Paul Skenes is set to start the All-Star game, the first time since 1995 that a rookie pitcher has that honor.
It's been even longer since a Pittsburgh player has been in that spotlight.
The last pitcher from the Pirates to start the All-Star game was Jerry Reuss in 1975, in the middle of a decade when Pittsburgh won two World Series. That's the second-longest active drought without a pitcher starting the All-Star game. The Chicago Cubs have not had one since Claude Passeau in 1946. (The Miami Marlins have never had the starting pitcher for the National League, but they've only been playing since 1993.)
The longest drought in the American League belongs to the Baltimore Orioles, who have not had the All-Star starter since Steve Stone in 1980. But that's about to change as well after Corbin Burnes was named this year's AL starter Monday.
This stellar beginning to Skenes' career — in 11 starts, he's 6-0 with a 1.90 ERA — has made his outings must-see TV and brought a bit of buzz to Pittsburgh. The Pirates are 48-48, which puts them in the mix for a wild card. Skenes and outfielder Bryan Reynolds are both All-Stars. The team hasn't had more than two in a season since 2015, when Andrew McCutchen and Gerrit Cole were both in Pittsburgh.
Now McCutchen is back with the Pirates as his career winds down, and with Skenes, Reynolds and 6-foot-7 shortstop Oneil Cruz, Pittsburgh has a chance to turn some heads the rest of the way.
TRIVIA TIME
Name the record 13 different pitchers from the Brooklyn or Los Angeles Dodgers who have started the All-Star game.
A-PLUS OFFENSE, OCCASIONALLY
The Oakland Athletics pummeled Philadelphia 18-3 on Sunday. Although the A's are 24 games under .500, they're also responsible for the three highest-scoring games in baseball this year. Oakland also beat Miami 20-4 on May 4 and routed Baltimore 19-8 on July 6.
The A's have 390 runs so far. Nearly 15% of them were in those three games.
Oakland is also one of just five teams in the majors to be shut out at least 10 times already. The Chicago White Sox are atop that list with 12.
LINE OF THE WEEK
It belongs to Skenes, who pitched seven no-hit innings at Milwaukee on Thursday before being removed after 99 pitches. The Pirates won 1-0. Opponents are batting just .202 against Skenes.
Skenes also had a six-inning start with no hits allowed in May against the Cubs. The Pirates are 8-3 in games he's started.
COMEBACK OF THE WEEK
The Los Angeles Dodgers could use a break right now. After being swept in a three-game showdown at Philadelphia, the NL West leaders went to Detroit and dropped two of three, giving away ninth-inning leads in both losses. Saturday's 11-9 defeat was particularly troubling. Los Angeles was up 9-4 in the ninth — its win probability maxed out at 99.5% according to Baseball Savant — before a dramatic rally by the Tigers.
It was still 9-6 with Detroit down to its last out, but then Carson Kelly hit an RBI single and rookie Colt Keith tied it with a two-run homer. Gio Urshela than hit a two-run shot in the 10th to end the game.
TRIVIA ANSWER
Whit Wyatt, Ralph Branca, Don Drysdale, Johnny Podres, Sandy Koufax, Andy Messersmith, Don Sutton, Fernando Valenzuela, Hideo Nomo, Brad Penny, Zack Greinke, Hyun Jin Ryu and Clayton Kershaw.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Paul Skenes throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers Thursday, July 11, 2024, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Kayla Wolf)
It's been almost a half-century since a Pittsburgh pitcher started the All-Star game
Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Paul Skenes throws during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers, Thursday, July 11, 2024, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Kayla Wolf)
It's been almost a half-century since a Pittsburgh pitcher started the All-Star game
CAIRO (AP) — Key mediator Egypt expressed skepticism Wednesday as more details emerged of the proposal meant to bridge gaps in cease-fire talks between Israel and Hamas, a day before negotiations were expected to resume in Cairo.
The challenges around the so-called bridging proposal appear to undermine the optimism for an imminent agreement that U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken carried into his latest Mideast visit this week. Diplomatic efforts had redoubled as fears grow of a wider regional war after the recent targeted killings of Hamas and Hezbollah leaders, both blamed on Israel, and threats of retaliation.
Officials in Egypt, in its unique role as both a mediator and affected party since it borders Gaza, told The Associated Press that the Hamas militant group will not agree to the bridging proposal for a number of reasons — ones in addition to the long-held wariness over whether a deal would truly remove Israel forces from Gaza and end the war.
One Egyptian official, with direct knowledge of the negotiations, said the bridging proposal requires the implementation of the deal’s first phase, which has Hamas releasing the most vulnerable civilian hostages captured in its Oct. 7 attack that sparked the war. Parties during the first phase would negotiate the second and third phases with no “guarantees” to Hamas from Israel or mediators.
“The Americans are offering promises, not guarantees,” the official said. “Hamas won’t accept this, because it virtually means Hamas will release the civilian hostages in return for a six-week pause of fighting with no guarantees for a negotiated permanent cease-fire.”
He also said the proposal doesn’t clearly say Israel will withdraw its forces from two strategic corridors in Gaza, the Philadelphi corridor alongside Egypt and the Netzarim corridor east to west across the territory. Israel offers to downsize its forces in the Philadelphi corridor, with “promises” to withdraw from the area, he said.
“This is not acceptable for us and of course for Hamas,” the Egyptian official said.
A second Egyptian official, briefed on the latest developments in negotiations, said there were few chances for a breakthrough since Israel refuses to commit to a complete withdrawal from Gaza in the deal's second phase. The official said Israel also insists on keeping its forces in the Philadelphi corridor and having full control of the Netzarim corridor.
He also said Egypt told the U.S. and Israel it won’t reopen the Rafah crossing into Gaza, which borders Egypt and is a crucial entry point for humanitarian aid, without the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Palestinian side and from the Philadelphi corridor.
Both Egyptian officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive negotiations.
Mediators are scheduled to meet Thursday and Friday in Cairo for more talks on the proposal before submitting it officially to Hamas.
Hamas political official Bassem Naim said Tuesday the bridging proposal adopted several new demands from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, including that Israeli forces remain in Rafah, Philadelphi and Netzarim and searches of displaced Palestinians returning to northern Gaza. Israel has said the searches are necessary to find militants.
Naim said the proposal also includes unspecified changes to the exchange of hostages held in Gaza for Palestinians imprisoned in Israel and doesn’t guarantee that a cease-fire would remain in place during negotiations on the transition from the deal’s first phase to the second.
In previous versions of the cease-fire plan, the second phase would entail a permanent cease-fire, full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza and the release of remaining male hostages, both civilians and soldiers
Blinken after his meetings in Egypt and in fellow mediator Qatar told journalists that the bridging proposal is “very clear on the schedule and the locations of (Israeli military) withdrawals from Gaza,” but no details on either have emerged.
Blinken also said that because Israel has accepted the proposal, the focus turns to doing everything possible to “get Hamas on board.” Egypt’s state-run Al-Ahram daily reported that Blinken received a “clear Egyptian demand for the U.S. to work towards a well-framed deal with clear deadlines and clear objectives to encourage Hamas to sign the deal.”
But there is skepticism, along with fatigue, among many in Israel about Netanyahu's commitment to securing a cease-fire deal. “As long as the entire group of professional negotiators believes that Netanyahu is scuttling a deal, there won’t be any confidence,” commentator Nadav Eyal wrote in the daily newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth. “And, in the absence of confidence, Israeli society will remain torn and shattered.”
The war in Gaza, now in its 10th month, has caused widespread destruction and forced the vast majority of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents to flee their homes, often multiple times. Aid groups fear the outbreak of polio and other diseases.
The Oct. 7 attack by Hamas and other militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians. Over 100 hostages were released during last year’s cease-fire in exchange for Palestinians imprisoned in Israel. Hamas is still believed to be holding around 110 hostages, though Israeli authorities estimate around a third are dead.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed over 40,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count.
Associated Press writer Abby Sewell in Beirut contributed to this report.
Follow AP’s war coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war
Israeli police officers scuffle with ultra-Orthodox Jewish men during a protest against a potential new draft law which could end their exemptions from military service in Jerusalem, Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
Displaced Palestinians sit next to their tent as they camp on the beach, west of Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip, Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
Tents are crammed together as displaced Palestinians camp on the beach, west of Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip, Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
