MLB, Pittsburgh, Sports
By By KEVIN GORMAN TribLive 
March 9, 2026
BRADENTON, Fla. — Billy Cook was one of the feel-good stories among Pittsburgh Pirates September call-ups in 2024, as the outfielder made his major-league debut and had five extra-base hits and eight ...
Ashcraft features sinker in loss to Phils
MLB, Pittsburgh, Sports
By By KEVIN GORMAN TribLive 
March 7, 2026
BRADENTON, Fla. — Braxton Ashcraft decided to flip the script on his pitch usage against the Philadelphia Phillies, throwing his sinker five times more than his four-seam fastball. The intention was f...
Nose broken but Brannigan’s resolve remains
MLB, Pittsburgh, Sports
By By KEVIN GORMAN TribLive 
March 7, 2026
BRADENTON, Fla. – Bryson Stott’s sharp grounder hit the lip between the grass and infield dirt, skipping over the glove of Pittsburgh Pirates third baseman Jack Brannigan to hit him square in the nose...
Ohtani’s grand slam leads Japan to mercy-rule win
MLB, Sports
March 7, 2026
The Associated Press Japanese fans don’t get to see Shohei Ohtani in person very often. They got an eyeful on Friday in a sellout at the Tokyo Dome. Ohtani hit a grand slam in the second inning — in t...
Williams homers in Pirates’ loss to Cards
MLB, Pittsburgh, Sports
By By KEVIN GORMAN TribLive 
March 6, 2026
BRADENTON, Fla. — Alika Williams would love to tell the tale of what it was like to watch his first home run in a Pittsburgh Pirates uniform, even one that came in a Grapefruit League game. One proble...
McCutchen signs deal with Texas
MLB, Pittsburgh, Sports
By By KEVIN GORMAN TribLive 
March 6, 2026
BRADENTON, Fla. — One of the biggest storylines entering spring training was that the Pittsburgh Pirates appeared to be moving on from franchise icon Andrew Mc-Cutchen. The 39-year-old designated hitt...
Reliever Lawrence finds rhythm with Pirates
MLB, Pittsburgh, Sports
By By KEVIN GORMAN TribLive 
March 6, 2026
BRADENTON, Fla. — Justin Lawrence sent his wife a joke text wishing her a happy anniversary on Sunday, marking a year since he was designated for assignment by the Colorado Rockies. Lawrence celebrate...
Doubles, triples dwindling in MLB with improving players
MLB, Sports
March 6, 2026
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — All those missing doubles and triples, well, Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts thinks he knows where at least some of them went. Over the fence. “I think that guys chase ...
Remembering Maz around the Valley
MLB, Pittsburgh, Sports
SPORTS STEW
By By WAYNE STEWART For MVI Sports 
March 5, 2026
Several Mon Valley residents were fortunate enough to have a personal connection to a Pittsburgh legend we lost this year, Bill Mazeroski. In 2019, Ken Barbao — son of Joe Barbao Sr., who served as St...
Judge hits 453-foot homer in WBC tuneup against Rockies
MLB, Sports
March 5, 2026
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Aaron Judge looks ready for his first World Baseball Classic. Alex Bregman does, too. As for the recently-retired Clayton Kershaw? Understandably a little rust. Judge crushed ...
Skenes solid as U.S. dominates San Francisco in exhibition
MLB, Pittsburgh, Sports
March 4, 2026
The Americans showed how potent their offense will be, putting up 15 runs in a blowout win. SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) — The United States wasted little time showing how potent its roster could be at the ...
MLB, Pittsburgh, Sports
By By KEVIN GORMAN TribLive 
March 4, 2026
BRADENTON, Fla. — The possibility of playing right field was discussed briefly between Ryan O’Hearn and the Pittsburgh Pirates during free agency, but the plan was for him to split time primarily at f...
Bucs beat Rays; Williams starts scoring
MLB, Pittsburgh, Sports
By By KEVIN GORMAN TribLive 
March 3, 2026
BRADENTON, Fla. — Alika Williams knew that Jake Mangum had the green light to steal second base, so he took a few steps from third base and got ready to read the throw. When pitcher Mason Englert’s th...
Judge relishes chance to captain U.S.
MLB, Sports
March 3, 2026
PHOENIX (AP) — New York Yankees star Aaron Judge said putting on a Team USA jersey Monday carried special significance, especially considering the conflict raging across the Middle East after the U.S-...
Clevinger looks to land spot in rotation or bullpen
MLB, Pittsburgh, Sports
By By KEVIN GORMAN TribLive 
March 3, 2026
BRADENTON, Fla. — Mike Clevinger has a season on his resume that no other Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher can claim, but knows that it doesn’t carry much weight in his quest to earn a roster spot ...
It’s an OPS world in today’s major leagues
MLB, Sports
March 3, 2026
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Batting average was a priority for Andrew Benintendi when he first broke into the major leagues in 2016. He batted .312 in the minors on the way to his debut. Going into his fou...
Pirates’ Horwitz taking open-minded approach about finding position to play
MLB, Pittsburgh, Sports
By By KEVIN GORMAN TribLive 
March 2, 2026
The 1B/2B will play for Team Israel in the World Baseball Classic. BRADENTON, Fla. — Where Spencer Horwitz is still trying to figure out where he fits in with the Pittsburgh Pirates, he’s looking forw...
Griffin hits 2-run blast as Bucs cruise past Cardinals
MLB, Pittsburgh, Sports
By By KEVIN GORMAN TribLive 
March 2, 2026
The team’s top prospect continues to flash power. Konnor Griffin’s third hit in spring training produced the same result as his first two, with the 19-year-old phenom circling the bases. The consensus...
Manager agrees to two-year extension with St. Louis
MLB, Sports
SPRING TRAINING ROUNDUP
March 2, 2026
JUPITER, Fla. (AP) — St. Louis manager Oliver Marmol signed a two-year contract extension through at least the 2028 season, the Cardinals announced Sunday. The deal includes a club option for 2029, th...
Nicolas finishes off Orioles with scoreless 9th
MLB, Pittsburgh, Sports
By By KEVIN GORMAN TribLive 
February 28, 2026
BRADENTON, Fla. — Kyle Nicolas scratched the top of his right thumb in the bullpen before his outing against the Baltimore Orioles and ended up getting blood all over his white uniform pants. In his f...