Pirates Recap: Tommy Pham Shows Off Bat, Arm Before Early Exit

Tommy Pham hit his first homer of the spring for the Pittsburgh Pirates and recorded an outfield assist in a 5-3 loss to the Detroit Tigers on Sunday afternoon.

Pham’s home run came off of reigning American League Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal in the top of the third winning. The veteran outfielder drove a four-seam fastball the other way over the right field fence.

But Pham also impacted the game defensively. It was half an inning earlier when Tigers’ right fielder Kerry Carpenter singled to left field. Pham gathered the ball, fired towards second and threw out Carpenter trying to stretch a single into a double.

Though Pham had a good game, his day was cut short due to left hip tightness. The removal, was precautionary, however, as Andrew Destin of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette stated on Twitter/X.

Tommy Pham said it was more of a precautionary move on his part to depart the contest early:

"In the season, I'd play through it. In the season, I don't miss any time with this. It's just because it's second week of March, spring training. You don't have to push it." https://t.co/kuQfSpKBVf

— Andrew Destin (@AndrewDestin1) March 9, 2025

It’s a sigh of relief for the Pirates, who are banking on Pham being the starting left fielder after signing as a free agent this winter.

Heaney Struggles Again

It was another tough start for veteran Andrew Heaney, who signed a one-year deal with the Pirates last month.

Heaney allowed four runs and walked a pair in 2.1 innings while failing to record a strikeout. In his first start of the spring, the left-hander Heaney allowed four runs and walked three batters in 1.2 innings. His spring ERA is now 18.00.

Notable Pirates Performances

• Joey Bart: 3 for 4, one RBI
• Tommy Pham: 1 for 2, one home run, one RBI, one run
• Bryce Johnson: 2 for 3
• Andrew Heaney: 2.1 innings, five hits, four runs, two walks, no strikeouts
• Caleb Ferguson: 2.2 innings, three hits, no runs, one walk, two strikeouts

The Pirates (9-7) will be back at LECOM Park on Monday night to host the Baltimore Orioles at 6:05 ET.