Pittsburg, PA
Pirates Take Shortstop from Texas in Second Round
PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates continue to select high school athletes in the 2024 MLB Draft, as they took a shorstop from Texas in the Second Round.
They drafted Wyatt Sanford from Independence High School in Frisco, Texas, just outside Dallas, with the No. 47 overall pick and the eighth pick of the Second Round.
With the 47th pick in the 2024 MLB Draft, the @Pirates select SS Wyatt Sanford. pic.twitter.com/1BWrzmxxvD
— Young Bucs (@YoungBucsPIT) July 15, 2024
Sanford works mostly at shorstop, but is also equipped to play in the middle of the infield and serve as a utility player.
MLB.com rates him as the No. 35 overall player on their draft board and the No. 6 overall shortstop. Perfect Game ranks him No. 26 overall, No. 8 shorstop and No. 4 in the state of Texas in the Class of 2024, respectively.
Sanford committed to Texas A&M and signed his National Letter of Intent, but both head coach Jim Schlossnagle leaving for Texas and a potential pick value of around $2 million might convince him to join the Pirates.
He had a great senior season for Independence earning Second Team All-American honors and winning the Defensive Player of the Year Award in District 10-5A.
Sanford stands at 6-foot-1 and 175 pounds and hits left-handed, while throwing right-handed. He is a great fielder and his speed benefits him on the base paths and as a shorstop. His hitting is good for his age, just 18 years old, but some improvement at the plate will make him a true starter in the MLB.
“One of the best defensive shortstops in the 2024 high school class, Sanford has range to both sides and solid-to-plus arm strength,” the scouting report on Sanford read. “There’s no doubt he can stay at the position, but his athleticism and tools would enable him to play almost anywhere on the diamond in a utility role. He produces consistent plus run times and is an asset on the bases.”
His family has history with the Pirates, as they drafted his father, Chance Sanford, in the 27th Round of the 1992 MLB Draft.
Sanford is the third player that the Pirates drafted so far in the 2024 MLB Draft, along with shorstop Konnor Griffin from Jackson Preparatory School in Jackson, Miss. and right-handed pitcher Levi Sterling out of Notre Dame High School in Los Angeles.
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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