masn-baseballs-orioles.jpgSARASOTA, Fla. – Everth Cabrera didn’t short-change himself tonight when hitting his first home run of the spring.
Cabrera crushed one to left-center field off Francisco Liriano in the bottom of the third inning to reduce the Pirates’ lead to 2-1. His season-high in home runs is four in 2013.
Cabrera is 2-for-6 lifetime against Liriano in the regular season.
Expected to get most of the starts at shortstop in J.J Hardy’s absence, Cabrera is 15-for-54 (.278) with three doubles, a triple and…

SARASOTA, Fla. – Everth Cabrera didn’t short-change himself tonight when hitting his first home run of the spring.

Cabrera crushed one to left-center field off Francisco Liriano in the bottom of the third inning to reduce the Pirates’ lead to 2-1. His season-high in home runs is four in 2013.

Cabrera is 2-for-6 lifetime against Liriano in the regular season.

cabrera-swings-os-sidebar.jpgExpected to get most of the starts at shortstop in J.J Hardy’s absence, Cabrera is 15-for-54 (.278) with three doubles, a triple and six walks.

Nolan Reimold followed with a single, making him 14-for-43 (.326) with two home runs, eight RBIs and eight walks.

Chris Tillman has thrown 69 pitches, 41 for strikes, in four innings by my count. He has allowed two runs and three hits, walked none and struck out six.

Pedro Alvarez hit a long two-run homer to right field in the second inning, when Tillman ran the count full to the first three batters. He retired the side in order the third on only nine pitches, seven for strikes.

Tillman struck out two in the fourth and stranded Neil Walker, who doubled with one out.

Gerrit Cole, the first-overall pick in the 2011 draft, has replaced Liriano in the fourth inning. They’re the Pirates’ top two starters in the rotation, with A.J. Burnett slotted third.

Update: Tillman threw 85 pitches, 50 strikes, in five innings. He retired 11 of the last 12 batters he faced and left after the fifth inning with the Pirates ahead 2-1.

Tillman allowed two runs and three hits in five innings, with no walks and eight strikeouts.