PITTSBURGH (AP) — The Pittsburgh Pirates released first baseman Rowdy Tellez and outfielder Michael A. Taylor on Tuesday and promoted infielder Liover Peguero and outfielder Josh Palacios from Triple-A Indianapolis.
The moves came with just six games left in the season and Pittsburgh eliminated from playoff contention.
Tellez recovered from a slow start to hit .243 with 13 home runs and 56 RBIs in 131 games. The Pirates had signed Tellez to a one-year deal in the offseason.
Tellez entered Tuesday four plate appearances shy of a $200,000 bonus, though Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said the bonus had “zero factor” in the decision to cut ties with the 29-year-old, who had become a fan favorite in Pittsburgh during a summer surge.
“We feel like we gave Rowdy lots of opportunity here this year,” Cherington told reporters before Pittsburgh hosted Milwaukee on Tuesday night. “To his credit, he fought through some difficult times earlier in the year and fought his way out of it. Had periods of success and periods of frustration. This is just where we got to in the season.”
Taylor, like Tellez signed to a one-year deal, hit just .193 with five home runs, 21 RBIs and 12 stolen bases in 113 games. His playing time diminished in recent weeks after the Pirates moved shortstop Oneil Cruz to center field.
The 23-year-old Peguero led all Pirates minor leaguers in hits (127), RBIs (79) and doubles (29) and tied for second in extra-base hits (46).
Palacios hit .230 with a pair of homers and seven RBIs in 20 games with Pittsburgh earlier this season.
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Pittsburgh Pirates' Michael A. Taylor doubles during the third inning of a baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
A Ukrainian drone strike killed one person and wounded three others in the Russian city of Voronezh, local officials said Sunday.
A young woman died overnight in a hospital intensive care unit after debris from a drone fell on a house during the attack on Saturday, regional Gov. Alexander Gusev said on Telegram.
Three other people were wounded and more than 10 apartment buildings, private houses and a high school were damaged, he said, adding that air defenses shot down 17 drones over Voronezh. The city is home to just over 1 million people and lies some 250 kilometers (155 miles) from the Ukrainian border.
The attack came the day after Russia bombarded Ukraine with hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles overnight into Friday, killing at least four people in the capital Kyiv, according to Ukrainian officials.
For only the second time in the nearly four-year war, Russia used a powerful new hypersonic missile that struck western Ukraine in a clear warning to Kyiv and NATO.
The intense barrage and the launch of the nuclear-capable Oreshnik missile followed reports of major progress in talks between Ukraine and its allies on how to defend the country from further aggression by Moscow if a U.S.-led peace deal is struck.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Saturday in his nightly address that Ukrainian negotiators “continue to communicate with the American side.”
Chief negotiator Rustem Umerov was in contact with U.S. partners Saturday, he said.
Separately, Ukraine’s General Staff said Russia targeted Ukraine with 154 drones overnight into Sunday and 125 were shot down.
Follow the AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
This photo provided by the Ukrainian Security Service on Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, shows a fragment believed to be a part of a Russian Oreshnik intermediate range hypersonic ballistic missile that hit the Lviv region. (Ukrainian Security Service via AP)
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy, second left, listens to British Defense Secretary John Healey during their meeting in Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Danylo Antoniuk)
