The All-Star break is over and baseball returns tonight, with the Pirates returning home from a six-game road trip out west. Greg Brown previews the series opener.
Veteran left-hander Rich Hill (7-9, 4.78 ERA) will get the start tonight for the Pirates against the Giants’ righty Ross Stripling (0-2, 6.37 ERA).
Manager Derek Shelton is giving ace right-hander Mitch Keller a little extra time off after his one inning of work in the All-Star game on Tuesday. Keller is tied with two other pitchers for the fifth-most innings pitched in the major leagues this season. Shelton has tabbed Johan Oviedo to pitch tomorrow against the Giants and Osvaldo Bido will take the ball on Sunday. Then it will be Keller to start next week’s series against the Guardians, and the Pirates have not announced who the fifth starter will be. They recently demoted Luis Ortiz to Indianapolis, and former starter Roansy Contreras yesterday was transferred from Indianapolis to the Pirates’ Florida Complex League to work on his delivery before he returns to competition.
The Pirates’ 2024 schedule was released yesterday. They’ll open the season on the road against the Miami Marlins on March 28th. They will play four games at Miami and three at Washington before the home opener on April 5th against the Orioles at PNC Park. The schedule also includes a 4th of July home game against the Cardinals. The schedule also includes visits from the Red Sox in April, the Angels in May, the Twins and Rays in June, the Mariners in August, and Royals in September. Road trip highlights for the Bucs include visits to the A’s, Tigers, Blue Jays, Astros, Rangers, Guardians, and a season-ending three-game series at Yankee Stadium.
