3 frames and shut out the Reds over 5-2/3IP in his latest slab visit, so we'll see how that trend continues. He needs to stay in the strike zone; even with just surrendering two runs in his last two outings, Steven's walked five, so he has to quit being his own worst enemy. He took on the Braves twice in 2018, but for only 4-1/3 IP as a reliever; he gave up four runs, although just one was earned. Fried has been good, bad and ugly in May; he was 4-2 w/4.11 ERA. Max has never faced the Buccos.

Notes:

• J-Bell was named the NL Player of the Month for May, the first Pirates PoM since Andrew McCutchen in June, 2017. Josh hit .390/.442/.797 w/12 HR and 31 RBI.
• Jameson Taillon should start throwing in a couple of weeks; he's waiting for a plasma-rich blood transfusion to kick in.
• The Pirates are 28-30 and five back of the Brew Crew in the NL Central while the Braves are 32-28 and a game behind Philadelphia in the NL East.
• The Bucs drafted a couple of high school kids 1-2 and selected a pair of college bats afterwards last night/this morning. Rounds 3-10 go on today; we'll update tonight.
• Cutch hurt his knee yesterday in a rundown and had to be helped off the field. He's getting an MRI today to see if it's a tweak or a thing.

6/4 Draft: Cobra, Otter, Berra, KY, Benson, Mad Capper, Mack, Swaggerty, Bullington, Appel

• 1970 - The Pirates selected HS pitcher John Bedard with their first pick (#13) of the draft. While Bedard never made it past A ball, the FO hit paydirt later, picking OF Dave “The Cobra” Parker in the 15th round and adding C Ed Ott in the 23rd. 
• 1971 - The Pirates selected SS Craig Reynolds (#22) first in the draft, followed by RHP Doug Bair (#46) in the second round. It was slim pickings that year; they were the only two selected who saw any big league time. 

Craig Reynolds - 1975 SSPC

• 1975 - Yogi’s son Dale, a high school SS, was the Bucs first pick (#20) in the draft. They also signed RHPs Don Robinson and Ernie Camacho, the only other picks to play in the majors. 
• 1980 - SS Rich Renteria (#20) was the Bucs first selection in the draft; he ended up with 186 MLB games, mostly with Seattle. OF Joe Orsulak, picked in the sixth round, had a pretty good career as a reserve OF’er, and third-round RHP Tim Burke carved out a nice career in the bullpen with Montreal and later NY. 
• 1990 - The Bucs picked HS righty Kurt Miller in the first round (#5) of the draft; he went on to win two games in his career. Other guys they signed who were more successful were 1B Kevin Young (seventh round), RHP Brian Shouse (13th round), RHP Rick White (15th round), 1B Mark Johnson (20th round; he was first selected in 1989) and C Keith Osik (24th round). 
• 1996 - Clemson RHP Kris Benson was the Bucs top pick and the overall number one selection in the draft, signing for a $2M bonus. They also inked OF Tike Redman (fifth round), IF Willie Harris (28th round) and OF Rob Mackowiak (53rd round). One that got away was LHP Chris Capuano (45th round), who went to college and signed with Arizona in 1999. LHP Mike “Gonzo” Gonzalez (17th round) was also selected, but didn’t sign. The Pirates tried again and got him in the following draft. 
• 2002 - The Pirates selected RHP Bryan Bullington with the first overall pick of the player draft, bypassing BJ Upton, Prince Fielder, Zack Greinke, Khalil Greene, Nick Swisher, Matt Cain, Cole Hamels, David Wright and Jeff Francoeur. Bullington received a $4M signing bonus after four months of negotiations. RHP Matt Capps (seventh round) and OF Nyjer Morgan (33rd round) were also members of that draft class. 

Bryan Bullington 2003 Topps Pristine

• 2012 - The Pirates had pre-draft favorite RHP Mark Appel drop in their laps at the eighth spot because of perceived signability issues. Well, those issues weren’t perceived; they were real as he and agent Scott Boras turned down the Pirates reported bonus offer of $3.8M, the biggest deal they could tender without losing a first-round draft pick the next year. Appel was the only unsigned first rounder of the draft. His pick nullified a reported pre-draft deal with OF David Dahl, who was selected 10th by the Colorado Rockies. The Pirates received a bonus pick for 2013 (which became prep OF’er Austin Meadows the following year), and used their 2012 sandwich pick (#45) to select Texas Tech OF Barrett Barnes, who signed for $1M. C Jacob Stallings (7th round) and HS pick SS Max Moroff (16th round) have appeared for the Pirates. One notable busted selection was prep star Hayden Hurst, who played two seasons in the minors, first as a pitcher and then as a first baseman, after signing for $400K as a 17th rounder. He went on to South Carolina to play football and was a first-round pick in the 2018 NFL draft. 
• 2018 - The Pirates picked South Alabama OF Travis Swaggerty, who was compared to Austin Meadows, in the first round (#10) and inked him to a $4.4M contract. At #36 in the Competitive Balance round, they selected Florida prep RHP Gunnar Hoglund and then used the second round (#51) to add Texas high school RHP Braxton Ashcraft. Hoglund turned down a reported $2M offer from the Bucs to pitch at Ole Miss while Ashcraft agreed to a $1.825M payout.

6/4 Through the 1940’s: Suhr Streak; Under the Lights; Forfeit Flurry; Kiki Cycle; Game Stories; HBD Herb & Bob

• 1892 - LHP Herb Kelly was born in Mobile, Alabama. Herb spent his brief MLB career in Pittsburgh, going 1-3, 2.95 in 10 outings between 1914-15. Unlike many players of that era, Herb didn’t become a wandering baseball nomad; he hung up the spikes at age 25 after a stint in the minors and got on with his life. 

Patsy was the ump's patsy - 1898 Pepsin Gum Badge

• 1897 - After losing a game four days prior by forfeit after a disputed call, the Bucs were banged with yet another forfeiture. Down 4-0 to the Philadelphia Phillies/Quakers at the Baker Bowl, the Pirates lost a potential two-run double in the fourth frame on a disputed foul call. Manager Patsy Donovan and the ump discussed the matter between innings, and apparently Patsy was a bit too colorful and/or the Pirates were a little sluggish getting back on the field (although the Pittsburgh Press claims all but a pair were in position, and they were part of the convo at home), so ump McDonald called the game in favor of the Phils. The Press noted that “The fair minded Philadelphia fans (quite a change in culture over the decades) were as indignant as the Pittsburg players and yelled ‘Play ball’ but the Phillies hurried into the clubhouse and McDonald disappeared. The Pittsburgh players remained on the field for 10 minutes afterward...” unaware or disbelieving what had just happened. The paper opined that the affair “...added to the bad reputation the Pirates have acquired in the east.” 
• 1908 - RHP Bob Klinger was born in Allenton, Missouri. He was a multi-role pitcher who could start or close, and went 62-58-9 with a 3.74 ERA in Pittsburgh from 1938-43. Klinger was in the service for two years before closing out his career with the MLB Red Sox between 1946-47. But he didn’t give up on baseball, playing in the minors through 1950. Bob was offered a manager’s job in the bushes, but returned home to Missouri and finished his years running a cement company. 
• 1925 - Kiki Cuyler hit for the cycle plus a walk, driving in three runs and scoring four as the Bucs rolled over the Philadelphia Phillies 16-3 at Forbes Field. Every Pirate starter, including pitcher Lee Meadows, had a hit & scored and/or drove home a run. 
• 1930 - Charlie Engel, Fred Brickell and George Grantham batted 1-2-3 for the Bucs, going 8-for-13 with a homer, two doubles, a walk, three RBI and 10 runs scored to propel Pittsburgh to a 12-6 win over the Brooklyn Robins at Ebbets Field. Larry French went the distance for the victory. 
• 1937 - First baseman Gus Suhr set the Pirates and then-NL record by playing in his 822nd consecutive game, going 1-for-4 in a loss to Boston at Braves Field. The streak ended when Suhr attended his mother’s funeral the next day, flying to San Francisco for the services. 

Gus Suhr - 1936 Chicle Diamond Stars

• 1940 - The Pirates played their first home game under the lights at Forbes Field, beating the Boston Bees 14-2 behind Joe Bowman’s five-hitter in front of 20,319 fans. Maurice Van Robays and Frankie Gustine combined for seven RBI while six different Buccos scored twice. Night games were supposed to be an attraction for the working fans; it ended up quite a few female fans took in the game, too. The light banks were connected to eight towers, built by the local engineers of Westinghouse. The first night game played at the ballyard was back in 1930 when the Homestead Grays and KC Monarchs played under portable lights; the first MLB night game was at Cincinnati’s Crosley Field in 1935.
• 1943 - Up by a run in the eighth, the Bucs’ Vince DiMaggio singled and New York P Bill Sayles’ next pitch got past C Ernie Lombardi. The lead-footed Giant receiver was slow chasing the ball, Sayles pouted on the mound and didn’t cover home, and DiMag kept running to score from first on the passed ball. It ended up the winning run as the Pirates took a 9-8 victory at Forbes Field. Vince had two hits including a homer, scored twice and had three runs driven home. 
• 1948 - In a game described by beat writer Vince Johnson of the Post-Gazette as “...a circus, except the clowns didn’t wear grease paint and weren’t even faintly amusing. An overflow crowd of 37,355 watched what was undoubtedly the silliest and longest spectacle of the season” in reporting on the Bucs 10-7 loss to the Braves at Forbes Field. The umps started the day off when the crew chief overruled a balk call, leading to a lengthy on-field rhubarb and a protest by Boston. It was later capped by a five-walk seventh inning in which Bucco hurlers gave up seven runs. Ralph Kiner and Clyde Kluttz homered for the Pirates during the interminably long (for the era) contest that lasted three hours and 12 minutes.

6/4 From 1950: Kiner Deal; Cutch Debut; Bell Cycle; Game Stories; HBD Larry & Tony

• 1951 - Gus Bell hit for the cycle to lead the Pirates to a 12-4 victory over the Phillies at Shibe Park. Bell, Rocky Nelson and Wally Westlake had three RBI apiece; Nelson and Westlake also collected three hits each. Rookie Bob Friend got the win, his first in the majors, going 6-⅓ IP with help from Murry Dickson, who closed out the game after that. Fun fact: In 2004, Gus'  grandson David (then a Phil and currently the Reds manager) hit for the cycle; Gus and young David are the only grandfather-grandson duo in MLB history to hit for the cycle.

David "Gus" Bell  - 1951 Topps Red Back

• 1953 - General Manager Branch Rickey traded future Hall of Famer Ralph Kiner, the only man to lead the league in home runs for seven consecutive seasons, as the salary dump centerpiece of a huge deal with the Cubs. (After several acrimonious contract battles, Rickey reportedly told the slugger "We finished last with you, we can finish last without you.") At least he didn’t have to travel far. The Cubs were at Forbes Field, and the trade was announced after batting practice. The players involved from Pittsburgh were Kiner, C Joe Garagiola, P Howie Pollet, and OF Catfish Metkovich, who were sent to the Cubs for C Toby Atwell, P Bob Schultz, 1B Preston Ward, 3B George Freese, OF Bob Addis, OF Gene Hermanski, and $150,000. 
• 1953 - RHP Larry Demery was born in Bakersfield, California, the son of Negro League outfielder/pitcher Artist Demery. He broke into the Pirate rotation a few days after turning 21 in June of 1974. Demery was mostly a long man, going 29-23-7/3.72, though he did start 46 times. An arm injury in 1977 ended his career after a four year run with the Bucs. Demery came from baseball genes. His dad, Artis (aka “Artist”) Demery was a pitcher in the last days and the Negro Leagues and then in the minors. 
• 1957 - C Tony Pena was born in Monte Cristi, in the Dominican Republic. Signed in 1975 as an international FA, he spent his first seven years (1980-86) in Pittsburgh, hitting .286 and earning spots on four All-Star teams before he was traded in the 1987 preseason to the St. Louis Cards for P Mike Dunne, C Mike LaValliere and OF Andy Van Slyke. The trade caught Pena, a lifelong Pirate, by surprise; he teared up at the press conference announcing the deal.
• 1967 - Roberto Clemente hit two homers and drove in all four runs in a 4-1 Pirate victory at Dodger Stadium. Both blasts were launched off Don Drysdale, the first long balls that he surrendered this season. The last four-baggers he had given up were against Clemente and Willie Stargell, who went back-to-back on him on September 15th, 1966. Bob Veale threw a five-hitter for the win, saved by ElRoy Face. 

Roberto Clemente - 1967 Topps

• 1968 - The Bucs were on the wrong end of a record or two during a 5-0 loss at LA. Tossing his sixth consecutive shutout‚ Don Drysdale topped Doc White's 64-year-old mark of five shutouts‚ and with 54 scoreless innings, he broke Carl Hubbell's NL string of 49 goose egg frames. In his next game, Drysdale would set the MLB mark at 58-2/3 scoreless frames. Drysdale was on top of his game, tossing a three-hitter and fanning eight. Jim Bunning took the loss. Gary Kolb was the only Bucco to get past first base with a sixth inning double.
• 1981 - In his first game as a Cub, Bobby Bonds (Barry’s dad) lasted an inning before breaking his hand after tumbling over a loose seam at TRS. The Tim Foli ball he was chasing fell for a triple and became a big run as Foli scored and the Bucs went on to defeat the Chicago club 5-4 in 10 innings. Lee Lacy tallied the winning run when he tripled and scored on Dale Berra’s bloop to earn a win for Kent Tekulve. Foli had four hits and was a homer shy of a cycle while Dave Parker added three more raps including a homerun with two runs scored and three chased home. 
• 1986 - Barry Bonds went 4-for-5 and hit his first MLB home run off Craig McMurtry to lead the Bucs to a 12-3 romp over Atlanta at Fulton County Stadium. Bonds scored three times and drove in four runs. RJ Reynolds had two hits including a long ball as Mike Bielecki, with help from Jim Winn, got the win. BB had 761 more of those long balls in his 22-year career, becoming the all-time MLB home run leader. 
• 2009 - Andrew McCutchen made his first MLB start against the NY Mets. He singled off Mike Pelfrey in his first at bat and went 2-for-4 with an RBI, three runs scored and a stolen base in an 11-6 win at PNC Park. 

Andrew McCutchen - 2009 Topps Heritage Rookie Star

• 2014 - Pirate pitchers gave up one hit, a first-inning bunt single, but still managed to lose to San Diego at Petco Park by a 3-2 count. The Padre runs came on a miscommunicated shallow fly, an error and a bases loaded walk, one of nine that Pirate hurlers issued. Francisco Liriano took the loss, walking six batters with a HBP in his first four frames (he went six innings). The last time the Pirates threw a one-hitter and lost was July 25th, 1992 at Atlanta. That hit was a second inning homer by David Justice, the only tally in a 1-0 Bravo win.

Draft Night: HS Hotshots, College Bats on First Day

And with their first selection (#18 overall) the Pirates pick...RHP Quinn Priester. A multi-sport high school kid (he's 18) w/a four-seamer, two-seamer and big curve, the Cary-Grove (IL) HS hurler is committed to TCU. He's 6'-3", 200 pounder who throws in the low-to-mid 90's and touches 96-97. Quinn fills up the strike zone and has an easy, repeatable three-quarter delivery, so while raw, he's not a total project. The Pirates apparently had him on their short list; several sources had him linked to the Bucs. Priester's projected as a middle-of-the-pack starter. The slot value for this position is $3,481,300.

Quinn Priester photo via Pittsburgh Pirates

At #37 in the compensation round, the Bucs went for OF Sammy Siani, 18, from Philly's Penn Charter HS (PA). The LH is a Duke commit and the brother of Reds minor-league CF Michael Siani, a 4th rounder last year. Siani's not the biggest guy (5'-11", 170 lbs) but is speedy and should be able to hold down CF, can run the bases, steal a few sacks and is a gap hitter who is expected to grow into some power. Slot value for the comp round is $1,999,300.

In the second round, at selection #57, Pittsburgh took Indiana OF Matt Gorski. The 6'-4",195 lb, junior hit .279 while slugging .516 w/12 home runs, and has speed, pop and a good arm. He was a reach in this round, so it's likely he's going to an get under-slot bonus; the slot value for this pick is $1,243,600.

The competitive balance round, #72 on the board, was used on Houston 3B Jared Triolo, the highest-drafted Cougar since Brad Lincoln was selected fourth overall in 2006 by the Pirates, and hopefully he has a little more impact. He's a big guy at 6'-3", 212 lbs, and hit .332 with seven home runs; the Bucs hope to free up some more power from his stick. The slot value for this spot is $870,700; like Gorski, he was taken a round or two sooner than projected.

Second chance pays off: LHP Nick Lodolo passed on the Pirates out of high school as the 41st overall pick in 2016 to attend TCU. Looks like a good choice; the Reds selected Lodolo with the #7 pick of the first round last night; that should bump his bonus nicely.

6/3 Through the 1970’s: Josh Blast; Karger Deal; Bombs Away; Game Stories; HBD Nelson

• 1906 - In a deal that didn’t pan out very well, the Pirates sent rookie LHP Ed “Loose’ Karger to the St Louis Cardinals for veteran RH hurler Chappie McFarland. Karger pitched well for some bad St. Louis teams and lasted in the show through 1911, going 48-67 with a 2.79 ERA while working for four teams. (Some say Loose’s nickname represented his carefree character; others say it described his delivery) Chappie was waived in August by the Pirates and pitched once more in the majors as a Brooklyn Dodger in 1906. 

Paul Waner cashing in... 1927 Spaulding ad

• 1927 - Paul “Big Poison” Waner, along with Glenn Wright and George Grantham, homered off the Phils’ Claude Willoughby in a 11-1 romp at Forbes Field. Waner’s long ball ignited the start of his NL record 14-game streak with an extra base hit (12 doubles‚ five triples‚ three homers). 
• 1932 - Behind 5-2, the Pirates scored three in the bottom of the eighth and then got an inside-the-park homer from Tony Piet in the eleventh to defeat the Cubs 6-5 at Forbes Field. Piet had four knocks and four RBI to prime the attack, with Pie Traynor adding three hits. The Bucs had three triples during the game, two of which got away from Chicago player-manager Rogers Hornsby, who then benched himself. Steve Swetonic went the distance for the win despite giving up 14 hits. It was the first “Knothole Gang” game ever held at Forbes Field, as the team stuffed the right field stands with local youngsters. 
• 1937 - Homestead Gray C Josh Gibson hit perhaps his most storied homer, reported by the Sporting News to have traveled 580’, catching the back rim at Yankee Stadium in a game against the NY Black Yankees. If accurate, which is a point of considerable debate (no StatCast back then), it would be longest homerun ever hit. Mickey Mantle’s 565’ blast in 1953 off Washington’s Chuck Stobbs at Griffith Stadium is considered the biggest blast. It was measured literally by a tape measure, leading to “tape measure homer” being added to baseball’s lexicon. 
• 1961 - Roberto Clemente had a busy day during a 5-1 win over the Phils at Forbes Field. He opened the scoring with a first inning homer, threw out a runner in the fourth and then was ejected in the eighth for beefing about a close call at first, firing his helmet over the dugout as he left the field. Don Hoak also went long and Smoky Burgess had three hits to back Bobby Shantz and ElRoy Face, who combined on a five-hitter.
• 1962 - During the nitecap of a double header, Bob Skinner hit a RF roof shot at Forbes Field, the second of his career, off Houston’s Ken Johnson during a 10-3 loss. The Bucs also lost the opener 10-6, giving the Colt .45s their first DH sweep in franchise history. The first contest featured an oddity. Roberto Clemente tagged from third on a short fly to right; the throw home flew past Houston catcher Hal Smith but went straight to pitcher Bob Tiefenauer, who was backing up. The ball stuck in Tiefenauer’s glove, so the quick-thinking hurler flipped the ball and glove to Smith in time for him to tag out The Great One. 

Nelson Liriano - 1996 Fleer Ultra (reverse)

• 1969 - The Pirates were dropped 7-3 by the Cincinnati Reds at Forbes Field, but it was a red-letter day for Roberto Clemente. The Great One drilled a game-tying three-run homer in the sixth (the Bucs quickly lost the lead in the following inning) for Roberto’s 2,417th career hit, moving him into third place on the all-time Pirate hit list ahead of Max Carey and Pie Traynor. Clemente would later pass Paul “Big Poison” Waner (2,868) and then Honus Wagner (2,970) to claim the franchise top spot with 3,000 hits. 
• 1979 - The Bucs hit five home runs, two by Bill Robinson with four RBI, (Omar Moreno, Dave Parker and Lee Lacy hit the others) as the Pirates whipped the Padres 7-0 at TRS. But the big story was Bruce Kison, an emergency starter who got the nod shortly before the game when Don Robinson couldn’t go. In fact, the start time was delayed 10 minutes so he could warm up. He got loose pretty quickly; he carried a no-hitter into the eighth, when with two outs, Barry Evans, a .197 hitter, bounced a ball inside the third base line. Phil Garner, who was playing off the bag, took a couple of steps over, went for the backhand grab and had it tick off his mitt into left for a soft two-bagger. It was ruled a hit. Kison didn’t agree; he walked off the mound after the inning and shook his fist at the scorer, Dan Donovan, who was in the press box. The controversial (to Kison, anyway) grounder was the only hit he surrendered.

6/3 From 1980: BB & JJ Drafted; Nate Traded; Game Stories

• 1985 - Barry Bonds was drafted by the Pirates in the first round (6th pick overall) of the 1985 draft and signed two days later for a $125,000 bonus. He was the prize in the Cracker Jack box; the only others to reach the MLB from that year were OF Tommy Gregg and pitchers Brett Gideon & Bill Sampen. And if you’re wondering, BJ Surhoff, Will “The Thrill” Clark, Bobby Witt, Barry Larkin and Kurt Brown were taken ahead of him. Pirate coach Joey Cora was taken #23 overall in that same draft by the Padres.

Barry Bonds - 1986 Topps

• 1987 - Bucco second baseman Jim Morrison had a career-high three doubles, drove in two runs and tied his personal best of four hits (4-for-4) in Pittsburgh’s 4-1 win over the Braves in front of just 5,368 fans at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium. Bob Kipper started and got the win. 
• 1988 - The Pirates put up runs in the eighth and ninth frames to edge the Montreal Expos 2-1 at TRS. John Smiley tossed a one-hit complete game with eight K, but the knock was a two-out triple that RJ Reynolds couldn’t come up with followed by a balk. The Bucs tied it in the eighth on a Jose Lind solo shot. Mike Lavalliere doubled with an out in the ninth; John Cangelosi ran for him and scored after Mike Diaz’s pinch-hit, walk off knock.
• 1991 - JC catcher Jon Farrell was the Pirates first selection (#24) in the draft; he got as far as AA ball. The only noteworthy selections of the day was seventh-round pick 2B Tony Womack, who spent 13 years in MLB, five as a Buc, for whom he hit .278 while stealing 122 bases. P Matt Ruebel, a third rounder, pitched a couple of years for the Pirates ( 1996-97: 4-5-1, 5.54 in 70 games) and 19th rounder P Marc Pisciotta tossed in three MLB campaigns. Some late prep picks made the grade, although not with Pittsburgh. 39th-round pick RHP Dustin Hermanson worked 12 big-league campaigns, 56th-rounder RHP Paul Brower lasted nine seasons and 57th-round selection RHP Paul Wilson hurled for seven years, but none of the trio signed with the Pirates, going to other clubs in the 1994 draft.
• 1992 - The Bucs took an early 6-2 lead thanks to a four-run third inning and held on to drop the LA Dodgers at TRS by a 6-5 score. Jeff King brought home three runs and Jerry Gleaton claimed his only Pirate victory, saved by Stan Belinda. With the win, the Pirates reclaimed first place in the NL East from the Cardinals and then held the top spot for the rest of the year, spending just eight days without the lead or a share of it.

Jermaine Allensworth 1997 Fleer Rookie Sensation

• 1993 - Pittsburgh pretty much missed the mark in this draft. They selected HS OF’er Charles Peterson first (#22/$420K bonus), who never made it to the show, followed by second round OF Jermaine Allensworth (#34/$194K bonus); he played 2-1/2 years for the Bucs, hitting .272 as a reserve. RHP Kane Davis was the only other big league contributor beyond a cup of coffee; his top season was 2001 for Colorado, when he made 57 appearances and went 2-4 with a 4.35 ERA.
• 1997 - The Pirates drafted HS OF/1B JJ Davis as their top pick (#8) and signed him to a $1.675M bonus (Davis was a three sport star and had a football scholarship in hand from USC). He played 67 MLB games, with 106 at-bats and a .179 BA. In a bit of goes around, comes around, Paul Meyers of the Post Gazette wrote that RHP Jason Grilli was on the Pirates “hot list” of potential picks, but he went off the board before they could get him as the #4 overall selection of the Giants. They found bullpen arms later on, selecting LHPs John Grabow in the third round and Mike “Gonzo” Gonzalez in the 30th.
• 2009 - The Bucs traded OF Nate McLouth to Atlanta for OF Gorkys Hernandez, LHP Jeff Locke and RHP Charlie Morton, clearing an everyday spot for Andrew McCutchen who was called up from the minors that day. Hernandez was later flipped (he’s been involved in several moves) for Gaby Sanchez while Morton (who was sent to the Phillies in 2016 & now with the Astros) and Locke (he became a Marlin in 2017 and is now a FA) filled rotation spots. McLouth was a flop for the Braves and during a brief return to Pittsburgh but revived his career with Baltimore. He then signed with Washington, but a shoulder injury cost him the year and 2014 was his last season.
• 2011 - It took Pittsburgh 12 innings, but they eked out a 2-1 win over the Phillies at PNC Park. Jose Tabata drove in the first run on a sac fly and the second during a two-out lightning strike. With the bases empty in the 12th and two away, Xavier Paul singled, stole second, and came in on JT’s grounder through the right side. Danny Moskos got the win, his first MLB victory. He was one of five Pirate pitchers that scattered six hits to Philadelphia hitters.

Thames, Stranded Runners Give Series to Brew Crew 4-2

In the first, the Brewers got a two-out knock off Jordan Lyles; that's one more hot than the Bucs got off of Zach Davies. In the second, three straight singles put Jordan in a jam, then came a head scratcher - a bouncer to Colin, who was a step away from third, could have started an around the horn DP or gotten the runner at home; he instead chose to take the out at first. It was yet another mental error by the Bucs in this series, but Lyles escaped down just 1-0. Melky walked for all the Pirates action. In the third, Milwaukee had Ryan Braun on first with two outs. Eric Thames fell behind 0-2, took three that missed the mark badly, then clobbered a 3-2 hook, knee-high and mid-plate, over the Clemente Wall to make it 3-0. Fraze opened with a two-bagger. A roller and sac fly by K-Man got the Bucs on the board. The Brew Crew stranded a fourth inning single. Starling dropped one down to open with a bunt knock and ended up on third when Davies airmailed the throw to first, where he scored on J-Bell's grounder. Jake added a rap that lead nowhere.

Bryan Reynolds just keeps on...Photo Pittsburgh Pirates

Christian Yelich opened the fifth with a double; he became the second out when he tried to TOOTBLAN his way to third on a grounder to short. It didn't help. Up 1-2, Lyles served another curve to Thames, who doubled the run home. Doesn't seem like very good sequencing by Stallings/Lyles, but hey... Lyles was at 97 pitches and still batted; needless the say, there was no Bucco response other than Bryan Reynold's single. Jordan ate the inning well; he tossed a 1-2-3, 12-pitch sixth. J-Bell opened with a two-bagger, and the Bucs got him to third, but close doesn't count. Frankie was tapped for a knock but no bloodshed in the seventh. Joey O reached with an out thx to catcher's interference; he was erased on a DP. Kyle Crick worked the eighth and struck out the side. Reynolds started the Bucs up with a leadoff double; he got to third with an out, but ya know how that ended up by now.

Ric Rod tossed a clean ninth. Alex Claudio came in after Redbeard opened the frame with a double and another catcher's interference (Alex Pina is awfully quick with the ol' mitt, it seems) put Gregory on. Clint opted to play for the tie and had Fraze give up an out with a bunt. He was only half successful; Gregory was forced at second. Corbin Burnes took over as Eli grabbed the lumber and K'ed him on three pitches; two were pretty nasty, nicely placed sliders. K-Man grounded out; he helped by fishing as Burnes worked his way from below Newman's knees to his ankles.

Two curves to Eric Thames that Jordan would like back and an 0-for-12 w/RISP (after four leadoff doubles) by the Buc batters was the recipe for another loss. Pittsburgh gets a day off to lick their wounds, then Atlanta comes to town.

Notes:

• Bryan Reynolds had two hits; Melky also reached base twice with a walk and knock.
• Jordan Lyle's 109 pitches were the most tossed by a Pirates pitcher so far this season.
• BTW, it ended up pretty nice out; the local t-storm watch was cancelled by the fifth inning as the clouds and sun battled it out. There were 19,442 ducats out for the game.
• On his radio show, Neal said the Bucs are going to be cautious in managing Cervy's recovery. He noted that although Fran isn't yet completely symptom free, he's chomping at the bit to return to action as soon as possible. He also applauded the team, saying "Despite all the challenges, despite the struggles, despite the not-great decisions or just flat bad decisions by me...It's fighting."
• The Bucs are 4-10 (2-8 at PNC Park) since returning from their West Coast trip