(File Photo: Source for Photo: Pittsburgh Pirates’ Paul Skenes pitches in the first inning of a baseball game against the Cleveland Guardians in Cleveland, Sunday, July 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

CLEVELAND (AP) — Paul Skenes allowed one run and struck out eight in seven innings and the Pittsburgh Pirates defeated the Cleveland Guardians 7-1 on Sunday.

Skenes (9-8) went at least seven innings for the first time since May 12. The All-Star right-hander gave up seven hits.

After allowing eight runs (seven earned) in four innings in a 10-6 loss at Philadelphia on July 1, Skenes is 3-0 with a 2.46 ERA.

Billy Cook had a career-high three hits and drove in two runs, Esmerlyn Valdez continued his torrid July with a two-run homer in the ninth and Nick Gonzales had two doubles as the Pirates won their fifth straight interleague series. They have gone 11-4 in that span.

Steven Kwan had two hits for Cleveland, which had won its past three series against Pittsburgh.

Cook gave Pittsburgh a 1-0 lead in the second with a base hit to right off Cleveland starter Joey Cantillo (8-5) to drive in Gonzales.

The Pittsburgh center fielder led off the fifth with a triple off the wall in the right-field corner before scoring when Cleveland catcher Austin Hedges had a throwing error on a pickoff attempt at third.

Cook extended the Pirates’ lead to 4-1 in the sixth with an RBI single up the middle to score Jacob Gonzalez.

Valdez’s drive down the left-field line off Will Dion in the ninth made him the sixth Pirates rookie with at least 20 RBIs in a calendar month.

Up next

Pirates: Head to New York for a three-game series against the Yankees. All-Star RHP Braxton Ashcraft (9-3, 3.49 ERA) gets the start on Monday against LHP Ryan Weathers (3-7, 4.15 ERA).

Guardians: RHP Tanner Bibee (3-9, 3.90 ERA) goes on Monday when Cleveland opens a four-game set against Minnesota and RHP Joe Ryan (6-5, 2.85 ERA).

(File Photo: Source for Photo: Cleveland Guardians catcher Patrick Bailey, left, douses Travis Bazzana, right, with a cooler after Bazzana hit a game winning home run in the ninth inning of the second baseball game of a split doubleheader against the Pittsburgh Pirates in Cleveland, Saturday, June 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

CLEVELAND (AP) — Rookie All-Star Travis Bazzana hit a two-run homer to center field in the ninth inning for his first career walk-off hit and the Cleveland Guardians rallied for a 5-3 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates Saturday night to split in a doubleheader.

The Pirates won the first game 7-1.

Patrick Bailey led off the ninth with a single to right, Steven Kwan followed with a double down the left-field line. Bailey tried to score from first but was tagged out at home by Pittsburgh catcher Rafael Flores Jr. after the relay throw by third baseman Nick Gonzales.

Bazzana — the top overall pick in the 2024 amateur draft — then connected on a 1-0 changeup by Dennis Santana (2-5) and drove it 414 feet for his eighth homer of the season and give Cleveland its fourth walk-off win of the season.

Cade Smith (3-1), the Guardians’ seventh pitcher of the night, got the win after retiring the Pirates in order in the ninth. Kwan had three hits.

Pittsburgh jumped out to a 3-0 lead after four innings, which included an improbable RBI double by Esmerlyn Valdez in the third. With one out and a runner on second, Valdez hit a towering fly ball to shallow center. Outfielder Petey Halpin lost the ball in the lights and hazy conditions as Cleveland was still dealing with smoke from wildfires in Canada.

The ball landed in right center and was picked up by right fielder David Fry. Gonzales beat the throw home to make it 2-0. According to Statcast, the ball reached an apex of 204 feet and had a hang time of 7.4 seconds.

Cleveland tied it in the eighth with three runs. Chase DeLauter’s base hit to right drove in Kwan, Brayan Rocchio scored on a wild pitch and DeLauter scored on Kahlil Watson’s single to right.

Up next

NL All-Star Paul Skenes (8-8, 3.57 ERA) goes for Pittsburgh. Cleveland will go with lefty Joey Cantillo (8-4, 3.56 ERA) in the series finale.

(File Photo: Source for Photo: Pittsburgh Pirates’ Esmerlyn Valdez gestures as he runs the bases with a home run in the sixth inning of the first baseball game of a split doubleheader against the Cleveland Guardians in Cleveland, Saturday, June 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

CLEVELAND (AP) — Esmerlyn Valdez and Jacob Gonzalez hit two-run homers, Jared Jones struck out nine in five innings and the Pittsburgh Pirates defeated the Cleveland Guardians 7-1 on Saturday in the first game of a doubleheader.

Nick Gonzales added a solo shot in the sixth inning as the Pirates extended their winning streak to four games. At 51-47, it is the first time they are at least four games over .500 after the All-Star break since Sept. 25, 2018.

Cleveland All-Star rookie second baseman Travis Bazzana had an RBI triple in the third inning to drive in Steven Kwan for the lone run as the Guardians had a four-game winning streak snapped.

Pittsburgh’s 128 homers are fifth in the majors. Gonzalez put the Pirates on the board with a two-run drive to right field that went 428 feet off Cleveland starter Gavin Williams (10-5). Valdez extended Pittsburgh’s advantage to 4-1 in the sixth when he connected on a fastball and drove it over the wall in right-center.

Jones (2-1) allowed one run on three hits and walked one. After throwing six perfect innings in a no decision against Atlanta on July 8, the right-hander retired the first eight Cleveland hitters before Kwan’s base hit to left. Dating back to Jones’ July 2 outing against Philadelphia, he became only the third Pirates’ pitcher since 1957 to retire at least 30 batters in a row. Harvey Haddix retired 38 straight during two outings in 1959 and Jim Bibby got out 32 straight across two games in 1981.

Williams gave up five runs on seven hits in six innings. It was the second time in the right-hander’s four-year career he has allowed three home runs in a game.

Up next

Cleveland’s Logan Allen makes his first start of the year in the nightcap. The Pirates will have Mason Montgomery start.

Pittsburgh Pirates (50-47, fourth in the NL Central) vs. Cleveland Guardians (51-46, second in the AL Central)

Cleveland; Friday, 7:10 p.m. EDT

PITCHING PROBABLES: Pirates: Jared Jones (1-1, 4.37 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, 39 strikeouts); Guardians: Gavin Williams (10-4, 3.81 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, 134 strikeouts)

LINE: Guardians -132, Pirates +108; over/under is 7 1/2 runs

BOTTOM LINE: The Pittsburgh Pirates are looking to continue a three-game win streak with a victory over the Cleveland Guardians.

Cleveland has a 24-22 record in home games and a 51-46 record overall. The Guardians have a 36-17 record in games when they record at least eight hits.

Pittsburgh is 50-47 overall and 23-23 on the road. The Pirates have a 25-8 record in games when they did not allow a home run.

The matchup Friday is the first meeting of the season between the two clubs.

TOP PERFORMERS: Chase DeLauter leads the Guardians with 11 home runs while slugging .448. Brayan Rocchio is 12 for 37 with a double, three home runs and 10 RBIs over the past 10 games.

Nick Gonzales has a .308 batting average to lead the Pirates, and has 14 doubles, a triple and four home runs. Jake Mangum is 15 for 40 with a home run and five RBIs over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Guardians: 6-4, .232 batting average, 3.23 ERA, outscored opponents by six runs

Pirates: 7-3, .300 batting average, 4.65 ERA, outscored opponents by 24 runs

INJURIES: Guardians: Angel Martinez: 10-Day IL (foot), Tim Herrin: 15-Day IL (elbow), Jose Ramirez: 10-Day IL (hand)

Pirates: Konnor Griffin: 60-Day IL (finger), Endy Rodriguez: 10-Day IL (lower body), Evan Sisk: 15-Day IL (elbow), Wilber Dotel: 15-Day IL (lat), Chris Devenski: 60-Day IL (illness), Spencer Horwitz: 10-Day IL (hamstring), Oneil Cruz: 10-Day IL (hand)

(Pittsburgh, Pa) According to a release from the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Florida Everblades have been named as the organization’s ECHL affiliate, according to President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Kyle Dubas. The announcement ends their longtime affiliation with the Wheeling Nailers.

“The Penguins are excited to partner with the Florida Everblades, who are one of the premier organizations in the ECHL,” said Penguins Assistant General Manager Jason Spezza. “As an organization, our player development system puts a strong emphasis on a three-tiered development model between the NHL, AHL and ECHL, and we feel that Florida’s championship pedigree and winning environment will help our players reach their maximum potential. Under the leadership of Craig Brush and Head Coach Brad Ralph, the Everblades have won four of the last five Kelly Cup championships and our goal to provide Coach Ralph with quality prospects that can continue to help the Everblades bring championship hockey to Southwest Florida.”

When the Hoffmann Family of Companies completed their acquisition of the Penguins, the Florida Everblades were expected to become their affiliate due to the Hoffman family already owning the team.

(File Photo: Source for Photo: Pittsburgh Penguins’ Sidney Crosby, right, reacts behind Philadelphia Flyers’ Luke Glendening after scoring during the first period of Game 4 in the first round of the Stanley Cup hockey playoff series Saturday, April 25, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum))

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Pittsburgh, PA) The full Pittsburgh Penguins’ 2026-2027 season schedule will be released today.

The Penguins’ season opener for that season will begin on the road against their in-state rivals, the Philadelphia Flyers, on Wednesday, September 30th.

This is a rematch of the two teams’ first round matchup of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs, when the Flyers eliminated the Penguins by winning the series 4-2.

This game between the Flyers and the Penguins is part of a doubleheader which will be broadcast nationally.

The Penguins’ 2026-2027 season home opener will be on Tuesday, October 3rd against the Montreal Canadiens.

The Canadiens made it to the 2026 NHL Eastern Conference Finals and lost the series 4-1 to the eventual 2026 Stanley Cup Champions, the Carolina Hurricanes.

The Penguins will also play the Washington Capitals on October 7th for the Capitals’ home opener for the 2026-2027 season.

That matchup features the longtime rivalry between Sidney Crosby of the Penguins and Alexander Ovechkin of the Capitals.

(Credit and Caption for Photo: Aliquippa (23) Tikey Hayes breaks free from Avonworth (5) Carson Bellinger during a non-section football game at Avonworth High School on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024. (Justin Guido/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Lincoln, NE) Sean Callahan of On3 Sports first announced in a report that former Aliquippa and Penn State running back Tikey Hayes is set to commit to the University of Nebraska for the 2026 college football season.

Hayes spent the spring semester at Iowa Western Community College after Penn State fired head coach James Franklin during his freshman season.

While at Aliquippa, Hayes was one of the top running backs in the country.

He was rated as a four-star prospect by Rivals and was rated as a three-star prospect by ESPN, 247 Sports and On3.

Hayes was also the No. 20 ranked running back and the No. 7 prospect in Pennsylvania.   

(File Photo: Source for Photo: Pittsburgh Penguins’ Anthony Mantha (39) celebrates his second goal of the game during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Carolina Hurricanes in Pittsburgh, Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2025. (Gene J. Puskar/AP)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Pittsburgh, PA) The New Jersey Devils announced today that have signed forward Anthony Mantha to a two-year contract worth $9.5 million.

The thirty-one-year-old Mantha played last season with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Mantha finished with a career-high 33 goals and 64 points during last season’s regular season for the Penguins.

(Credit for Photo: Photo Courtesy of the Associated Press)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Pittsburgh, PA) Pittsburgh Penguins President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Kyle Dubas announced yesterday that the Penguins have signed forward Nick Robertson to a two-year contract. The average annual value of this deal is $3.25 million for the twenty-four-year-old Robertson. 

The Penguins acquired Robertson from the Toronto Maple Leafs on July 1st in exchange for a 2028 fourth-round NHL draft pick. 

Robertson has played his last six NHL seasons with the Maple Leafs.

He recorded career highs with 16 goals, 16 assists and 32 points in 78 games with the Maple Leafs last season.