This has been a rough week for the Pirates. Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Pirates have brutal response to Athletics over relocation talk

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports | By Grey Papke | Last updated 5/29/21

The Oakland Athletics’ social media team thought it had an easy win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Saturday, but it turned out to be less simple than that.

The Pirates have been the brunt of jokes since Thursday, when they hilariously botched a rundown against the Chicago Cubs thanks to some ingenuity from Javier Baez. On Saturday, the A’s took a shot at them on Twitter, posting a video of the team successfully executing defensively to throw out a two-out bunt with a man on third while tagging the Pirates’ account.

cc: @Pirates pic.twitter.com/NQrG2xFOZl

— Oakland A's (@Athletics) May 29, 2021

It’s a pretty good burn, honestly, and you can’t blame the A’s for giving it a shot. Things turned against them, however, when the Pirates went hard with their response.

this u? pic.twitter.com/q7usQDohzh

— Pirates (@Pirates) May 29, 2021

The Athletics have been in a drawn-out saga over a new stadium in Oakland that has intensified in recent weeks. The team recently said it has been given permission to explore other markets as it continues to lobby for a proposed ballpark in Oakland, with team president Dave Kaval adding fuel to the fire by posting video from a Las Vegas Golden Knights playoff game. The Pirates’ response is a pretty clear shot at the relocation speculation.

The Pirates are kind of a joke around baseball this year. They have to fight back somehow. They might as well do it like this.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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