Morning Mound Visit: Pirates hire Caitlyn Callahan, team’s first in-uniform female coach

Darren Yuvan | Bucs Dugout: The Pittsburgh Pirates hired Caitlyn Callahan as a development coach. Callahan will be the first in-uniform female coach in franchise history. The former St. Mary’s softball player spent the past two seasons with the Reds working on the video and technology team.

Blake Newberry | Viva El Birdos: 2023 will be the first year since 2003 that Yadier Molina won’t get behind the dish for the Cardinals. That means it’s finally time to start looking for someone who could fill his shoes. Ivan Herrera is the heir apparent, but his defense needs to improve.

Ben Clemens | FanGraphs: Sinker usage is still falling leaguewide, but it’s not because the pitch is bad. It’s just hard to throw a good one. The Giants took a new angle on sinkers this year, opting to throw them at the bottom of the zone for called strikes. Vertical approach angle matters for four-seamers at the top of the zone, and it matters for sinkers, too.