News -- April 2013
4/25 TheLeadoffWalk: Day 24 Observations: Hitters :
Blue Jays 6, Orioles 5
Edwin Encarnacion:
Continuing a trend from
recent days, Encarnacion made hard contact on ...
4/24 Climbing Tal's Hill: Can the Astros Play Seattle Everyday? : Robbie Grossman. That really is the story and the takeaway from today’s game. Not too shabby of a major league debut for ...
4/24 FFLockerRoom: Houston Astros Recall Outfielder Robbie Grossman : MLB News: The Houston Astros recalled outfielder Robbie Grossman on Wednesday from Triple-A Oklahoma City. He replaces Justin ...
4/24 The Bleacher Blues: From the Deck : I was going through some of my cards, and I randomly, or not so randomly, pulled out these players to profile. A few of them I ...
4/24 Climbing Tal's Hill: Justin Maxwell to DL; Robbie Grossman Called up, Leading Off : Even when the Astros win a game, they can’t do it without bad news. In a 2-1 game in the third inning with the bases loaded, ...
4/24 MLB Injury News: Astros’ Justin Maxwell suffers fractured hand : Houston Astros center fielder Justin Maxwell was hit in the
left hand during last night’s contest against the Seattle Mariners. ...
News -- March 2013
3/17 Climbing Tal's Hill: Astros trim 10 from spring roster; Who’s out – and why? : The Astros announced another round of cuts today, trimming their roster to 39. Paul Clemens, Robbie Grossman, Dallas Keuchel, ...
News -- February 2013
2/24 Climbing Tal's Hill: Leading Off : The Houston Astros are still searching for their 2013 leadoff hitter. Bo Porter said earlier this month that he would prefer second ...
News -- January 2013
1/30 What the Heck, Bobby?: Astros Minor League Depth - Center Fielders : As Spring Training approaches, I've been looking at the Astros minor league depth, position by position. Today, we look at ...
1/10 AppyAstros: Cumulative Top Prospect List : I enjoy the top prospect list exercise. It is interesting to see which players are valued by different analyst. Every ...
News -- December 2012
12/18 Climbing Tal's Hill: Player Card: Robbie Grossman : When the Astros traded Wandy Rodriguez to Pittsburgh in July, outfielder Robbie Grossman was the key player headed to Houston ...
News -- November 2012
11/27 MLB Dirt: 2013 Houston Astros Top 16 Prospects : Just a few short years ago the Houston Astros had one of the worst farm systems in baseball. General Manager Jeff Lunhow and his ...
News -- October 2012
10/6 Climbing Tal's Hill: Reviewing the Wandy Rodriguez Trade : On July 24, the Astros traded Wandy Rodriguez, the last remaining player from their 2005 World Series team, to the Pirates. At ...
10/4 Seedlings to Stars: Reviewing Our 2012 Top-100: #61-70 (Grossman to Choice) : Today we’re back with a look at the next group of ten from Nathaniel’s 2012 S2S Top-100 list. If you’d like to check out ...
News -- September 2012
9/16 Climbing Tal's Hill: Corpus Christi Hooks Season In Review : Next up in our season in review is the Astros AA affiliate, the Corpus Christi Hooks. The Hooks had their best season in franchise ...
9/9 Baseball News Source: Rookie Matt Dominguez Powers Up Against Reds : Rookie Matt Dominguez was 5-for-11 with two home runs and six RBI It was quite the weekend for Houston Astros rookie third baseman ...
9/8 Climbing Tal's Hill: Corpus Christi Hooks Eliminated from Playoffs : In what was one of the best seasons in club history, the Corpus Christi Hooks were eliminated last night from the Class AA playoffs ...
9/5 Baseball News Source: Wandy Rodriguez Recovers from Rocky Start with Pirates : The Pirates version of a big splash at the trade deadline this season was acquiring left-handed starter Wandy Rodriguez from the ...
News -- August 2012
8/28 Climbing Tal's Hill: Playoff bound Hooks sweep San Antonio : In case you haven’t heard yet, the Astros AA affiliate Corpus Christi Hooks clinched a playoff spot with a 5-2 win over ...
8/19 Baseball News Source: Astros Fire Manager Brad Mills : Houston Astros General Manager Jeff Luhnow has spent the summer acquiring young prospects and trading veteran players. The rebuilding ...
8/15 Baseball News Source: Pirates – Rodriguez, Snider, Sanchez – Since the Trades : Pittsburgh didn’t make the salary splash some may have wanted at the 2012 trade deadline, one they entered as bona fide ...
8/9 Baseball News Source: Astros acquire Tyler Greene from Cardinals : The ever-evolving Houston Astros roster saw another change on Thursday when it was announced they acquired utility infielder Tyler ...
8/9 Climbing Tal's Hill: George Springer Promoted to AA : Twitter exploded with news from Astros writers and fans that the Astros had promoted 2011 first round pick (11th overall) ...
8/1 Through The Fence Baseball: The Houston Astros are playing the “prospect bond” market : A bond is a debt instrument where you loan money upfront and are paid back either over time, or at some maturity date. The money ...
News -- July 2012
7/31 Three Rivers Burgh Blog: Pirates Trade Deadline Reaction : Going into the last couple of weeks there were a lot of way the deadline could have gone for the Pirates. It started off with ...
7/31 The "Mc" Effect: Deadline Over, Pirates Better : Now that everything is settled, we can look back and take a fair look at the trade deadline. Here's the rundown: Pirates lose: ...
7/30 Release Points: Johnson Trade Reaction: Astros’ GM Continues to Make Shrewd Moves : Astros General Manager Jeff Lunhow continues his effort to turn around one of the thinner farm systems in baseball, acquiring ...
7/30 Buccos Buzz: Wandy Rodriguez to Make Pittsburgh Pirates Debut Tonight Against Former Team : After 7.5 seasons pitching for the Houston Astros, left-handed starter Wandy Rodriguez is set to make his debut for another team. ...
7/30 Buccos Buzz: Pittsburgh Pirates Acquire LHP Wandy Rodriguez from Houston Astros : The Pittsburgh Pirates have officially acquired Houston Astros left-handed pitcher Wandy Rodriguez. Wandy Rodriguez Rumors started ...
7/29 MLBTradeRumors: Week In Review: 7/22/12 - 7/28/12 : With the trade deadline less than 48 hours away, let's take a moment to catch up on the busy week that was here at MLBTR...
The ...
7/28 Rum Bunter: Wandy Rodriguez is to 2012 What Zane Smith Was to 1990 : The Pittsburgh Pirates are in the midst of a ground-breaking season. Twenty-two years ago, they were in the same spot – ...
7/26 Baseball News Source: Wandy Rodriguez Trade – Huntington Continues to Make Smart Baseball Moves : Since the rumor mills started churning a couple weeks ago, there have been many big names rumored to be switching teams. Those ...
7/26 Baseball News Source: Astros Wandy Rodriguez Traded to Pirates : The Houston Astros continue to be one of the most active teams this season when it comes to making trades. The Astros traded LHP ...
7/26 PaulLebowitz.com: The Pirates Are Where The Astros Hope To Be 3-5 Years From Now : Reviving a dead franchise doesn’t happen overnight and creating a Frankenstein monster of discarded body parts (AKA players ...
7/25 North Side Notch: Breaking Down the Wandy Rodriguez Deal : I was sitting at a local restaurant here in Louisville following a walk-off defeat of the Web Gems, my softball team, when I saw ...
7/25 StanGraphs: Trade: The Pirates Level Up Their Rotation With Wandy Rodriguez : The Pittsburgh Pirates have been threatening to do something for about a month, and now they have. Owners of a startling 54-42 ...
7/25 Born on Third - Cubs Blog: While You Were Sleeping : As we near the deadline teams are always trying to improve, they don’t really care if you are awake to see what they did. ...
7/25 Throw the Challenge Flag: Welcome to Pittsburgh Wandy Rodriguez :
Let me preface this post by saying that I won't have my normal Pirates and minor league recaps again today. I'm just beginning ...
7/25 The Baseball Page: Inside Pittsburgh Pirates Clubhouse: Reaction to Wandy Rodriguez Trade :
The Pittsburgh Pirates have acquired Wandy Rodriguez from the Houston ...
7/25 This is Getting Old: Pirates Trade For Wandy Rodriguez : As you’ve probably heard the Pittsburgh Pirates have traded for LHP Wandy Rodriguez from the Houston Astros. The Pirates ...
7/25 Roto Think Tank: Real Trades/Fantasy Impact: July 24, 2012 : Two more trades today/tonight (not including Barry Enright). Let's get right to it:1) Pirates acquire LHP Wandy Rodriguezfrom ...
7/25 Blog Red Machine: Let’s see what you have, Mr. Jocketty : Now, let’s see what you have Mr. Jocketty… In case you haven’t checked your baseball related Twitter feed (and ...
7/25 Raise the Jolly Roger: Pirates upgrade rotation with Wandy Rodriguez : For much of the summer, almost all the talk surrounding hypothetical Pirates trades has centered around a bat. The Pirates managed ...
7/25 Bus League Baseball: Bus Leagues Express: July 25 : Top stories Astros pick up a trio of prospects: In another move that could complete their firesale, the Astros sent lefty Wandy ...
7/25 Baseball Press: Trading Places: Pirates Acquire Wandy for Prospects :
Wandy Rodriguez finds a new home in Pittsburgh. (US Presswire)The Houston Astros performed their third trade over the past three ...
7/24 North Side Notch: Pirates Acquire Wandy Rodriguez from Astros : The @Pirates have acquired LHP Wandy Rodriguez & cash from the #Astros for Rudy Owens, Colton Cain & Robbie Grossman. ...
7/24 Fantasy Baseball Crackerjacks: Wandy Rodriguez to the Pirates and What it Means for Fantasy Baseball : As expected, more wheeling and dealing is taking place in the week leading up to the July 31 trade deadline. As was confirmed ...
7/24 Operation Shutdown: Pirates Acquire Wandy Rodriguez : The @Pirates have acquired LHP Wandy Rodriguez & cash from the #Astros for Rudy Owens, Colton Cain & Robbie Grossman.— ...
7/24 Call to the Pen: Pirates Acquire Wandy Rodriguez From the Astros : Wandy Rodriguez has been a perennial trade target it seems. Every summer comes and goes with rumors of Wandy trades that never ...
7/24 Three Rivers Burgh Blog: Pirates Acquire Wandy Rodriguez : Tonight during the Pirates 5-1 loss to the Chicago Cubs there was work going on in the depths of PNC Park that brought Astros ...
7/24 Climbing Tal's Hill: Wandy Rodriguez Traded to Pirates : Earlier tonight, several sources reported that Wandy Rodriguez was close to becoming a Pittsburgh Pirate. Moments ago, it became ...
7/24 The "Mc" Effect: Pirates Trade for Wandy Rodriguez : For all zero of you out there who get your Pirates news solely from me, the Pirates have traded for Astros starter Wandy Rodriguez. ...
7/24 Raise the Jolly Roger: Pirates acquire LHP Wandy Rodriguez for three prospects : The Bucs have acquired pitcher Wandy Rodriguez from the Houston Astros in exchange for prospects Rudy Owens, Robbie Grossman, ...
7/24 Baseball Musings: Magic Wandy : The Pirates make a deal with Houston for Wandy Rodriguez: In exchange for Rodriguez, the Astros acquired lefthanded pitchers Rudy ...
7/24 MLBTradeRumors: Pirates Acquire Wandy Rodriguez : The Pirates have acquired left-handed starter Wandy Rodriguez from the Astros in exchange for minor leaguers Rudy Owens, Robbie ...
7/23 Seedlings to Stars: Prospect Pulse: July 22nd, 2012 – Jose Cisnero and Mike Kvasnicka : The Prospect Pulse is a recap of some of the top performances in the minors from the previous day. Prospects are sorted by the ...
7/23 Throw the Challenge Flag: Minors: Starling Marte gets off the schneid, Robbie Grossman has five RBI : The Bradenton Marauders had their game postponed against the Tampa Yankees. The GCL Pirates had the day off.
AAA - Indianapolis ...
7/20 North Side Notch: 7/20 MiLB Recap: Gerrit Cole has an ok start : Jose Tabata was 2 for 5 with a double. Starling Marte went 1 for 4 with a double. Matt Hague was 2 for 4. Jeff Clement went 2 ...
7/20 Throw the Challenge Flag: Minors: Poor defense hurts Gerrit Cole, solid start for Casey Sadler : The State College Spikes with the only affiliate that didn't play on Friday. Their game against the Williamsport Crosscutters ...
7/18 North Side Notch: 7/18 MiLB Recap: Gift Ngoepe Hits 9th Home Run : Bryan Morris pitched 1 2/3 scoreless innings with two strikeouts. He now has a 2.57 ERA over 56 innings with a 57:12 K:BB ratio. ...
7/18 Throw the Challenge Flag: Minors: Zack Von Rosenberg and Nick Kingham have strong start for West Virginia : I won't have a recap of the Pittsburgh Pirates once again. The 8:40 start times in Colorado don't work well with my schedule. ...
7/17 Throw the Challenge Flag: Minors: Starling Marte fall a single short of the cyle, Tony Sanchez goes deep : The West Virginia Power were the only minor league affiliate not to play on Monday. Their game against the Augusta GreenJackets ...
7/15 North Side Notch: 7/14 MiLB Recap: Not a good day for Taillon, Cole : - Justin Wilson struggled, giving up eight runs over three innings. He struck out three and walked three while giving up five ...
7/14 North Side Notch: 7/13 MiLB Recap: Zack Dodson coming on strong : - Jose Tabata was 0 for 4 with two strikeouts. - Starling Marte went 0 for 2 with a walk and a strikeout. - Tony Sanchez was 1 ...
7/12 North Side Notch: 7/12 MiLB Recap: Tim Alderson strikes out 8 : Jeff Locke started the first game of a double-header for the Tribe and gave up four runs (two earned) over five innings. He struck ...
7/11 Throw the Challenge Flag: What will the Pittsburgh Pirates look like in one month? : For years, it has been the Pittsburgh Pirates trading their one and only productive player to someone else for a bucket full of ...
7/6 North Side Notch: 7/6 MiLB Recap: Barrett Barnes hits 2nd home run; Harold Ramirez makes pro debut : Rudy Owens started and gave up six runs over 3 1/3 innings, giving up nine hits and two walks. He struck out three. It was easily ...
7/5 The "Mc" Effect: The Pirates Trade Problem : Sick of reading about the Pirates and the trade deadline? ... Yeah, me either. I've been thinking a lot about this today and ...
7/4 North Side Notch: 7/3 MiLB Recap: Alen Hanson hits 14th HR : Chris Leroux pitched two scoreless innings in what will probably be his final rehab appearance. A decision must now be made by ...
7/4 Throw the Challenge Flag: Minors: Rick VandenHurk stays unbeaten, Alen Hanson goes deep again : AAA - Indianapolis Indians (54-31) - Beat the Louisville Bats 7-3 to complete a four game sweep. Rick VandenHurk (8-0, 2.96 ERA) ...
7/2 Throw the Challenge Flag: Minors: Luis Heredia pitches five shutout innings, Starling Marte continues push towards majors : All of the minor league affiliates in action won on Sunday (Bradenton went 1-1 in a doubleheader). The GCL Pirates had the day ...
News -- June 2012
6/29 Throw the Challenge Flag: Starling Marte Stays Hot, Brandon Cumpton With Another Strong Start : Keep working with me while I work out the kinks with these minor league recaps. Still in the process of adding and taking away ...
6/28 Throw the Challenge Flag: Around The Minor 6/27/12 : All of the minor league affiliates were in action on Wednesday. As usual, all eyes were on Bradenton because of who was on the ...
6/27 Throw the Challenge Flag: Around The Minors: 6/26/12 : It wasn't only an ugly day for the Pittsburgh Pirates. West Virginia was the only one of their affiliates to win. One of their ...
6/27 Seedlings to Stars: Scary Moment for Pirates’ Gerrit Cole : In was supposed to be an exciting moment for Gerrit Cole and the Pirates. Cole, the number one overall pick by the Pirates in ...
6/25 Throw the Challenge Flag: Around The Minors 6/24/12 : It was a pretty rough day for the minor league affiliates of the Pittsburgh Pirates. State College was the only team to win. Bradenton ...
6/21 Throw the Challenge Flag: Around The Minors 6/20/12 : West Virginia was the only affiliate with the night off. They will return to action from their All-Star break on Thursday night.
AAA ...
6/20 North Side Notch: 6/20 MiLB Recap: Gerrit Cole makes AA debut : Everyone but West Virginia in action today. Indianapolis 10, Gwinnett 2 – Daniel Cabrera started and gave up 1 run over ...
6/20 North Side Notch: 6/19 MiLB Recap: Jameson Taillon bounces back with 7 shutout innings : Everyone but West Virginia in action today. Indianapolis 2, Gwinnett 1 – Jeff Locke gave up just 1 run over 6 innings while ...
6/20 Throw the Challenge Flag: Around The Minors 6/19/12 : West Virginia was the only affiliate with the night off. It was the last day of their All-Star break.
AAA - Indianapolis Indians ...
6/18 North Side Notch: 6/17 MiLB Recap: Justin Wilson and Nick Kingham with solid starts : Once again, no Bradenton as the FSL is on its All-Star break. Indianapolis 2, Charlotte 1 – Justin Wilson gave up just 1 ...
6/2 MLB Dirt: 2012 MLB Mock Draft: Final Edition : The MLB Draft is Monday and we are only a few days away. This is our final mock draft and we went all out for this one. Jonathan ...
News -- May 2012
5/22 MLB Dirt: 2012 MLB Mock Draft: May Edition : The draft is under two weeks away and with that, we are really starting to get an idea of where players may be going and an idea ...
5/7 Raise the Jolly Roger: A trip around the minors : Since we’re no longer running the daily minor league updates (see Pirates Prospects or some of the other blogs if you’re ...
News -- April 2012
4/16 MLB Dirt: 2012 MLB Mock Draft: April Edition : The draft is getting closer and closer and its time for the second edition of our MLB Mock draft. We rolled out our first one ...
4/7 Raise the Jolly Roger: Off-day news and notes : The off day after Opening Day is always annoying, but it’s a lot more annoying this year after a 1-0 loss (as opposed to ...
4/4 Raise the Jolly Roger: Phillies 7, Pirates 2 : Finally, we’re done with spring training games! Some quick news and notes: The Pirates will hold a workout at PNC Park at ...
News -- March 2012
3/15 Buccos Buzz: Pirates Score 10 in First Inning, 17 in Win Over Minnesota Twins : The Pittsburgh Pirates bats sure are out this spring. The Bucs scored ten times in the first inning and added seven more on 19 ...
3/6 The "Mc" Effect: 3/5 Recap | Bucs Bring the Bats, Pirates 10 Orioles 3 : 10 runs, 18 hits. The Pirates absolutely wrecked the Baltimore Orioles under the lights, scoring in each of the first five innings. ...
News -- February 2012
2/24 MLBTradeRumors: Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Beane, Braun, Burnett, Minor : On this date in 1966, the Braves signed Tom Seaver out of the University of Southern California. The contract was later voided ...
2/22 MLB Dirt: 2012 Pittsburgh Pirates Top 16 Prospects : The Pittsburgh Pirates spent just over $17M in last year’s draft to make sure they helped stock a farm system that has ...
2/17 This is Getting Old: 2012 TiGO Top Ten Prospects : Here we go. Quick note about my Top Ten, it’s going to look different than most. My opinions are based on seeing ...
2/9 The "Mc" Effect: Which Type Of Farm System Would You Want? (Poll) : There has been a ton of prospect talk recently in the baseball world. Keith Law is the most recent big league source to release ...
News -- November 2011
11/29 Mastersball.com: Interesting Comings & Goings : As you probably know MLB’s General Manager Meetings will be held next week in Dallas, Texas. We are sure to see several free ...
11/29 Through The Fence Baseball: Top 50 MLB prospects for 2012: Nos. 50 thru 26 : During the now-concluded Arizona Fall League, we got a chance to look at some of the game’s best prospects from each team. Some ...
11/28 Raise the Jolly Roger: News and notes: Paul released, CBA, interest in Cook? : Some Monday afternoon Bucs tidbits: Xavier Paul cleared waivers today and was released. X-man 2.0 came in handy a couple times ...
11/23 The "Mc" Effect: New CBA Puts Pressure on Prospects : The new Collective Bargaining Agreement for Major League Baseball was announced today, and it was not kind to the Pirates. Basically, ...
11/17 Seedlings to Stars: 2011 S2S FSL All-Star Team: OF Robbie Grossman : The 2011 Advanced-A Florida State League season is officially in the books. Well, to be exact the season ended over two months ...
11/16 The "Mc" Effect: Alex Presley's Trade Value via Pirates Prospects : More great stuff from Pirates Prospects in the past few days, including an article about the trade value of Alex Presley. This ...
11/12 Raise the Jolly Roger: News and notes: Santiago, Grossman, 2012 Promotions : There were a few notable bits of Bucs news on Friday… The Pirates are reportedly interested in Ramon Santiago as a potential ...
11/7 NY Baseball Digest: Plenty of Stars Shine at the Rising Stars Game : In what has quickly become a haven for Major League scouts and Executives, the prestigious Arizona Fall League held its sixth ...
11/7 Seedlings to Stars: The Seedlings To Stars 2012 Top 100 Prospects, #61: Robbie Grossman : Name: Robbie Grossman DOB: 9/16/89 Organization: Pirates Position: Outfield Notable 2011 Stats: .294/.418/.451 with 34 2B, 2 3B, ...
11/3 Mastersball.com: Bryce Harper: First Swing : OK, so it was not his first swing of the game.
That is, after Todd and I met Perry Van Hook and Don Drooker in Surprise Tuesday ...
11/2 The Golden Sombrero: Rosters finalized for Arizona Fall League Rising Stars Game : On Tuesday afternoon, Major League Baseball and the Arizona Fall League announced this year’s parti**** for the 2011 Rising ...
News -- October 2011
10/26 Call to the Pen: Arizona Fall League Recap : The Arizona Fall League only featured two contests Tuesday, as the third was postponed. With the short slate, the other two ...
10/26 Raise the Jolly Roger: News and notes : A few notes as the World Series wraps up… Out in Arizona, Robbie Grossman is still destroying the ball and Gerrit Cole had ...
10/20 Through The Fence Baseball: Top hitting prospects making their case at the Arizona Fall League : The ball is jumping off the bats in Arizona this year. With most pitchers working on specific aspects of their game, mixed with ...
10/9 Raise the Jolly Roger: 2011 Arizona Fall League Tracker : Here’s a quick summary of how Pirates prospects in the Arizona Fall League are performing this season. It will be updated ...
10/5 Mastersball.com: A 6th Inning Hat Trick for Surprise : In the middle of a pitchers' duel the Surprise Saguaros erupted for back to back to back home runs and took a 4-0 lead over the ...
10/5 Raise the Jolly Roger: News and notes : Here are some Bucs links in case you’re tired of trying to decide which playoff team we dislike the least… Arizona ...
10/4 Through The Fence Baseball: 25 players to watch during the Arizona Fall League : Today — Tuesday, October 4 — some of the game’s top prospects will come together to play in the annual Arizona Fall ...
News -- September 2011
9/23 Raise the Jolly Roger: GAMEDAY: Reds at Pirates : Reds (76-80) at Pirates (69-87) 7:05 PM EST–PNC Park, Pittsburgh Here is the MLB.com Gameday TV: ROOT Sports, FS Ohio ...