Posts

Posted on

Pirates Morning Report: Borucki’s Revenge

Final Score: Pirates 6 Giants 7 in 12 innings

Why the Pirates Lost: A bullpen that is in complete disarray gave up two 2-run leads. The Pirates were leading 4-2 going into the bottom of the 6th inning. Isaac Mattson came in and quickly got knocked around, giving up 3 doubles wrapped around one out. The Giants tied the game 4-4. The Pirates scored 2 runs in the top of the 10th to take a 6-4 lead. Yohan Ramirez, with the ghost runner on 2nd base, struck out the first batter in the bottom of the 10th. He walked Rafael Devers to put runners on 1st and 2nd. Heliot Ramos hit a slow roller to short, and Konnor Griffin made a nice play to throw him out. This moved the runners up to 2nd and 3rd. Willy Adames wasted no time, hitting the first pitch into left field to drive in 2 runs to tie the game. The bullpen continues to blow games. The tale of the tape: Ramirez ERA 4.13, Mattson ERA 4.67, Dennis Santana ERA 3.63, Justin Lawrence ERA 6.46, Cam Sanders ERA 10.80. This was a game of disasters for the Pirates, with disastrous baserunning to go along with disastrous hitting. The Pirates were 2 for 15 with runners in scoring position and left 13 men on base. The Pirates finish the road trip 3-3, but this still does not take the sting out of this loss. They gave another game away, plain and simple.

Key Moments Of The Game: Ryan Borucki got his revenge after being roughed up in the previous game. Yesterday, he entered the 11th inning with runners on 1st and 3rd and no outs. He struck out Oneil Cruz and then got Brandon Lowe to hit a soft liner to short while Henry Davis attempted to steal second. This resulted in an easy double play for the Giants. The reason Davis was running, only the Pirate “brain” trust would know. In the 12th inning, Borucki danced through the raindrops, finally loading the bases but managed to get Konnor Griffin to hit a soft liner to Matt Chapman, ending the inning. The Giants won in the 12th, sending the Pirates home defeated and securing the victory for Borucki.

Next game: Tuesday night, Rockies in Pittsburgh. The morning report will be late morning and early afternoon as I am headed to San Diego to watch a real franchise, the Padres. Paul Skenes will pitch for the Pirates on Tuesday, hoping to get the homestand off to a good start. The Pirates will play three games against the Rockies, and then the Phillies come in for the weekend. The Pirates just can’t seem to get on a roll. The bullpen is in trouble unless these guys start to pitch a lot better. There does not seem to be much help, but it would be nice to see Dotel come back up. Maybe the team will break out this week.

Posted on

Pirate Morning Report: Offense Erupts For 20 Hits

Final Score: Pirates 13 Giants 3

Why The Pirates Won: After a slow start, getting only two hits over the first four innings, the Pirates picked up 18 more hits over the last five innings to blow out the Giants 13 to 3. Joey Bart and Nick Gonzales led the way, each getting 4 hits. Brandon Lowe had 4 RBIs, and the Pirates were 10 for 22 with runners in scoring position. The Pirates were kings of the foul balls. I do not know how many they exactly hit, but they forced the Giants’ pitchers to throw 222 pitches for the game. It took Landen Roupp 94 pitches to get through 4 innings and one batter. No problem for Braxton Ashcraft as he tossed another 7-inning gem. He gave up 1 run on 6 hits. He struck out 6 and walked no one, throwing only 80 pitches. His ERA is now down to 2.77. I would be remiss if I did not mention Cam Sanders’ performance in the bottom of the 9th. The Giants had given up at that point, using a position player to pitch in the top of the 9th. The Pirates scored 3 runs to extend their lead to 13 to 1. Someone must have forgotten to tell Cam Sanders the score. In an embarrassing performance, he walked 3 batters, hit a batter in the head, and gave up 2 runs on 1 hit. He threw 34 pitches, with only 12 in the strike zone. This put his ERA at 10.80. This guy is on the team in a supposedly pitching-rich franchise. This was only comical because the Pirates won the game by 10 runs.

Key Moments of the Game: You would think a game like this would not have a key moment, but this was a tight game through six innings. The Pirates had taken a 4-1 lead going into the bottom of the sixth inning. Jung Hoo Lee opened the inning with a blooper to left field for a single. Luis Arraez hit another blooper that Konnor Griffin made a nice running catch on in short left field. Heliot Ramos singled to right, putting runners on first and third with one out. Ashcraft got the big strikeout against Rafael Devers on three pitches. He then got Bryce Eldridge, who had sent one into McCovey’s Cove in his previous at-bat, to fly out to rather deep left field. The Giants could help thinking what might have been. In the top of the seventh, the Pirates broke it open by scoring six runs. They were helped along by a line drive lost in the lights and an error by Willy Adames. The Pirates are assured of a .500 road trip, but it would be nice to go 4-2.

Next Game: This afternoon, the Giants, in San Francisco at 4:05 PM. Bubba Chandler will start for the Pirates; will he finally come out of his funk? The Pirates need him to get back on track. I am sure Joey Bart will be out of the lineup tonight, despite the fact that the Pirates have a day off, and Paul Skenes will pitch on Tuesday, meaning we will see Henry (No Hit) Davis for the next two games. Bart is red hot. If this is the case, he will not catch again until Wednesday, leaving plenty of time to cool off. The Pirates just continue to amaze. They will amaze me if Bart starts today. Let’s at least hope we don’t see Triolo.

Posted on

Pirates Morning Report: Offensive Problems and Bad Decisions

Final Score: Pirates 2 Giants 5

Why The Pirates Lost: The Pirates’ offense continues to have problems. In the last 5 games, they have scored 8 runs, with 4 in one game. In this game, they got five hits and eight walks but could only score 2 runs. Of course, they started 5 players who had OPSs of .600 or less. The league average is .712. The group went 2 for 15, with Marcell Ozuna getting both hits, including a home run in the 2nd inning. You could almost say they did better than expected. Carmen Mlodzinski pitched one of his better games, going 6 innings, giving up 2 runs on 7 hits, walking none, and striking out one. Even though he had thrown only 73 pitches, the Pirate “brain” trust decided to take him out. It is May 8th. If an effective starter cannot throw 90 pitches or more by then, when can he? If Mlodzinski had gotten into trouble, then you could take him out. The bullpen is supposedly taxed, and you take your starter out after 73 pitches. One thing for sure, he could not have done worse than Justin Lawrence. In 10 pitches, the Giants scored a run on 3 hits to take a 3-1 lead. The Pirates waited until he hit a batter to load the bases before taking him out. The Giants added 2 more runs on a one-out single to make the score 5-1. The Pirates go to 2-2 on the road trip.

Key Moments Of The Game: Besides starting a pathetic lineup and not allowing Mlodzinski to throw more than 73 pitches, there were some actual key moments during the game. I should say more bad decisions were made during the game. Marcell Ozuna led off the 2nd with a home run to give the Pirates a 1-0 lead. Oneil Cruz singled on a 109 MPH line drive to left. On the very first pitch, with Cruz breaking on the pitch, Konnor Griffin ripped a 102 MPH line drive to left for another single. Even though he broke on the pitch, the ball was lined hard to left field. Then the ball got a nice big hop, so the left fielder was in a good position to make the throw. Cruz had the play right in front of him. He elected to go to third and was thrown out by 6 feet. Instead of having Robbie Ray on the ropes, the Pirates had a runner on 1st with one out. Joey Bart and Nick Yorke both failed to make any contact with the ball, so it might not have made any difference, but we will never know.

Next Game: Tonight, Giants in San Francisco, 9:05. It’s a little easier to follow the game tonight with a start a little over an hour earlier. Braxton Ashcraft is going for the Pirates tonight, coming off one of his best starts. The Pirates’ offense will need to perk up soon. Maybe Ozuna will finally go on a prolonged streak. Perhaps the Pirates will finally realize that Jared Triolo only hits in meaningless games and won’t start him anymore. Even though it is early, you feel that the Pirates are in a critical part of the season. They are teetering on the edge of really going on a hot streak or hitting a prolonged slump. If management does not get them some help, which is most likely, there are some players that are going to have to step up their game. We will see where we are by June 1st.

Posted on

Pirates Morning Report: A Solid Team Win

Final Score: Pirates 4 Diamondbacks 2

Why The Pirates Won: Mitch Keller had another good outing. He went 6+ innings, giving up 2 runs on 4 hits, walking 2 while striking out 4. The bullpen did the job despite the fact that Don Kelly ignored reverse splits. The Pirates, for some reason, just don’t pay attention to reverse splits, and it almost cost them. The Pirates went long twice, with Brandon Lowe and Joey Bart each hitting solo home runs. Don’t look now, but Bart is hitting .220 with a .619 OPS. Nothing to write home about, but when compared to Davis, who is banging the ball around at a .156 clip with a .526 OPS, he looks like Babe Ruth. It may be time to give Bart more playing time since the offense is sputtering a bit. The Pirates came up with the big hits when needed. Everybody contributed to this win, either with offense or defense.

Key Moments Of The Game. The score was 2-1 Diamondbacks going into the 5th inning. Zack Gallen was cruising along the first 4 innings. He gave up the 1st inning homer but after that, he had given up one hit, one walk, and hit a batter. In the top of the 5th, he got 2 outs on 9 pitches. Brandon Lowe hit a 103 MPH line drive single to right. Bryan Reynolds walked on a 3-2 pitch. Both Ryan O’Hearn and Spencer Horwitz were able to sneak ground balls through the right side of the infield, each driving in a run, and suddenly the Pirates were up 3-2. Two out lightening at its best. Joey Bart hit a 2-out home run in the top of the 6th to give the Pirates a 2 run cushion. Two out lightening struck again. Things were going pretty smoothly for Keller until the bottom of the 7th. He gave up a leadoff single. Kelly took him out for Dennis Santana. No problem there. Santana immediately induced Jose Fernandez to hit into a double play. Of course, he walked the next batter. He got a ground out to end the inning. In the bottom of the 8th, Mason Montgomery came on. He got one out then he walked a batter. He got Ketel Marte to pop out. Up stepped Corbin Carroll. Carroll is hitting over .400 against lefties and under .200 against righties. For whatever reason, Kelly left Montgomery in the game. Carroll singled to left. Surprise! Surprise! Surprise! He did bring Isaac Mattson in to face Nolan Arenado. Mattson did the job by striking him out. He should have faced Carroll. Gregory Soto came in and pitched an uneventful ninth to pick up his 2nd save in as many days. The Pirates head to San Francisco 2-1 on the road trip.

Next Game: Tonight, Giants in San Francisco, 10:15. Carmen Mlodzinski goes for the Pirates tonight. Once again, the Pirates are not going to use an opener, even though it was Mlodzinski’s best performance when he pitched from the 2nd through the 7th innings. You have to wonder what’s wrong with them. He got hit hard in his last outing, giving up 5 runs in 5 and 2/3 innings. Of course, that was the game where the Pirates scored 17 runs. Will the Pirates be able to take advantage of the Giants, who have been struggling? They will be starting two of their weak links in the rotation in this series. The bats came a little alive last night; they may have to go into full throttle mode if the Pirates are going to take 2 of 3.

Posted on

Pirates Morning Report: Yes, I Would Say Skenes Bounced Back

Final Score: Pirates 1 Diamondbacks 0

Why The Pirates Won: Paul Skenes pitched an 8-inning gem. He gave up 2 hits, both in the same inning. He retired the Diamondbacks in order in 7 of the 8 innings as he issued no walks. Are you watching, Bubba? He struck out 7 batters, including the last 3 he faced in the 8th inning. Gregory Soto came in to pitch the bottom of the 9th. Of course, he had to make it interesting by walking the 2nd batter. He got Ketel Marte to pop up to short right field, where Billy Cook made a staggering catch. Corbin Carroll, who is hitting over .400 against lefties, hit a sharp ground ball right down the first base line. Ryan O’Hearn was holding the runner and easily made the play to end the game. All of this great pitching overcame a lot of poor at-bats for the Pirates. They were 0 for 8 with runners in scoring position and left 8 men on base. The Pirates have scored 1 run in two games, yet the series is tied at a game apiece. Thank you, Paul Skenes.

Key Moments Of The Game: These would have been big key moments if the Pirates had lost. An opening triple by Spencer Horwitz was wasted in the 2nd inning. Konnor Griffin had a bad at-bat, taking a pitch for a strike and swinging at two out of the strike zone, striking out on three pitches. Henry (Pop Up King) Davis miraculously drew a walk. Oneil Cruz hit a ground ball that Davis and Horwitz turned into a double play with little league baserunner. Let me correct that. T ball baserunning, my apologies to the little league players. In the top of the 7th, the Pirates had another golden opportunity to get some breathing room. Konnor Griffin singled to center field and stole second. Henry (I Can’t Bunt Either) Davis popped up, not moving the runner. Then the Diamondbacks balked, sending Griffin to third anyway. Cruz hit a ground ball to second, and Marte made a nice play to throw Griffin out at the plate. Cruz stole second, but Brandon Lowe, who homered in the 1st to account for the only run of the game, flied out to end the inning. The Diamondbacks had one opportunity to score and came close to doing it. With two outs in the bottom of the 5th, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. had a swinging bunt single for the first hit of the game. Nolan Arenado took the first pitch and drilled it into left field for a base hit, with Gurriel moving to second. Gabriel Moreno took a high outside 0-2 pitch and lined it out to right field, but Ryan O’Hearn corralled it in. The Diamondbacks never threatened again.

Next Game: This afternoon, the Diamondbacks in Arizona at 3:40 PM. Mitch Keller goes for the Pirates in the rubber match today. The Pirates’ offense will be looking for a bounce-back game to see if they can get back into the groove they had with the Reds. The Pirates have scored 2 runs in 3 games but have managed to win 2 of them. Maybe they will break out today. All teams go through slumps because, as we all know, hitting can be inconsistent. The fact that the Pirates are experiencing this and yet have won 2 out of 3 games is an encouraging sign. I don’t know about you, but I am encouraged enough. Let’s score some runs, Buccos.

Posted on

Pirates Morning Report: Diamondbacks Double Their Pleasure

Final Score: Pirates 0 Diamondbacks 9

Why the Pirates lost: Bubba Chandler had another frustrating start. Yohan Ramirez reverted back to his career ways. The bats were silent, getting only two hits for the game. Bubba Chandler gave up two runs in the first but should have only given up one. Bryan Reynolds and Oneil Cruz let a fly ball go between them. It seemed like Reynolds should have caught the ball, but for some reason, he backed off. This allowed the Diamondbacks to score the second run of the inning. Chandler did not allow another run but walked six batters in five innings, throwing 92 pitches. Somehow, Chandler has got to start getting the ball over the plate. Ramirez came in during the bottom of the sixth. After getting the first out, his outing turned into a disaster. Here was the sequence that broke open the game: he walked a batter, hit a batter, gave up a double, hit another batter, and gave up another double to make the score 5-0. Both doubles were not hit hard, but they were on a line and well placed. Two more runs scored on a ground ball and a sacrifice fly as the Diamondbacks broke open the game, 7-0. The Diamondbacks had 4 doubles and a triple for the game.

Key Moments of the Game: The Pirate batters looked awful against Eduardo Rodriguez. They managed to have seven at-bats with runners in scoring position but failed to get a hit. The first inning set the tone for the game. Geraldo Perdomo made a nice over-the-shoulder catch on a little blooper by Oneil Cruz to open the game. In the bottom of the first, the Pirates had the outfield mishap that allowed an extra run to score. The Pirates could not muster any offense, and when the bullpen collapsed, this game was over. It was not a great start to the road trip.

Next Game: Tonight Diamondbacks in Arizona at 9:40. Paul Skenes is going for the Pirates tonight. This is something you don’t say very often, but he is looking for a bounce back start. The same thing could be said for the offense. There has to be at least a little bit of concern over the Pirate pitching which was supposed to be the strength of this team. Last night was the 10th game out of 36, and 9th out of the last 21, that the Pirates have given up 6 or more runs. Is it because of an adjustment period to a new pitching coach? Is it just a bad stretch that part of every team goes through. The biggest concern is if it continues, management won’t do much to stop the bleeding. No matter what the problem is here, this staff needs to find the answer and find it fast.

Posted on

Pirate Morning Report: At The 35 Game Mark

The Pirates are 19-16 after 35 games. They still sit in last place but are only 3.5 games out of first place. The Pirates are statistically much better than they were at this time last year. After analyzing all the offensive, defensive, and pitching statistics, it makes you wonder why they are only 3 games over .500. More on that later. I felt the Pirates had to be at least an average offensive team in order to contend. So far, they are much better than that. They had to be at least average on defense, and they are better than that. They had to maintain their top 5 pitching performance. They are close to that, except in one crucial area. Overall, this team is very good from a numerical point of view. There are some obvious deficiencies, but let’s take a look and see where the 2026 Pirates stand.

This was the worst offensive team in baseball last year by a wide margin. This was the area where this team really needed to improve, and improve they have. In runs per game, they are 6th in baseball. They are 12th in home runs. They are 11th in slugging. They were 30th in all of these stats last year. Quite a jump! They are 5th in on-base percentage (OBP). In the overall offensive stat OPS, they are 8th. They are in the top 12 of every important offensive parameter. Last year, the highest they ranked was 24th, with everything else being either 29th or 30th. According to WAR (Wins Above Replacement), which gives the overall value of a player, including offense, defense, and base running, the Pirates have two glaring weaknesses: our catchers are ranked 25th in baseball, and we have the worst DH. All other positions are ranked between 7th and 10th, making it one of the most balanced teams in the league. The only exception is shortstop, ranked at 17th, but we all know that will improve as Konnor Griffin develops.

Our pitching has been a touch below last year, but not by much. In fielding independent pitching (FIP), the Pirates are 4th in all of baseball. This measures how well pitchers control what is in their control: strikeouts, walks, and home runs. They have given up a lot of walks—8th most in baseball—but have counteracted that by leading the league in strikeouts. They have the 7th best ERA in baseball. Overall, they are 12th in baseball in total run prevention. According to WAR, we have the 5th best rotation and the 6th best bullpen. The Pirates do have one area where they have not been very good when it comes to pitching: they have converted only 38% of their save opportunities, putting them 28th in the league, ahead of only the New York Mets and California Angels. The back end of this bullpen needs to improve. Don Kelly needs to reassess who he puts in to pitch the last 3 innings of a game. This will be something to watch closely over the next 30 or so games.

At least while watching the Pirates, I felt that they were not performing very well defensively. According to Baseball Reference’s defensive efficiency stat, which I have used over the years, the Pirates rank 9th in defense. This surprises me, but I still prefer this defensive metric. Most of the time, the Pirates have ranked in the bottom 10. Last year, they finished 9th. In the previous four seasons, they finished 24th, 18th, 27th, and 24th. As long as the Pirates can remain close to the top 10 in fielding, they should be fine for the rest of the season.

Can or should the Pirates do anything about the glaring weaknesses they have? There has been a lot of clamoring for Joey Bart to be DFA’d and for the team to bring up Endy Rodriguez or Rafael Flores. I have written that I feel by mid-season those two should be the catchers. For right now, I think you need to stand pat at that position. Both Rodriguez and Flores have struggled at the AAA level. Rodriguez’s slash line currently is .222/.322/.313 with 1 home run and 14 RBIs. Flores is not much better at .224/.336/.374 with 3 home runs and 18 RBIs. Both have perked up a little lately, but not enough in my view to warrant a call-up. Henry Davis did hit two home runs the other night but is really showing no signs that he will ever hit above .200. There is no question the Pirates need upgrades at catcher, but where are they going to get them? With the exception of two players, nobody is really hitting or pitching down at AAA. Indianapolis’s record is 12-21. Ronny Simon is lighting it up right now with a slash line of .365/.442/.538. The other player doing well is none other than Alika Williams, who is slashing .347/.406/.505. I am not suggesting that these players should be brought up, but they could be used as trade bait if they continue to play and hit well. Then there is Marcell Ozuna, currently the worst DH in baseball. What should the Pirates do? The first thing they need to do is bat him no higher than 7th in the order and preferably 8th. If he continues to be this bad come August 1st, then he needs to be dumped. They should move Griffin up to 6th or 5th. If he moves up, the Pirates would have a formidable top 7 in the batting order, with Ozuna and the catcher bringing up the rear. Finally, if this team is going to continue to make strides and contend, management and coaching need to do a better job. The bullpen needs to be run better. They have to get Bubba Chandler back on track. They need to be a little more aggressive on the basepaths. They need to acquire another bullpen piece. They need to add Mlodzinski back to the bullpen once Jared Jones returns. In other words, the Pirates need two new additions to this bullpen that are bullpen stalwarts, not converted starting pitchers. At their current pace, the Pirates would win 88 games, which would make them playoff contenders. However, when you look at the stats, this team seems even better. The question is, will this team get all the help they need from this current management team and front office? Right now, I would say the answer is a toss-up.

Posted on

Pirates Morning Report: Great Grinding Win

Final Score: Pirates 1 Red 0

Why the Pirates Won: Braxton Ashcraft pitched a great 7 and 2/3 innings, giving up 0 runs on 4 hits. He struck out 6 and walked 2 while throwing only 82 pitches. The only problem was that his counterpart, Chase Burns, was just a little better. He went 7+ innings, only allowing 3 hits, walking one, and striking out 7. Through 7 innings, neither team posed much of a threat. The Pirates had 3 at-bats with runners in scoring position, and all of them were in the first inning after Oneil Cruz stole 2nd base. The Reds only had one at-bat with runners in scoring position after a 2-out double in the top of the 6th. This game eventually boiled down to the 8th inning.

Key Moments Of The Game: Spencer Steer started the top of the 8th with a sharp line drive single to left field. Ashcraft struck out Will Benson on 5 pitches. Another weak-hitting catcher, Jose Trevino, doubled down the left field line to put runners on 2nd and 3rd with one out. I admit this is where I would have taken Ashcraft out of the game. Kelly chose to leave him in, and on a 1-2 pitch, he induced Matt McClain to hit a one-hopper to Nick Gonzales, who threw Steer out at the plate. This put runners on 1st and 3rd with 2 outs. With Pirate nemesis T.J. Friedl coming to bat, Kelly then went to Gregory Soto. It was the right move. Friedl battled hard and worked the count to 3-2. He could not lay off an 84 MPH sweeper that was off the plate and struck out to end the inning. The bottom of the 8th started out promising for the Pirates with a broken bat single from Marcell Ozuna. Billy Cook pinch ran for him, but the inning looked bleak when Spencer Horwitz grounded into a double play after burning the Pirates’ last challenge on an obvious strike. Konnor Griffin smashed a double off the center field wall that missed being a home run by 6 inches. Jake Mangum, pinch hitting for Joey Bart, walked. Oneil Cruz took a 1-2 four-seam 95 MPH fastball and drilled it 104 MPH to center field to drive Griffin in with the only run of the game. Two-out lightning extraordinaire. Soto stayed in the game and quickly got 2 outs. It was only fitting that the last play of the game was a deep fly ball to left by Sal Stewart that Jake Mangum was able to catch about a foot short of the fence. This was a big win for the Pirates that gave them the sweep of the series.

Next Game: Tomorrow, the Diamondbacks in Arizona at 9:40 PM. Bubba Chandler will start for the Pirates, and let’s hope he can get his act together. The Pirates will begin a 6-game road trip against the Diamondbacks and finish up with the Giants over this weekend. The Diamondbacks are a game under .500. The Giants have been struggling, winning only 13 out of 34 games, having lost their last 6 in a row. The Pirates should be able to have at least a .500 road trip. Tomorrow, I will be doing the 35-game report on the Pirates to see how they compare with the rest of the league in batting, pitching, and defense. The season is just past the 20% mark. We all know the Pirates are doing better than they did last season. We will see by just how much.

Posted on

Pirate Morning Report: Reds Help Pirates Blow Them Away.

Final Score: Pirates 17 Reds 7

Why The Pirates Won: The Pirate bats exploded for 17 runs on 19 hits to easily win the second game of the series. It was the 2nd inning that pretty much sealed the deal, and the Pirate bats had nothing to do with it. After Oneil Cruz struck out, the Reds issued 7 consecutive walks, allowing the Pirates to score 4 runs. They threw 28 balls to 9 pitches in the strike zone, and at one stretch, they threw 11 consecutive balls. When Henry Davis grounded out, he drove in the 10th run. For the game, the Reds’ pitchers walked 11 batters. The Reds gave up on this game early, using a position player to pitch the last 2 innings. The Pirate pitching did not shine, but it did not have to. Carmen Mlodzinski went a shaky 5 and 2/3 innings. He gave up 5 runs on 8 hits but struck out 10 batters while walking only 2. This was the offense’s winning game. They sent 9 or more men to the plate 3 times in the 1st, 2nd, and 4th innings, scoring 5 runs in each inning. Everyone that started had at least one RBI. All 17 runs were earned. The Pirates can now go for the sweep.

Key Moments Of The Game: The Reds roughed up Mlodzinski for 2 runs in the 1st inning, getting a walk and 2 doubles. The Pirates came back strong in the bottom of the 1st. Cruz opened the inning with a single and was balked to 2nd. Brandon Lowe singled Cruz home. Bryan Reynolds walked on 5 pitches. Ryan O’Hearn doubled home Lowe, sending Reynolds to 3rd. Gonzales grounded out but drove in the 3rd run. Marcell Ozuna got the first of his 3 hits, a double, to make the score 4-2. One out later, Konnor Griffin doubled home the 5th run. Mlodzinski gave up a solo home run in the top of the 2nd to make the score 5-3, and the game looked like it had the makings of a slugfest. Instead, it turned into a walk fest, and the Pirates were ahead 10-3 after 2 innings. The Pirates added another 5-spot in the 4th, and this game was over.

Next Game: This afternoon the Reds, in Pittsburgh at 1:35. Braxton Ashcraft goes for the Pirates and needs a bounce-back performance. The Reds counter with Chase Burns, who in the opening week of the season only gave the Pirates one hit over five innings. Since then, he has had only one bad outing, with an ERA of 2.65. The Pirates have scored 26 runs in the first two games of the series. This possible sweep of the series seems rather important after the debacle with the Cardinals. We will see if the Pirate bats can stay hot against a good young pitcher. The Pirates brought up Jared Triolo yesterday. I was a bit surprised that they sent down Nick Yorke. I know he has been slumping lately, but Billy Cook has only had 11 plate appearances in 32 games. Maybe he was out of options; who knows with this organization. I don’t think there is much difference between the two, but the Pirates decided to keep a guy who has seen live pitching 11 times since March 26th. Makes all the sense in the world.

Posted on

Pirates Morning Report: Henry Davis Hit Two Home Runs, Do You Think The Pirates Won?

Final Score: Pirates 9 Reds 1

Why The Pirates Won: The Pirates brought out the long ball, and Mitch Keller pitched 7 strong innings as the Pirates buried the Reds to snap their 5-game losing streak. They hit 4 home runs, with 2 coming from the unlikely source of Henry Davis. Marcell Ozuna hit his 3rd home run of the season, while Bryan Reynolds hit a 443-foot blast in the first inning to get the Pirates rolling. They continued to tack on runs in innings 3 through 6, piling up 9 runs on 12 hits and 8 walks. Mitch Keller went 7 innings, giving up only 1 run on 3 hits. He struck out 6 and walked 1 while throwing 104 pitches. The Reds only managed to put 5 runners in scoring position and did not get a hit, leaving only 4 men on base. This was a dominant win for the Pirates, but can they keep the momentum going? Could a 2-homer game get Henry Davis to hit above his weight? The same could be said about Ozuna. The Pirates have to at least win this series now, and a sweep would be even sweeter.

Key Moments In The Game: In the bottom of the third, the Pirates had a runner on 1st with 2 outs. Bryan Reynolds, with a powerful swing, hit a triple to right where the right fielder almost made a spectacular catch. Ryan O’Hearn followed up with a well-placed single, enabling the Pirates to extend their lead to 3-0. It had been a while since we had seen some 2-out lightning that electrified the fans. The energy was palpable as the home team built momentum. In the bottom of the 5th, the excitement peaked when both Ozuna and Davis launched impressive 2-run homers, effectively breaking the game open at 8-0 and leaving the Reds in the dust. The Pirate pitching was relentless, never allowing the Reds off the mat, which solidified their dominance on the field and set the stage for an easy win.

Next Game: This afternoon, the Reds are in Pittsburgh at 4:05 PM. Carmen Mlodzinski goes today for the Pirates. Can he regain his form? The bullpen is at least well-rested. The Reds will counter with right-hander Rhett Lowder. He has been a solid starter, having only one bad outing this year out of six starts. The good news is that the Reds do seem to be in a bit of a hitting funk lately. Let’s hope that it lasts for two more games. Last year, Henry Davis had about five or six games with a hitting surge and then went back to looking horrible for the rest of the season. Last night could be more of the same. His lack of hitting at the MLB level has always been a bit of a mystery to me. He was drafted No. 1 strictly because of his bat. If he could somehow become an average hitter, it would give the Pirates an unbelievable boost.