Pittsburg, PA
Pirates Blow Late Lead, Get Swept by Nationals in Doubleheader
It wasn’t the best day to play two for the Pittsburgh Pirates on Saturday.
Pittsburgh was swept in their doubleheader against the Washington Nationals, dropping the first game 5-3 and blowing a two-run lead in the ninth inning en route to an 8-6 loss in the night-cap.
in the second game, the Pirates jumped out to a 3-0 lead before Washington clawed back to make it 4-4 heading into the eighth inning. Isiah Kiner-Falefa gave Pittsburgh the lead with an RBI single and added an insurance run on a fielder’s choice on a groundball to second base. Aroldis Chapman came on for a save and had the Nationals down to their final out with Drew Millas on second base.
Then things unraveled for the Pirates and Chapman.
A James Wood single trimmed the lead to one and he advanced to second base on a single from Andrés Chaparro. A pinch-hit two-run double from Illdemaro Vargas that hit off of Connor Joe’s glove gave Washington the lead 7-6 and it tacked on one more run on another double from Keibert Ruiz.
Chaparro and Ruiz each went 3-for-5. Chaparro hit a home run and drove in three runs, while Ruiz hit two doubles.
Colin Holderman came into the game and escaped the jam, but the damage had already been done. Pittsburgh went down in order against Kyle Finnegan to end the game. The save was Finnegan’s 36th of the season.
The loss was Chapman’s fifth of the season, dropping him to 5-5. Chapman is 6 of 11 in save opportunities this season. Mitch Keller pitched six innings, allowed seven hits, two runs and struck out eight batters.
Kiner-Falefa, Oneil Cruz and Jared Triolo each had multi-hit games for the Pirates.
In the first game of the doubleheader, Pittsburgh struggled to muster any offense, as it didn’t get its first hit until the seventh inning on a Nick Gonzales and he scored on a two-run home run from Rowdy Tellez. Pittsburgh loaded the bases with one out in the bottom of the ninth inning, but Finnegan got Bryan De la Cruz to ground into a double play to end the game.
Luis Ortiz took the loss, dropping to 6-5 on the season after allowing six hits and four runs (three earned). Nationals left-hander DJ Herz earned the win after pitching five no-hit innings and struck out three batters.
Pittsburgh will look to split the series on Sunday when they face the Nationals at 1:35 p.m. ET. Jared Jones will get the start for the Pirates, while Patrick Corbin will toe the slab for Washington.
Make sure to visit Pirates OnSI for the latest news, updates, interviews and insight on the Pittsburgh Pirates
Pittsburg, PA
About 5 pounds of bees removed from Acrisure Stadium scaffolding ahead of Morgan Wallen concerts
Acrisure Stadium is buzzing with excitement ahead of the back-to-back Morgan Wallen concerts. Except it’s not the fans generating all the excitement — it’s about 5 pounds of honeybees.
The Fine Family Apiary in Monongahela said it was contacted on Wednesday about a swarm of bees clustered on the stage scaffolding. The apiary put the swarm in a “nuc box” and took them home before moving the bees into full-size equipment.
Owner Al Fine estimates the swarm weighed about 4 to 5 pounds and consisted of 12,000 to 15,000 bees. All said, it took less than two hours to get the job done.
Why do bees swarm?
Swarming is how honeybees propagate, Fine explained. According to Penn State Extension, during swarming, the queen and about half the workers leave their home to establish a new nest. The bees will form a temporary cluster, hanging out while scouts search the surrounding area for a more permanent home in hollow spaces like tree cavities or, occasionally, the walls of a home.
Swarms can stick around for several hours or days until they’re ready to move, Penn State Extension says. Meanwhile, the colony left behind is temporarily without a leader until a new queen is established.
With the swarm at Acrisure Stadium removed, Morgan Wallen’s show is ready to go on. The country music megastar will bring his I’m The Problem Tour to Pittsburgh on June 5 and June 6, along with multiple acts like Brooks & Dunn and Ella Langley.
On Sept. 17, multi-platinum country music star Luke Bryan will bring his Farm Tour to 1846 Farms near Latrobe.
Westmoreland County is no stranger to large outdoor concerts. Some may remember the Rolling Rock Town Fair in the early 2000s, while others may recall Luke Bryan’s stop at a farm in South Huntingdon Township just two years ago. Now the country music superstar is returning to the area.
The Unity Township farm’s general manager, Aleisha Stas, gave KDKA a tour of the family farm, which dates back to before the Civil War. She says Bryan’s team first reached out after finding the farm on social media, but she says at first, she and her family thought it was too good to be true.
“This was around April Fools, so we thought it was an April Fools prank,” Stas said. “My whole family, we were like, there’s no way this is about to happen. But this has been incredible.”
Stas says Bryan’s team is handling everything logistically from parking and bathrooms to deciding exactly where the concert will be staged.
“If we have it on this side of the property, we can hold 12,000 people,” Stas said. “And if we have it on (the other side) of the property, it can be up to 20,000. But we have not determined that yet.”
Many of those decisions will be made as September gets closer. In the meantime, however, the farm is holding off on planting in certain fields until the final concert location is selected.
And while hosting thousands of people may sound a little intimidating, Stas says her family is excited to welcome fans to the farm for what they hope will be a memorable night.
“Obviously, we’ve never had this many people here before, so it will be a new thing for all of us, but we are not worried,” said Stas. “Luke Bryan’s team are experts with this, and I think it will go great.”
Tickets for this concert are currently on sale, and they will run you about $77 per person, plus tax for general admission.
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