Spencer Horwitz homers twice, drives in 6 runs to lead Pirates to a 9-5 win over Rockies
Horwitz hit a two-run homer in the second inning, added a three-run shot in the sixth and knocked in his sixth run with a ground out in the eighth. The Pirates' 27-year-old leadoff hitter has five homers and 31 RBIs in 61 games this season.
Nick Gonzales knocked in a run with an infield single in the first inning before Tommy Pham hit a two-run homer, his fifth, for Pittsburgh.
Pirates starter Mitch Keller worked five innings and allowed seven hits and five earned runs with four strikeouts.
Mickey Moniak , Hunter Goodman and Jordan Beck hit consecutive homers in the bottom of the sixth inning as the Rockies closed within 8-5.
Colorado starter Bradley Blalock allowed seven earned runs on six hits in 5 2/3 innings, with two strikeouts and four walks.
The Rockies seemingly found some momentum in the third inning when Yanquiel Fernández doubled. He jumped off the base when he got up from the slide, but was called safe. The Pirates challenged the call, which was overturned.
Entering Sunday, Colorado had scored 21 runs in the fourth inning or later in the series. The Rockies scored one run in the fourth and four in the sixth in the loss.
The Rockies will send RHP Tanner Gordon in their home series opener against Toronto on Monday. The Blue Jays will start LHP Eric Lauer .
The Pirates open a home series against San Francisco on Monday. RHP Justin Verlander will start for the Giants. Pittsburgh has not named a starter.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
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Hindustan Times
18 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Spencer Horwitz homers twice, drives in 6 runs to lead Pirates to a 9-5 win over Rockies
DENVER — Spencer Horwitz homered twice and drove in a career-high six runs to lead the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 9-5 win over the Colorado Rockies on Sunday, avoiding a series sweep. Spencer Horwitz homers twice, drives in 6 runs to lead Pirates to a 9-5 win over Rockies Horwitz hit a two-run homer in the second inning, added a three-run shot in the sixth and knocked in his sixth run with a ground out in the eighth. The Pirates' 27-year-old leadoff hitter has five homers and 31 RBIs in 61 games this season. Nick Gonzales knocked in a run with an infield single in the first inning before Tommy Pham hit a two-run homer, his fifth, for Pittsburgh. Pirates starter Mitch Keller worked five innings and allowed seven hits and five earned runs with four strikeouts. Mickey Moniak , Hunter Goodman and Jordan Beck hit consecutive homers in the bottom of the sixth inning as the Rockies closed within 8-5. Colorado starter Bradley Blalock allowed seven earned runs on six hits in 5 2/3 innings, with two strikeouts and four walks. The Rockies seemingly found some momentum in the third inning when Yanquiel Fernández doubled. He jumped off the base when he got up from the slide, but was called safe. The Pirates challenged the call, which was overturned. Entering Sunday, Colorado had scored 21 runs in the fourth inning or later in the series. The Rockies scored one run in the fourth and four in the sixth in the loss. The Rockies will send RHP Tanner Gordon in their home series opener against Toronto on Monday. The Blue Jays will start LHP Eric Lauer . The Pirates open a home series against San Francisco on Monday. RHP Justin Verlander will start for the Giants. Pittsburgh has not named a starter. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Mint
2 days ago
- Mint
Steven Kwan feeling the love as Guardians host Twins
Guardians fans made sure that Steven Kwan knew they were happy he was still in Cleveland after he was the subject of trade-deadline speculation. The All-Star left fielder was showered with cheers and chants of "Kwan, Kwan, Kwan" each time he batted Friday in a 3-2, 10-inning win over the visiting Minnesota Twins. More of the same should be in store Saturday, when Tanner Bibee (7-9, 4.39 ERA) of the Guardians starts the middle contest of the three-game set against fellow right-hander Bailey Ober (4-6, 5.28). Kwan should be in his usual spot atop the lineup, just where the franchise hopes he will remain for the long term after Cleveland team president Chris Antonetti turned down multiple strong trade offers for him. "It was super special with the fans and the chanting out in left field tonight," said Kwan, who went 2-for-5 with a run and his major-league-leading 10th outfield assist. "I don't know if I deserve it, but I'm super grateful for all of it." Negotiations on a contract extension between the sides ceased at the end of spring training, per Guardians owner Paul Dolan's long-standing policy. Kwan has expressed interest in reopening the talks, even though he is under club control through 2027. Antonetti also indicated that Dolan's policy is not set in stone, opening the door for in-season communication while Cleveland pursues an American League wild-card berth. "I'm hoping we can stay here a long time," said Kwan, who is batting .316 with three homers and six RBIs during a nine-game hitting streak and .287 for the season. "I love this city, love this organization. I just really want to win for them and get in the postseason." Bibee has been strong against Minnesota, posting a 2-0 record and 2.51 ERA over eight career starts. He also is turning around his season with three straight victories and has a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 17-to-2 during the surge. Gavin Williams began the series on a great note for Cleveland, striking out eight over six scoreless innings but walked away with a no-decision. His 6-4 overall record should be much better, but the Guardians' bullpen has wasted all three of his six-plus-inning scoreless outings in 2025. "I think the confidence has always been there," said Williams, who has a 2.75 ERA in 16 starts since May 3. "Last year, I barely got into the fifth inning, so as much as I can go deeper in games, it helps the pen for the next day and saves those guys, too." The Twins should receive a psychological boost, along with a competitive lift, with Ober set to be activated from the 15-day injured list after missing a month with left hip impingement. The 6-foot-9 Ober was one of 10 Minnesota players who spent Thursday together in a room at their downtown Cleveland hotel, waiting for word about how many trades the Twins would make. The answer was nine in a 24-hour span. "A lot of guys who were on our '23 (playoff) run aren't here anymore because of the trades, so that hurt," Ober said. "The business side of baseball sometimes shows its ugly face. It was surreal watching what happened." Ober is 3-2 with a 2.10 ERA in 10 career starts against Cleveland but had a terrible June, losing all five outings while giving up 30 runs in 30 innings. All-Star center fielder Byron Buxton, the unquestioned leader of the Twins, could rejoin the active roster when eligible on Aug. 7. Manager Rocco Baldelli said Buxton's rib-cage inflammation is not severe. "We're here to win, let me be clear," Baldelli said. "The locker room looks different, the team looks different, the lineup is different, but let's go to work."
Hindustan Times
3 days ago
- Hindustan Times
Pirates GM Cherington believes deadline moves create options for 2026. In what way is uncertain
PITTSBURGH (AP) — The Pittsburgh Pirates arrived at spring training six months ago stressing that it was time to win. They talked about urgency. They talked about internal improvements. They talked about returning to playoff contention for the first time in a decade. HT Image Then the talk stopped, and the games began. And the losses — both on and off the field — mounted. Quickly. And sometimes embarrassingly. Even the brilliance of superstar ace Paul Skenes and the fresh, no frills approach of manager Don Kelly — promoted after Derek Shelton was fired in May — couldn't stop the last-place club from being sellers at the trade deadline again. In the span of 24 hours, general manager Ben Cherington sent away former franchise cornerstones Ke'Bryan Hayes and David Bednar in exchange for prospects, most of whom are years away from reaching the majors, if they ever even get there. It's a pattern that has repeated itself over and over during Cherington's five-plus years on the job. Yet, unlike the early days of his top-to-bottom overhaul — when Cherington tore the major league roster down to the studs while accumulating as many bodies as he could to replenish the club's bereft minor-league system — it comes at a time when expectations both internally and externally are considerably higher. Yet Cherington believes his approach checked all three boxes required to help Pittsburgh win in 2026, saying the Pirates added a significant group of young players, most notably, catcher/first base prospect Rafael Flores, who has 16 homers between Double-A and Triple-A this season. The departure of Hayes at third base, Bednar, a two-time All-Star closer, and left-handed starter Bailey Falter will create opportunities for others down the stretch. Cherington also pointed out the expected exit of veterans currently on one-year deals — infielder Isiah Kiner-Falefa, outfielder Tommy Pham and pitcher Andrew Heaney most notably — will create considerable financial flexibility as Pittsburgh tries to upgrade an offense currently mired near the bottom of the majors in most offensive categories. 'There's always more things like that that you want to do, so I feel really good about the things we did do,' Cherington said. 'I do believe we put ourselves in a stronger position going into August, September and the offseason.' Yet when pressed on what that fiscal flexibility might look like in practice for a team that regularly begins each season with among the bottom five clubs in terms of payroll, Cherington offered only vague answers. 'We'll be open-minded about free agency,' he said. "We've pursued legitimate major-league position players in the past here since I've been here and I'm sure we'll do it again. It's never going to be one thing that solves that issue and helps us figure out the offense that leads to a winning team. It's always going to be lots of things and a lot of that has to happen internally.' Therein lies one of Pittsburgh's biggest issues, for all of the success Cherington and his staff have had in identifying and developing young pitchers — there's a very real chance 22-year-old right-hander Bubba Chandler makes his major league debut later this summer — the results when it comes to position players is far more miss than hit. While 19-year-old shortstop/outfielder Konnor Griffin is currently considered perhaps the top prospect in all of baseball, he is currently in Class A. Termarr Johnson, a first-round pick in 2022, is having a solid but not exactly spectacular year at Double-A. They will both eventually be everyday players in Pittsburgh, but having that happen by next summer is a stretch. So it leaves the Pirates in a familiar place: playing out the string knowing exactly what they need to do to be better next year. Pittsburgh was in the same spot last summer, and Cherington's only significant moves during the offseason were to acquire first baseman Spencer Horwitz while taking one-year flyers on Pham and Adam Frazier, who has already been traded to Kansas City. The results have hardly been surprising. Horwitz has been steady (.252) since missing the first month-plus of the season due to a wrist injury, but the power Pittsburgh hoped would come along remains a work in progress. Pham has emerged from a massive funk to boost his average to .273. In a way, the Pirates' offense mirrors enigmatic centerfielder Oneil Cruz, who sometimes dazzles with his physical gifts but just as frequently draws attention for his inattentiveness. The inability to score runs has marred a remarkable season by the pitching staff. The Pirates entered Friday's game at Colorado in the top seven in the majors in ERA, led by Skenes and his major-league best 1.83 ERA. The 23-year-old is a Cy Young candidate despite entering the weekend with a 6-8 record. Just as importantly, Skenes has consistently said and done all the right things since the Pirates took him first overall in the 2023 draft. He brushed off the idea the club should trade him now with his value so high, saying simply 'anybody can play GM.' Yet his patience might already be wearing thin. Skenes — who will become arbitration eligible after 2026, which will likely mean a hefty raise — told the club's radio network over the weekend that while he thinks Pittsburgh is 'very close' to contending, it must 'consciously and intentionally make moves to get us better' at the deadline. Cherington — whose status beyond this season is uncertain as Pittsburgh eyes a sixth straight losing season on his watch — may have finally said the quiet part out loud late Thursday as the Pirates eye another pennant race going on without them. Yes, they'll have money to spend over the winter. Just don't expect a gold rush. '(Improving) in Pittsburgh is going to be a combination of taking chances, making bets on young players who are unproven," he said. 'And we've got to continue to do that and be right more often than we're not right on those.' The clock is ticking. In more ways than one. ___ AP MLB:
