The Pittsburgh Pirates open their regular season this afternoon against the Boston Red Sox. First-pitch is 2:05pm. Hear the game on WISR 680am following “It’s Your Turn with Dave Malarkey”.
Gerrit Cole will start for the Bucs. Rick Porcello for the Red Sox.
The Pirates finalized their 25-man roster to begin the season over the weekend. They sent Rule-5 pitcher Tyler Webb back to the New York Yankees, and sent outfielder Jose Osuna to Triple-A. Utility players Phil Gosselin and Alen Hanson won the final two bench spots.
Three season-opening day games were played Sunday in Major League Baseball:
St. Louis defeated the defending world champion Chicago Cubs 4-3. Tampa Bay defeated the New York Yankees 7-3. Arizona defeated the San Francisco Giants 6-5. Former Pirates closer Mark Melancon allowed a double and three singles after retiring the first two batters in the ninth inning for a Diamondbacks walk-off victory. Melancon signed a four-year $62 million deal with the Giants in the off-season. Giants starting pitcher Madison Bumgarner hit two home runs in the loss, becoming the first starting pitcher in MLB history to hit two opening day home runs.
