Stack ‘Em
Another day, another comeback, another Bucco victory.
Down three going to the bottom of the 5th inning, the Pirates authored their third come-from-behind victory in four days, moving to 32-27 and sole possession of 1st place in the NL Central for the first time since May 10th, and back to five games over .500 for the first time since May 9th.
The comeback was punctuated by Andrew McCutchen’s game-winning sac fly in the bottom of the 8th, as he was walked three times and drove in a pair of runs.
The Bucs will look to match their season-high seven game winning streak today with their ace, Mitch Keller (7-1, 3.25 ERA), facing the winless James Kaprielian (0-6, 8.12) at 7:05pm on 93.7 The Fan.
Oh Henry
After weeks of pestering for the Pirates to solve their problem with a complete and total lack of offense from the catcher position since the season started, (1 HR, 15 RBI, both worst in the National League), General Manager Ben Cherington took the first half-step in the right direction: He called up 2021 First Round draft pick Henry Davis to AAA Indianapolis from AA Altoona.
Cherington explained why now was the time to move Davis up to Indy and create a bit of a logjam behind the plate with fellow catching prospect Endy Rodriguez there as well.
For those wondering, by my amateur calculations, the Super Two Date should fall somewhere around the end of this week/beginning of next at the absolute latest.
Pitt Fans Don’t Lyke It… Or Do They?
It’s a double-edged sword to see Pitt Athletic Director Heather Lyke’s name bandied about in rumors for other job openings.
On one hand, it’s a sign of just how far Lyke has brought the University of Pittsburgh’s Athletic Department since taking over for Scott Barnes six years ago.
On the other, it has to concern Pitt fans and alumni that if Lyke leaves, the consistency and success she’s helped foster could vanish as well.
WPIAL Flagship
High school sports in Western Pennsylvania are huge.
The coverage of both high school football and basketball, especially, has reached a new level over the past several years as Audacy, via 100.1 FM and AM102 NewsRadio KDKA, has become more and more involved.
It was announced on Monday that involvement will only grow, and the coverage of the WPIAL will only increase, on America’s first commercial radio station.
Playoff Bob Has Entered the Chat
Someone told you it was just a matter of time until it would happen.
And in the first two games of the Stanley Cup Final, “Playoff Bob,” or the version of Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky that melts down in big postseason situations, has arrived.
Game Three on Thursday night is an opportunity for Vegas to put the series in a stranglehold. While four of the 204 teams who’ve gone down 0-3 in a Stanley Cup Playoffs series have been able to make a comeback to win 4-3, only one has ever done it in the Final: The 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs over the Detroit Red Wings.