Christian Yelich homered twice and the Milwaukee Brewers breezed past the Pittsburgh Pirates 8-5 in a game interrupted by rain Thursday night.

Yelich hit a three-run drive against rookie Mike Burrows (0-1) in the first inning and a solo shot off reliever Isaac Mattson in the sixth for the 11th multi-homer game of his career. Joey Ortiz added his second home run this season for the Brewers. Sal Frelick provided some breathing room with a late two-run single.

Carlos Rodriguez (1-0) struck out Bryan Reynolds with two on and two out in the sixth following a rain delay of 1 hour, 50 minutes, to earn his first major league victory. Trevor Megill came on with two on and no outs in the ninth to secure his eighth save.

Milwaukee’s Aaron Civale gave up two runs and four hits over four innings in his first start since going to the injured list in late March with a strained hamstring.

Spencer Horwitz had two hits for the Pirates, including a solo shot to right-center leading off the fourth for his first home run since being acquired by Pittsburgh in the offseason. Horwitz added an RBI groundout in the ninth to help the Pirates avoid making a bit of unwanted history.

Pittsburgh had gone 26 games without scoring at least five runs, tying the team with four others for the longest such streak of futility in MLB history.

Burrows, called up Wednesday after Pittsburgh sent struggling Carmen Mlodzinski to Triple-A Indianapolis, had some early jitters. The 25-year-old right-hander gave up four runs during his first trip through the Brewers’ order before retiring nine of the final 11 batters he faced.

Rodriguez surprisingly stayed on the hill after the long delay. He promptly fanned Reynolds at the end of a seven-pitch at-bat to end Pittsburgh’s last legitimate threat.

April 23 — the previous time Pittsburgh scored at least five runs in a game. The Pirates went 8-18 during their run of futility at the plate.

The series continues Friday when Pittsburgh ace Paul Skenes (3-5, 2.44 ERA) — who won’t be traded anytime soon — faces Milwaukee’s Freddy Peralta (5-3, 2.59).

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Neal Shipley will be making his second PGA Tour start of the season on Thursday after receiving an exemption to compete in the Charles Schwab Challenge at Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Texas.

Shipley, a Mt. Lebanon native, became a fan favorite around the golf world last year when he earned low amateur honors at the Masters and at the U.S. Open and has since turned professional and is competing on the Korn Ferry Tour.

The exemption into the tournament was given as part of the “Champions Choice,” where past winners award entries to two young players. 17-year-old Blades Brown was given the other exemption alongside Shipley.

When the Charles Schwab Challenge gets underway on Thursday, Shipley will tee off at 2:29 p.m. alongside Kris Ventura and Jesper Svensson.

“It’s been massive knowing that I can compete at those biggest stages so when I come out here, I know that I can beat most of the guys out here,” Shipley told reporters Tuesday. “I think that’s something that a lot of young pros don’t get out of college, so really grateful for those two experiences.”

Shipley made his first PGA Tour start of the season at the Valspar Championship in March, making the cut and finishing in 47th.

Last month, Shipley earned his first professional win when he outlasted Seungtaek Lee in a five-hole playoff to win the LECOM Suncoast Classic in Florida.

TULUM, MEXICO – MAY 03: Neal Shipley of the United States looks on from the second hole during the third round of the 2025 Tulum Championship at PGA Riviera Maya 2025 on May 03, 2025 in Tulum, Mexico. Luke Hales / Getty Images

Shipley currently sits in 5th place on the Korn Ferry Tour points list. If he’s able to finish the season inside the top 20, he’ll earn a PGA Tour card for the 2026 season.

In addition to trying to earn his PGA Tour card, Shipley is also aiming to qualify and earn a spot to compete in the upcoming 125th playing of the U.S. Open at Oakmont Country Club.

Shipley received an exemption into final qualifying, where he will compete for a shot to qualify on June 2 for a spot in golf’s toughest test, being held in his hometown for a record 10th time.

If he’s able to qualify for the U.S. Open, he’ll be in the field of players teeing it up starting on June 12.

The Pittsburgh Pirates are reeling, and just about everything is on the table for a last-place team that has already fired its manager and packed a half-decade’s worth of public-relations missteps into two months.

Well, except for one thing: trading ace Paul Skenes.

Asked on Thursday if flipping the reigning National League Rookie of the Year is a consideration for a club woefully lacking in impactful position-player prospects, general manager Ben Cherington gave an atypically brief response.

“No, it’s not part of the conversation at all,” Cherington said flatly.

Pittsburgh entered a four-game series against NL Central rival Milwaukee already 11 games out of playoff position, thanks in large part to an offense that ranks last or next-to-last in nearly every major category: from runs, slugging percentage and OPS (all 30th) to home runs and batting average (both 29th).

The Pirates have also scored four runs or fewer in 26 straight games, tying a major league record set by four other teams, most recently the then-California Angels in 1969.

Not exactly what the team had in mind during spring training, when everyone from Cherington to Skenes to manager Derek Shelton — who was jettisoned two weeks ago and replaced by Don Kelly — talked about the need for Pittsburgh to take another step forward after consecutive 76-86 seasons.

Instead, the Pirates have been stuck in reverse from opening day, even when Skenes starts. Pittsburgh is just 3-5 in his eight starts, the latest loss a 1-0 setback in Philadelphia last weekend in which Skenes limited the Phillies to three hits while throwing the first complete game of his career.

Skenes, who turns 23 next week, has been all-in on the Pirates since being called up a year ago. He’s also under team control for the rest of the decade and won’t become arbitration-eligible until after 2026, making him one of the biggest bargains in the majors.

While Pittsburgh has locked down players like two-time All-Star outfielder Bryan Reynolds and third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes to long-term deals, they are a pittance by MLB standards compared to what Skenes might command one day should his career continue on its current trajectory.

The Pirates are perennially one of the most frugal teams in the majors. Their opening day payroll this season was just under $88 million. Only the Chicago White Sox, Tampa Bay, the Athletics and Miami spent less.

Even so, Pittsburgh has received little return on its investment. While the bullpen has been a bit of a mess, the starting rotation has been solid. Skenes (2.44), Mitch Keller (3.88), Andrew Heaney (2.91) and Bailey Falter (3.50) all have ERAs under 4.00, yet they also have a combined record of 11-21.

The issue has been a punchless lineup that is largely nondescript outside of Reynolds, franchise icon Andrew McCutchen and center fielder Oneil Cruz.

Yet it’s telling that while Pittsburgh has one of the deeper pool of pitching prospects in the majors — a list that includes hard-throwing 22-year-old Bubba Chandler and Mike Burrows, who was scheduled to make his first major league start on Thursday after going 2-1 with a 2.71 ERA for Triple-A Indianapolis — the cupboard of homegrown position players who are on the cusp of the majors remains pretty bare five-plus years into Cherington’s tenure.

Catcher Henry Davis, the top overall pick in the 2021 draft, remains a work in progress nearly two full years after his major league debut. Second baseman Nick Gonzales, a first-rounder in 2020, is recovering from an ankle injury and has yet to establish himself as an everyday player. Former first-round picks Termarr Johnson (2022) and Konnor Griffin (2024) are still years away.

So far, the only callups from Triple-A have been mostly injury-related, not performance-related.

“We want guys from Triple-A to pound the door down,” Cherington said. “That would be good. I still think that can happen this year. We want more of it over time. … Everybody knows we’ve got to score more runs. That’s not going to happen just by saying it and hoping for it. You’ve got to do the work to do it.”

Cherington remains optimistic that the major league team will start to turn the corner over the final 110ish games, and he’s certain Skenes will be a part of it no matter which way it goes.

“We’ve just got to get better,” Cherington said. “Let’s play better baseball, and that’s going to lead to winning more games. Then, let’s wake up and see where that takes us when we get to July.”

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Aliquippa boys basketball coach Nick Lackovich has been voted out by the district’s school board.

Lackovich was voted out on Wednesday evening by a vote of 5-3, the Post-Gazette reported Thursday.

During his tenure at Aliquippa across two different stints, Lackovich won eight section titles, four WPIAL titles, and two PIAA titles.

Lackovich told the Post-Gazette he wasn’t given a reason why the board voted him out of his position, but said he had a “gut feeling” that some school board members didn’t care for him.

Aliquippa boys basketball coach Nick Lackovich was ousted from his position by the school board and says he was given no reason for the move. Mike Darnay / Mon Valley Independent

Lackovich elaborated on one incident where a student was kicked off of the team for a swearing incident, which led to Lackovich needing to defend himself to the school board.

Overall, Lackovich had a record of 185-41.

Aliquippa superintendent Phillip Woods nor athletic director Jen D’Amico were able to be reached for comment by the Post-Gazette.

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — The Atlantic 10 Conference is bringing its basketball championship tournament back to Pittsburgh for its 50th anniversary in 2026!

The league voted on the decision during last week’s annual spring meeting and announced its plans to return to Pittsburgh on Tuesday.

JUST ANNOUNCED! The Atlantic 10 Conference Men’s Basketball will return to its roots for the 2026 Championship, with the league holding its 50th anniversary at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh. pic.twitter.com/KtYPQPXPLD — PPG Paints Arena (@PPGPaintsArena) May 21, 2024

Pittsburgh was the site of five of the first six Atlantic 10 tournaments starting in 1978 at the old Civic Arena.

When the tournament returns to Pittsburgh in 2026, it will be held at PPG Paints Arena.

“We’re excited to welcome the Atlantic 10 Men’s Basketball Championship back to Pittsburgh, especially for its milestone anniversary in 2026,” SportsPITTSBURGH Executive Director Jennifer Hawkins said in a press release. “Of course, Pittsburghers will flock to cheer on the Dukes with hopes of another championship title, but we also invite other fans, friends and families to join us to support their teams and experience the comradery that we pride ourselves on along with all our city has to offer.”

Duquesne University won the Atlantic 10 Tournament earlier this year on their way to the NCAA Tournament, where they pulled off an opening round upset.