Pirates' Nick Gonzales: Making return to starting nine Monday
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Gonzales (face) will start at second base and bat cleanup in Monday's game against the Tigers.
The Pirates kept Gonzales out of the lineup for the final two games of their weekend series with the Red Sox after he exited Friday's 8-4 win due to a facial contusion, which he sustained when he was hit in the helmet by a pitch. The 27-year-old appears to be feeling better after a couple of days of rest and shift over from his usual spot at third base to cover the keystone in place of Brandon Lowe, who will serve as the Pirates' designated hitter Monday.
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Pirates' Nick Gonzales: Remaining out of lineup
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Gonzales will be out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Red Sox while he continues to recover from a facial contusion, MLB.com reports.
He'll be relegated to the bench for the second day in a row after exiting Friday's 8-4 win when he was hit in the helmet by a pitch in the fifth inning. Gonzales was cleared for full activities Saturday and was available off the bench, but he went unused in the Pirates' 4-0 loss. Nick Yorke will draw the start at third base in Gonzales' stead Sunday, but the latter player could be ready to return to the starting nine in Monday's series opener versus the Tigers.
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Pirates' Nick Gonzales: Available off bench
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Gonzales (face) isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Red Sox.
Gonzales will begin Saturday's contest on the bench after taking a pitch off his head Friday, but the team confirmed before the game that he's been cleared for activity and will be available to play if needed, per Colin Beazley of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Jared Triolo steps in at third base, batting ninth.
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Pirates' Nick Gonzales: Exits after HBP
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Gonzales was removed from Friday's game against the Red Sox after getting hit on the head by a pitch.
Gonzales was taken out of the game immediately after taking a 94-mph fastball off his helmet in the fifth inning. He's been diagnosed with a facial contusion and is considered day-to-day by the team. Jared Triolo would likely be next in line to start at third base if Gonzales has to miss extra time.
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Pirates' Nick Gonzales: Two runs scored in loss
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Gonzales went 2-for-3 with a double and two runs scored in Wednesday's 8-2 loss to the Marlins.
Gonzales scored on a throwing error and a sacrifice fly for Pittsburgh's only two runs of the game. The Pirates are now 1-7 since the trade deadline, but Gonzales is third in the National League with a .307 average. The infielder is also up to 64 runs, a .760 OPS and 53 RBI across 478 plate appearances on the season.
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Pirates' Nick Gonzales: Collects three RBI vs. Mets
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Gonzales went 1-for-5 with a double and three RBI during the Pirates' 9-0 win over the Mets on Saturday.
Gonzales got the Pirates on the board with an RBI in the first inning before extending the team's lead to 8-0 with a two-run double in the fourth. His three RBI matched a season high that he set against the Astros on June 3, and he has gone 6-for-15 with two extra-base hits over his last four games. On the year, Gonzales is slashing .309/.362/.402 with five steals, six home runs and 53 RBI over 467 plate appearances.
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Pirates' Nick Gonzales: Big day in twin bill
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Gonzales went 4-for-8 with a solo home run and two additional runs scored across both games of Wednesday's doubleheader split with the Yankees.
The infielder took Gerrit Cole deep in the matinee before accounting for two of the Pirates' three hits in the nightcap. Gonzales has six homers on the season, and three of them have come in July as he's compiled a dazzling .397/.461/.618 slash line through 17 games on the month with six doubles, 11 RBI and 14 runs.
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Pirates' Nick Gonzales: Not in Monday's lineup
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Gonzales is not in the Pirates' starting lineup against the Phillies on Monday.
The Pirates will role with the lefty-hitting Tyler Callihan at third base, who will bat seventh and face Phillies' right-hander Aaron Nola in Monday's series opener. Gonzales has reached base safely in six of his last seven games, going 9-for-24 (.375) with one home run, two RBI and six runs scored in that span.
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Pirates' Nick Gonzales: Blasts first homer
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Gonzales went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run, a walk and two runs scored Sunday against the Twins.
Gonzales has hit for a relatively empty .303 batting average across 216 plate appearances this season, though he managed to end his home-run drought with a two-run homer in the third inning. He still has only a .061 ISO on the campaign, though he has hit either fourth or fifth in Pittsburgh's order in seven of his last eight starts. Gonzales' playing time should also be solidified in the short term while Konnor Griffin (elbow) is sidelined.
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Pirates' Nick Gonzales: Exits early Thursday
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Gonzales exited Thursday's contest against the Cubs in the fourth inning due to an apparent injury, Danny Demilio of PittsburghBaseballNow.com reports.
Gonzales was spotted limping out of the box on a flyout in the bottom of the second inning, and he was ultimately removed from the game when the Pirates took the field defensively for the top of the fourth. Tyler Callihan replaced him at third base. More information on Gonzales' status will likely be provided in the near future.
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Pirates' Nick Gonzales: Raps out four hits in win
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Gonzales went 4-for-6 with a double and a run scored in Saturday's 13-3 win over the Giants.
Gonzales' bat had been cooling off earlier in the week, as he entered Saturday on an 0-for-11 skid. He bounced back with his first four-hit game of the season, which was his third multi-hit effort of May. The infielder has made consistent contact eary this year, batting .323 with a .758 OPS, 17 RBI, 16 runs scored, three stolen bases and six doubles across 36 contests. He has yet to hit a home run, though he's never been a major power threat with no more than seven long balls in a big-league season. Gonzales has earned a near full-time role this season, playing at third base against right-handed pitchers and at second against southpaws.
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Pirates' Nick Gonzales: Taking back playing time
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Gonzales went 1-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored Friday against the Brewers.
Gonzales was briefly overtaken by Nick Yorke for playing time in mid-April, but Gonzales started his fifth consecutive game Friday -- the last three of which have come at third base. He drove in a run in the fourth inning with an RBI single, and he later scored a run after reaching base on an error. Gonzales has tallied at least one hit in each of his last five starts and has gone 8-for-19 with two RBI, three runs scored and a stolen base in that span.
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Pirates' Nick Gonzales: Riding pine Saturday
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Gonzales isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Rays.
Gonzales will take a seat Saturday after going 3-for-16 with three RBI during his stretch of four consecutive starts. His absence will allow Nick Yorke to bat sixth while starting at third base.
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Pirates' Nick Gonzales: Sitting in second straight game
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Gonzales is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Cubs.
Gonzales is on the bench for a second straight game. He's underwhelmed to begin the season with a .267/.313/.333 slash line over 48 plate appearances, and the 26-year-old looks as though he'll have to settle for a utility role with Nick Yorke (.969 OPS over 37 plate appearances) staking a strong claim to the starting job at third base while Jared Triolo (knee) is on the shelf.
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Pirates' Nick Gonzales: Drives in pair
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Gonzales went 2-for-5 with a double, two RBI and a run scored Wednesday against the Reds.
Gonzales has been in the lineup for all six games early in the season, though he was moved up the order to hit second Tuesday. Both of his knocks came late in the game, highlighted by a two-RBI single in the ninth inning. Gonzales has been solid to start the campaign, collecting at least one hit in five of six contests while driving in five and scoring four runs.
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Pirates' Nick Gonzales: Set to see most starts at 3B
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Pirates manager Don Kelly said Sunday that Gonzales is slated to see most of his playing time at third base to begin the season, Colin Beazley of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.
Gonzales entered spring training poised to take over as the Pirates' primary shortstop in 2026 after making his 11 of his final 13 starts at that position last season once Isiah Kiner-Falefa was out of the picture upon being claimed off waivers by Toronto. In a somewhat surprising decision, however, Kelly has opted to move Jared Triolo -- who secured a Gold Glove as a utility man in 2024 -- off of third base with the plan to use him at shortstop on an everyday basis. Gonzales should still be comfortable at third base after logging four starts at that spot in spring training, and he's expected to quickly gain eligibility at that position in most fantasy leagues while also carrying over eligibility at second base from 2025. He'll likely take longer to attain eligibility at shortstop, unless Triolo misses time with an injury early in the season.
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Pirates' Nick Gonzales: Taking Wednesday off
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Gonzales is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Orioles.
Gonzales will receive what appears to be a routine maintenance day after he started in each of the Bucs' last 12 games while slashing .250/.294/.333 with six runs and three RBI. Nick Yorke will fill in for Gonzales at second base and will bat sixth.
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Pirates' Nick Gonzales: Day off Tuesday
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Gonzales is absent from the lineup for Tuesday's game in St. Louis.
It's a routine day off for Gonzales, who will take a modest nine-game hitting streak to the bench. Liover Peguero is covering second base and batting eighth for the Pirates.
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Pirates' Nick Gonzales: Beginning on bench Saturday
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Gonzales is not in Saturday's starting lineup versus Arizona.
Gonzales is getting his first rest since the All-Star break after going 0-for-14 with five strikeouts over his past three contests. Liover Peguero is starting at the keystone in Gonzales' stead Saturday.
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Pirates' Nick Gonzales: Three hits against White Sox
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Gonzales went 3-for-5 with a double, an RBI and a run scored Saturday against the White Sox.
Gonzales reached base in each of his first three at-bats, highlighted by an RBI double in the fifth inning. It was his first multi-hit effort since July 4, and he entered Saturday's game hitting just .097 across his last nine contests. Despite the slow stretch, Gonzales is still batting .271/.327/.429 across 153 plate appearances for the season.
