CLEVELAND - Billy Cook spent last week doing something most players don’t get to do during the All-Star break: he got married.
That alone would have made for a memorable stretch. Then he turned around and played the biggest game of his career.
Cook’s wedding came Tuesday at Spruce Mountain Ranch in Larkspur, Colo., a move he and Amelia made because her brother, who is in the Army, will deploy in September and they wanted him there. Cook made clear it wasn’t some rushed, low-key affair.
“It wasn’t a courthouse thing,” Cook said. “We didn’t elope.”
On Sunday, the newly married Cook looked like a player determined to make every part of the day count. In Pittsburgh’s 7-1 win over the Guardians at Progressive Field, he delivered three hits, including a triple, drove in two runs, scored twice, stole a base and added an outfield assist. For a player whose job usually revolves around defense, speed and keeping the energy up, it was a full-on takeover.
“He deserves every single bit of that game,” Jake Mangum said. “Works his tail off.
Great human being. Great family.
Couldn't be happier."
Paul Skenes, who was sharp in his own right, put it this way: “If we need vibes, he's got vibes,” Paul Skenes said. “If we need a double, he's got a double. If we need an unbelievable play in center field, he's got that, too.
“It was fun to watch [Sunday].”
Skenes gave the Pirates seven innings of one-run ball and struck out eight in his first outing of that length since May 12, helping Pittsburgh improve to 52-48 and take the series. The win also helped wipe away the sting of Saturday’s doubleheader and pushed the Pirates to 10-6 during a 22-game stretch against teams .500 or better.
Cook was right in the middle of it from the start. He opened the scoring with an RBI single in the second inning, going the other way on a hanging two-strike curveball after Nick Gonzales led off with the first of his two doubles.
Then came the arm. In the fourth, Guardians designated hitter Chase DeLauter tried to score from third on a fly ball to center off the bat of first baseman Kyle Manzardo, and Cook cut him down with a strike to the plate.
“I think [Sunday] he showed why we put him in on defense at the end of games,” Pirates manager Don Kelly said. “He’s got the strongest arm on the team in the outfield. He certainly showed that off today.”
Cook wasn’t done. He led off the fifth with a triple and scored when catcher Patrick Bailey threw wildly to third, giving Pittsburgh a 2-1 lead. Later, in the sixth, he lined a first-pitch fastball to center at 100.2 mph for another RBI single, then stole second for his fifth stolen base of the season.
For context, that matched the number of hits Cook had collected across 35 games from May 3-July 18.
That’s the reality of his role with the Pirates: he’s there for the defense, the speed and the little things that keep a team moving. But with a left-handed pitcher on the mound and an opening in front of him, Cook made the most of it.
He said the key is keeping things simple and making his preparation feel as close to game action as possible.
"Just trying to replicate a game,” Cook said. “We have that Trajekt machine at home and we've got coaches, so during the game I'll come and hit.
“If there's the possibility of an at-bat or a start, we'll prepare for that the best we can with machine work, flips and BP work, all the different things. Not necessarily playing in the game, but replicate it as close as we can."
Whatever he’s doing, it worked. Sunday gave the Pirates the jolt they needed, and it briefly pushed Skenes out of the spotlight.
“I'm fine being overshadowed,” Skenes said, “as long as we win”
Cook, for his part, sounded exactly like the kind of teammate the Pirates have come to count on.
“You just embrace your role,” Cook said. “When I get opportunities like this, I’m grateful for them. But I don't for another week, I'm not going to go crazy.
“It’s whatever is best for the team, and I'll be ready.”
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