PIRATES PULL OFF MLB FEAT NOT SEEN SINCE WILLIE MAYS’ DAYS WITH THE GIANTS
The Pittsburgh Pirates continue to show improvement for the fourth consecutive season, sitting at 37-39 on the season after a 4-3 win over the Tampa Bay Rays that saw the team accomplish a very unique feat.
22-year-old pitcher Jared Jones earned the win for the Pirates, while Pittsburgh veteran Andrew McCutchen tripled off the right-field wall with one out and ended up scoring on Bryan Reynolds’ RBI single. 36-year-old Aroldis Chapman earned the save.
That was a unique set of circumstances for the Pirates, per OptaSTATS:
“The Pirates are the 1st team to have 36+ year olds record a save (Aroldis Chapman) and 3B (Andrew McCutchen) while a 22-year-old (or younger) recorded the win (Jared Jones) since the Giants on August 12, 1970: SV – Don McMahon (40) 3B – Willie Mays (39) W – Don Carrithers (20)”
That’s not the only time that a feat involving Mays was equaled by the Pirates in this game. With his triple, McCutchen now has 50 triples for his career. The 2013 NL MVP is one of 12 players to have at least 2,000, 400 doubles, 50 triples, 300 home runs and 200 stolen bases, a list that includes Hall of Famers Mays, Hank Aaron, and Frank Robinson.
McCutchen reached several career milestones last season. He drew his 1,000th walk against Toronto on May 7, notched his 2,000th hit against the New York Mets on June 11 and knocked his 400th double June 24 at Miami.
The Pirates great suffered a season-ending partial tear of his left Achilles last Sept. 4, delaying his quest for 300 home runs until this season.
Pirates’ future is bright behind Paul Skenes as team continues to improve
After a miserable 2020 season that saw them go just 19-41, the Pirates have improved every season since. 2021 saw the Pirates win just 61 games, and they won 62 in 2022 before making a jump to 76 wins in 2023.
So far this season, Pittsburgh is 37-39 and just 1.5 games out of a potential NL Wild Card spot. And most importantly for the team, the future of the team is bright. The Pirates have substantial young talent, headed by highly touted pitcher Paul Skenes.
Skenes has been a monster on the mound this season. So far in his rookie campaign, the Pirates star is recording an impressive 2.29 ERA, 53 strikeouts, and a 0.992 WHIP. If he keeps that up, then Skenes should be taking home the NL Rookie of the Year award.
Skenes recently shared how his girlfriend, Olivia Dunne, is helping him along the way to becoming an MLB star for the Pirates.
Dunne is a superstar in her own right after becoming famous on social media while being a gymnast at LSU. During an interview on The MLB Network, Skenes reveals that she has helped him how to manage the hype of being a household name.
“It’s been great. She’s helped me in a lot of ways in terms of managing all the hype… How to manage everything that goes around being a pro athlete, [because] she’s kind of lived it.”
Skenes has the start on Sunday as the Pirates wrap up their series against the Rays.
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The post Pirates pull off MLB feat not seen since Willie Mays’ days with the Giants appeared first on ClutchPoints.
2024-06-23T04:01:38Z dg43tfdfdgfd