Michael

Starter Spotlight: Arm The Trebu-Crochet

7-12-24 – By Michael Castrignano – @412DoublePlay on X A Trebuchet is a type of catapult that uses a rotating arm with a sling attached to the tip to launch a projectile, not too dissimilar to the motion and impact of a bat driving a ball over the fence. For a team who has been leading MLBContinue reading “Starter Spotlight: Arm The Trebu-Crochet”

Starter Spotlight: Civale-Deja Vu

7-11-24 – By Michael Castrignano – @412DoublePlay on X Chance for a crucial series win today as Paul Skenes once again will pitch the deciding game against opposing starter, Aaron Civale – a rematch from June 23 while Civale was still a member of the Tampa Bay Rays. In that game, Civale pitched 5 frames of 3-hit,Continue reading “Starter Spotlight: Civale-Deja Vu”

Starter Spotlight: Can They Make It Three Straight?

7-10-24 – By Michael Castrignano – @412DoublePlay on X The Pirates have not won (or lost, for that matter) 3 consecutive games in over three months when they notched successive victories from April 6-8. After scoring 20 combined runs over the past two games, do the bats still have some more in the tank to get anotherContinue reading “Starter Spotlight: Can They Make It Three Straight?”

Starter Spotlight: Looking For A Rea of Hope

7-9-24 – By Michael Castrignano – @412DoublePlay on X Heading to Milwaukee for a potentially pivotal series this week, the Pirates will once again face off against Brewers starting pitcher Colin Rea, who enters play tonight with an 8-2 record, 3.34 ERA and 1.20 WHIP over his 94.1 innings this season. Although he’s experiencing a breakout thisContinue reading “Starter Spotlight: Looking For A Rea of Hope”

Series Preview: Pirates (43-47) at Brewers (53-38)

7-9-24 – By Michael Castrignano – @412DoublePlay on X The Brewers have been handily in control of the NL Central for the better part of the last few months but they split a series in Colorado and lost 2 of 3 to the Dodgers this past weekend. The Pirates, on the other hand, bring a hobbled rotationContinue reading “Series Preview: Pirates (43-47) at Brewers (53-38)”

Starter Spotlight: Great Scott!

7-8-24 – By Michael Castrignano – @412DoublePlay on X Following an offensive slugfest in Friday’s game, the bats have struggled to get traction this past weekend against the Mets. Heading into the final game of the series, they’ll have one last shot at New York via their #2 prospect (per MLB Pipeline) in Christian Scott. A 2021Continue reading “Starter Spotlight: Great Scott!”

Starter Spotlight: Manaea Matchup

7-7-24 – By Michael Castrignano – @412DoublePlay on X Following a short-lived southpaw showdown yesterday between Bailey Falter and David Peterson, the Pirates will face-off against one more lefty in Sean Manaea. Manaea, in his first year with the Mets after his first 8 seasons on the west coast, has provided solid results thus far in hisContinue reading “Starter Spotlight: Manaea Matchup”

Starter Spotlight: Keep Pressing On Peterson

7-6-24 – By Michael Castrignano – @412DoublePlay on X After a franchise-best 7 home runs last night in the 14-2 rout, the Pirates finally fronted an offensive explosion and will look to repeat that feat today against southpaw David Peterson. A torn labrum in his left hip required surgery, delaying Peterson’s start to the 2024 season butContinue reading “Starter Spotlight: Keep Pressing On Peterson”

Starter Spotlight: Searching for a Savvy Start Against Sevy

7-5-24 – By Michael Castrignano – @412DoublePlay on X While the Pirates have lost 4 of their last 6 games to teams above them in the wild card standings, they hope to turn things around today. With the Mets coming to town, who themselves have been mired in a bit of a slump as they too haveContinue reading “Starter Spotlight: Searching for a Savvy Start Against Sevy”

Starter Spotlight: Looking For A Pallante-Cleansing Series Win

7-4-24 – By Michael Castrignano – @412DoublePlay on X Happy Independence Day, Pirates fans! Hoping to continue some of the fireworks from last night, the Bucs will look to win the rubber match in their matchup today facing Andre Pallante. Pallante enters play today with a 4-3 record, 4.50 ERA and 1.58 ERA over 38 innings thusContinue reading “Starter Spotlight: Looking For A Pallante-Cleansing Series Win”