It didn't take long for a smile to flash across Don Kelly's face as he sat down at the podium following the Pirates' 3-2 victory over the Braves which secured his first managerial win.
"You get soaked?" a reporter asked.
"I got drenched and it was cold. Really cold," Kelly responded.
It was a special moment tonight at PNC Park for the Butler, Pa. native who grew up in Mt. Lebanon, attended Point Park and made his major-league debut as a player with the Pirates. The win ended a seven-game losing streak and pushed the Pirates in the right direction following Derek Shelton's firing.
"(It feels) really good, especially the way the guys competed tonight and grinded it out," Kelly said. "Came through when they needed to. Felt the energy was good and the way they played was really impressive."
On this night, the first-time major-league manager couldn't hold back his smile:
GREG MACAFEE / DKPS
Don Kelly smiles after earning his first win tonight at PNC Park.
"I'm super happy for him. It was a good first one for him," David Bednar said after throwing a scoreless eighth inning. "I'm super excited for him to have this opportunity and really looking forward to going forward with this."
"I think he took a big, deep breath after the game," Jared Triolo said. "He let it soak in. It was cool to see that reaction out of him.”
Alexander Canario and Jared Triolo delivered solo home runs in the third and sixth innings as the Pirates recorded their first multi-home run game since April 27 and just their sixth of the season. Andrew McCutchen then plated the eventual game-winning run in the sixth inning with an RBI double off the top of the center field wall.
The three runs were all the Pirates would need as Bailey Falter delivered another lights out performance at home, throwing six innings of two hit ball while scattering two walks, striking out three and retiring 15 of the final 16 hitters he faced.
"DK has been amazing with me since I've been here," Falter said. "I know a lot of guys respect him. It was very good to see him get that managing dub today. It's safe to say that I feel like everyone was kinda playing for him tonight."
Chase Shugart, Caleb Ferguson and Bednar combined to throw two scoreless innings of relief while giving up two hits and recording five strikeouts. However, the Braves did make it interesting as they got to Dennis Santana for two runs in the ninth inning before the right-hander shut the door by getting Ozzie Albies to fly out to Oneil Cruz.
"That's baseball. That's fun," Kelly said of the ninth inning. "Everybody is on the edge of their seat and you know, Dennis did a great job of settling things down and coming through. He's a pro and that's the energy we're looking for."
Despite the excitement surrounding this win, the Pirates aren't overlooking the challenge ahead of them. They improved to 13-26 tonight but are still 13 games under .500 and in the basement of the National League Central standings.
They didn't commit an error or make any base-running mistakes tonight, but they only tallied five hits and struck out 12 times. They also didn't draw a walk for the first time in 27 games.
A win like this gives the Pirates a chance to breathe, but there's still more work to be done.
"We got one tomorrow," Triolo said. "Try to go win the series tomorrow and then win again on Sunday. Just keep stacking wins.”
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THE ASYLUM
Greg Macafee
3:11 am - 05.10.2025NORTH SHOREKelly's debut sees Pirates end losing streak
It didn't take long for a smile to flash across Don Kelly's face as he sat down at the podium following the Pirates' 3-2 victory over the Braves which secured his first managerial win.
"You get soaked?" a reporter asked.
"I got drenched and it was cold. Really cold," Kelly responded.
It was a special moment tonight at PNC Park for the Butler, Pa. native who grew up in Mt. Lebanon, attended Point Park and made his major-league debut as a player with the Pirates. The win ended a seven-game losing streak and pushed the Pirates in the right direction following Derek Shelton's firing.
"(It feels) really good, especially the way the guys competed tonight and grinded it out," Kelly said. "Came through when they needed to. Felt the energy was good and the way they played was really impressive."
On this night, the first-time major-league manager couldn't hold back his smile:
GREG MACAFEE / DKPS
Don Kelly smiles after earning his first win tonight at PNC Park.
"I'm super happy for him. It was a good first one for him," David Bednar said after throwing a scoreless eighth inning. "I'm super excited for him to have this opportunity and really looking forward to going forward with this."
"I think he took a big, deep breath after the game," Jared Triolo said. "He let it soak in. It was cool to see that reaction out of him.”
Alexander Canario and Jared Triolo delivered solo home runs in the third and sixth innings as the Pirates recorded their first multi-home run game since April 27 and just their sixth of the season. Andrew McCutchen then plated the eventual game-winning run in the sixth inning with an RBI double off the top of the center field wall.
The three runs were all the Pirates would need as Bailey Falter delivered another lights out performance at home, throwing six innings of two hit ball while scattering two walks, striking out three and retiring 15 of the final 16 hitters he faced.
"DK has been amazing with me since I've been here," Falter said. "I know a lot of guys respect him. It was very good to see him get that managing dub today. It's safe to say that I feel like everyone was kinda playing for him tonight."
Chase Shugart, Caleb Ferguson and Bednar combined to throw two scoreless innings of relief while giving up two hits and recording five strikeouts. However, the Braves did make it interesting as they got to Dennis Santana for two runs in the ninth inning before the right-hander shut the door by getting Ozzie Albies to fly out to Oneil Cruz.
"That's baseball. That's fun," Kelly said of the ninth inning. "Everybody is on the edge of their seat and you know, Dennis did a great job of settling things down and coming through. He's a pro and that's the energy we're looking for."
Despite the excitement surrounding this win, the Pirates aren't overlooking the challenge ahead of them. They improved to 13-26 tonight but are still 13 games under .500 and in the basement of the National League Central standings.
They didn't commit an error or make any base-running mistakes tonight, but they only tallied five hits and struck out 12 times. They also didn't draw a walk for the first time in 27 games.
A win like this gives the Pirates a chance to breathe, but there's still more work to be done.
"We got one tomorrow," Triolo said. "Try to go win the series tomorrow and then win again on Sunday. Just keep stacking wins.”
Want to participate in our comments?
Want an ad-free experience?
Become a member, and enjoy premium benefits! Make your voice heard on the Steelers, Penguins and Pirates, and hear right back from tens of thousands of fellow Pittsburgh sports fans worldwide! Plus, access all our premium content, including Dejan Kovacevic columns, Friday Insider, daily Live Qs with the staff, more! And yeah, that's right, no ads at all!
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