Pirates' Tommy Pham Not Starting vs. Blue Jays
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PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates and Toronto Blue Jays face off for the second game of the series at PNC Park, with one of the main characters of a flare up in the previous contest, not in the starting lineup.
Tommy Pham, who started in left field in the series opener on Aug. 18, is on the bench for the beginning of this contest, as Ronny Simon comes in and bats leadoff.
Pham was the center of the benches and bullpens clearing moment in the bottom of the seventh inning in that game. He flipped his bat after walking on four pitches and then argued with Blue Jays catcher Tyler Heineman, resulting in both teams emptying out onto the field.
Nothing dramatic ensued afterwards, as Blue Jays first baseman Ty France came up to him, but quickly let him go, then both Blue Jays center fielder George Springer and Pirates third baseman Isiah Kiner-Falefa calmed Pham down.
Pham took to Twitter after the game and said he had an issue with Heineman complaining to the umpire and flipped his bat in response to that, saying that Heineman should know where the strike zone is.
Bitching about a ball not being called a strike to the umpire when it’s clearly below the zone and away is disrespectful not only to the umpire but the hitter as well so like I said when I flipped the bat fuck him @KeeganMatheson dude has two years in the show I know the zone
— Tommy Pham (@TphamLV) August 19, 2025
Pham has slashed .260/.333/.368 for an OPS of .701 in 92 games with the Pirates in 2025, with 77 hits in 296 at-bats, 12 doubles, one triple, six home runs, 34 RBIs and 34 walks to 75 strikeouts.
Simon makes his fourth start since the Pirates recalled him on Aug. 13, his second start in left field and his fourth time leading off.
The Pirates also made two other changes to their lineup, with Jack Suwinski taking over in center field from Alexander Canario and batting sixth, plus Joey Bart coming in at catcher for Henry Davis and batting seventh.
Spencer Horwitz stays at first base, but drops down one spot to second in the lineup, Nick Gonzlaes continues on at second base and fourth in the batting order, Jared Triolo stays at shortstop, but moves down two spots to eighth in the batting order and Isiah Kiner-Falefa continues on at third base and ninth in the lineup, rounding out the infield for the Pirates.
Bryan Reynolds continues on in right field and third in the lineup and then Andrew McCutchen serves as the designated hitter and bats fifth, completing the Pirates' lineup.
Right-handed pitcher Mitch Keller starts for the Pirates, taking on Blue Jays right-handed pitcher Max Scherzer, with first pitch set for 6:40 p.m.
Keller had one of his worst starts of the season in his last outing, giving up a season-high eight hits and six earned runs in a 12-5 defeat to the Brewers at American Family Field on Aug. 13, securing a series sweep defeat.
He excelled in his first career start vs. the Blue Jays, giving up five hits, one walk and one earned run, while posting eight strikeouts over six innings pitched in the 8-1 win at the Rogers Center on June 1, 2024.
Keller has a 5-11 record in 25 starts in 2025, with a 4.13 ERA over 141.2 innings pitched, 112 strikeouts to 39 walks, a .254 opposing batting average and a 1.27 WHIP.
Pittsburgh Pirates Lineup vs. the Toronto Blue Jays
LF Ronny Simon
1B Spencer Horwitz
RF Bryan Reynolds
2B Nick Gonzales
DH Andrew McCutchen
CF Jack Suwinski
C Joey Bart
SS Jared Triolo
3B Isiah Kiner-Falefa
Game 2 vs. the Blue Jays.
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) August 19, 2025
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Dominic writes for Pittsburgh Pirates On SI, Pittsburgh Panthers Pn SI and also, Pittsburgh Steelers On SI. A Pittsburgh native, Dominic grew up watching Pittsburgh Sports and wrote for The Pitt News as an undergraduate at the University of Pittsburgh, covering Pitt Athletics. He would write for Pittsburgh Sports Now after college and has years of experience covering sports across Pittsburgh.