Jacob Stallings was walking around downtown with his family during Friday’s off-day when he ran into an old friend: Trevor Williams.
Later that night, he and his son watched Joe Musgrove’s start against the Rangers together. Only Jacob was able to make it through the night and see Musgrove complete the no-hitter.
“I was just watching as a fan and a friend,” Stallings said. “I just really wanted him to get it.”
While it obviously wasn’t as impressive as Musgrove’s outing, Williams’ first start with the Cubs went well, recording six strong innings and getting the win. So both are off to good starts with their new clubs.
And both pitchers are scheduled to make their returns to PNC Park this week.
Williams will pitch the series finale between the Pirates and Cubs Sunday, and Musgrove is in line to pitch Wednesday when the Padres come to town.
Stallings isn’t really excited about the idea of squaring off against them, though.
“I don’t really like facing any of my former teammates just in general. I really root for those guys and want them to do well, so facing them, especially in the Major Leagues, is not my ideal [situation].
“But I’m still going to try to hit a homer off him,” he added right after about Musgrove.
Stallings said his heart sunk to his stomach a couple times last night when the Rangers did hit a line drive. He was always one of Stallings’ favorite players to compete alongside, and Stallings eventually became Musgrove’s personal catcher in 2019, which was the first step towards making him an everyday player. It’s easy for Stallings to root for his friend.
For Wililams?
“It’s really weird, especially in Trevor’s case, because he’s on the Cubs,” Stallings said. “I don’t really ever find myself rooting for the Cubs, and now I’m rooting for him.
"He’s excited and enjoying it. As long as my friends are happy, then I’m happy.”
MORE PREGAME NOTES
• Stallings talked this spring about wanting to contribute more on offense this year, and while he is just 3-for-16 thus far, he's also drawn five walks, giving him a very healthy .381 on-base percentage thus far.
“I've been feeling pretty good," he said. "I've had some really hard line outs that just haven’t found holes. I had a good opening day and I had a good one the other day… I’m just trying to have quality at-bats and getting in a good position to hit on time."
• Good news on the Ke'Bryan Hayes' injury front: The third baseman is doing more baseball activities, including fielding ground balls, Derek Shelton said. Last week he was having a hard time squeezing the glove, which is why the Pirates ultimately decided to put him on the injured list.
He is eligible to come off the IL on Wednesday, but there's no guarantee the Pirates will activate him then or give him a little more down time.
"It's not something we're going to rush," Shelton said. "The one thing that we have talked about a ton and Ke'Bryan is ahead of his years in a lot of ways. But he's been extremely transparent on how he feels, which is important for a young kid. So we'll see where he's at today and kind of move forward."
• Mitch Keller will be getting the start Saturday, and will try to finally get on track. After a shaky spring, he walked four and allowed three runs over three innings in his first start of the season Sunday.
"I think the biggest thing is just keeping the stuff in the zone," Shelton said. "We know that he has really good stuff. It's just a matter of making sure we put it in the zone. Those are the things we've been talking about and working on and you know those are the things we're hoping to see."
• Shelton began his pregame availability by offering his condolences to the family of Phil Coyne. Coyne worked 81 years, and an estimated over 6,000 games, as an usher for the Pirates. He passed away Friday at the age of 102.
"Anybody that dedicates that much of their life to anything but to the Pirates is really cool," Shelton said. "I mean working at Forbes Field, seeing Babe Ruth, that's like living legend type stuff. It's kind of cool. My heart goes out to him and his family and want to thank him for everything he did for the Pirates for a long time."
