The Pirates turned in another brutal performance Saturday night, falling 6-1 to the Angels in a game they desperately needed to win.

DiNardo and Doug break down another disappearing act from the offense against a left-handed pitcher, Braxton Ashcraft fading after three dominant innings, the decision to send Isaac Mattson back out for a second inning, and why the Pirates still don't seem to be managing games with the urgency their situation requires.

Bryan Reynolds provided essentially all of the offense with his 16th home run of the season, while Konnor Griffin, Esmerlyn Valdez and Oneil Cruz combined for seven strikeouts. Cruz also reached his 100th career stolen base before making a costly attempt to steal third.

Plus, Johan Ramirez continues to quietly put together a strong season and Paul Skenes takes the mound Sunday as the Pirates try to avoid being swept.

Download our app!

Use Promo Code NS930 for 30% off your first order at https://www.defer.coffee

Use Promo Code NORTHSHORENINE for $20 off your first order at https://www.seatgeek.com

LIKE and SUBSCRIBE with NOTIFICATIONS ON if you enjoyed the show!

NS9 MERCH: https://northshorenine.myshopify.com

►Patreon:

#pittsburghpirates

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Konnor Griffin is back, and it didn't take long for him to remind everyone what the Pirates have been missing.

Griffin's speed created the only run of the night as the Pirates beat the Angels 1-0, while Jared Jones delivered one of his best outings of the season. Jones tossed six scoreless innings, generated 19 whiffs on his slider and handed things off to Wilber Dotel and Mason Montgomery to finish the shutout.

Jim and Tyler break down Griffin's immediate impact, Jones' dominant slider, the surprising decision to use Dotel for six outs, Montgomery's continued emergence at the back end of the bullpen and where the Pirates stand after improving to 70-72.

The NS9 Postgame Show is powered by Primanti Brothers and North Shore Nine is presented by FanDuel.

Download the NS9 App:

Try Larine Co.:

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Jack Wilson is officially part of the Pirates Hall of Fame, and Alex Stumpf believes he absolutely belongs.

But Wilson’s induction raises a much bigger question about Pirates history: how do you properly honor the great players who spent their careers on teams that never won anything?

Alex looks back at the Pirates’ 20 consecutive losing seasons, why Wilson deserves his flowers despite never playing a meaningful game in Pittsburgh, and which players from those forgotten years could eventually join him in the Pirates Hall of Fame.

Read more from Alex at Book Rule Bucs:

Download the North Shore Nine app:

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Pirates somehow have life again. They’ve won five of their last six series, sit five games back in the Wild Card race, and now Konnor Griffin is expected to return to the lineup Friday.

Jim and DiNardo are live tonight to talk about what Griffin’s return means for the final 21 games, whether this team has actually done enough to make September interesting again, and why the Pirates may have finally stumbled into a bullpen formula that works.

Is this one last push, or just another reason to wonder what could’ve been?

Download our app!

Use Promo Code NS930 for 30% off your first order at https://www.defer.coffee

Use Promo Code NORTHSHORENINE for $20 off your first order at https://www.seatgeek.com

LIKE and SUBSCRIBE with NOTIFICATIONS ON if you enjoyed the show!

NS9 MERCH: https://northshorenine.myshopify.com

►Patreon:

#pittsburghpirates

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Pirates beat the Giants 5-2 to take the series in San Francisco and make it three straight series wins.

Cody and Doug break down a bizarre afternoon where the Pirates drew seven walks and scored all five of their runs without a run-scoring hit. They discuss Nick Gonzales staying in the batting-title race, Oneil Cruz continuing to look like the player everyone has been waiting for, and another successful Pirates bullpen game.

Plus, should Khristian Curtis be getting starts in September? The guys debate how Pittsburgh should use him down the stretch and whether the Pirates should still be managing every game like they have a legitimate shot at the Wild Card.

The North Shore Nine Podcast is presented by FanDuel. The NS9 Postgame Show is powered by Primanti Bros.

Download the NS9 app: https://northshorenine.com/get-app

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Pirates let another winnable game slip away Wednesday night, falling 5-4 to the Giants in 10 innings. Alex Stumpf looks at Carmen Mlodzinski’s three perfect innings, the decision to turn to Camilo Doval in extras and all of the smaller mistakes that helped sink Pittsburgh.

With the Pirates now 68-72 and running out of time to make anything of their postseason hopes, Alex explains why this season hasn’t been defined by one bad decision. It’s been “a thousand little paper cuts” from a talented team that has continued to underachieve.

Read more from Alex at Book Rule Bucs:

Download the NS9 app:

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Pirates had chance after chance to win this game and simply couldn’t finish the job.

Pittsburgh battled back from a 3-1 deficit to force extra innings, but a costly defensive mistake, another rough night with runners in scoring position and two Giants runs against Camilo Doval in the 10th proved too much in a 5-4 loss.

Jim and Neil break down Bubba Chandler’s start, the Pirates going 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position through nine innings, Oneil Cruz continuing to produce since returning from the IL, Carmen Mlodzinski throwing three perfect innings out of the bullpen and Don Kelly’s decision to turn to Doval in the 10th.

The NS9 Postgame Show is powered by Primanti Brothers. North Shore Nine is presented by FanDuel.

Download the NS9 app:

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Pirates somehow survived one of the wildest games of the season, beating the Giants 13-12 after scoring nine runs in an inning and later blowing a six-run lead.

Alex Stumpf explains why, despite the win, Tuesday's game felt like a perfect representation of why the Pirates are barely hanging onto postseason hopes. Paul Skenes couldn't finish five innings, the pitching staff walked eight, the bullpen nearly gave the game away and Pittsburgh once again showed why it hasn't been able to put together a sustained run this season.

Plus, Alex looks at the Pirates' 6-13 record over Skenes' last 19 starts and why a talented team has failed to turn that talent into meaningful October baseball.

CHAPTERS:

Check out Book Rule Bucs:

Download the NS9 App:

Try Larine and get up to 50% off:

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

What the hell was that?

The Pirates scored nine runs in the third inning, built an 11-5 lead, watched the Giants completely erase it and somehow still walked away with a 13-12 win at PNC Park.

Tyler and Neil break down one of the wildest games of the season, including a rough night for Paul Skenes, Pittsburgh’s ridiculous offensive explosion, another bullpen collapse and the bizarre ninth inning that finally ended it.

Download the NS9 app:

North Shore Nine is presented by FanDuel.

#Pirates #PittsburghPirates #MLB

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Pirates’ playoff odds may be nearly gone, but September is far from meaningless.

Alex Stumpf breaks down five things that still matter over the final month of the season, including what Camilo Doval can prove before an offseason decision, Konnor Griffin’s return, Braxton Ashcraft’s workload, whether Paul Skenes can finish looking like himself again, and the biggest question of all: what exactly can the Pirates count on from this offense heading into 2027?

OffBeat is presented by FanDuel.

Subscribe to North Shore Nine for daily Pittsburgh Pirates coverage.

Download the NS9 app: https://northshorenine.com/get-app

Read more from Alex Stumpf at Book Rule Bucs: https://bookrulebucs.substack.com/

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.