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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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Pirates Morning Report: Even Skenes Can’t Stop This Skid

Final Score: Pirates 5 Cardinals 10

Why the Pirates Lost: The pitching just fell apart in this series. In the last 28 innings, the Pirates’ pitching staff has given up 30 runs. They allowed 38 hits and 16 walks. This was supposed to be the strength of this team. Hopefully, this is a glitch and nothing more. The walks have been a season-long problem; they are 7th in the league in giving up the most walks. The hitting has not been great, but it has been good enough to have won at least 2 games in the series. Although Paul Skenes did strike out 9 batters, he did not have a pitch touch 98 MPH; he had some that were very close. Hopefully, this was due to the cold weather. For his 5 innings of work, he gave up 5 runs on 8 hits. He gave up no walks and threw 102 pitches. The Pirates tried to come back and made the score 5-4 going into the top of the 8th. Isaac Mattson came in and gave up 5 runs, although 3 scored after he was pulled from the game. Chris Devenski came in with the bases loaded and allowed 2 singles that enabled the Reds to break the game open at 10-4. Why he came into the game when he had pitched yesterday and not Gregory Soto, who had not pitched since Monday, only the Pirates know for sure. I guess it goes back to that philosophy that if the Pirates are down 2 or more runs, they are not coming back, so save the good relievers. The Pirates are 16-16 now, firmly entrenched in last place.

Key Moments Of The Game: It was the very first inning. With Skenes on the mound, you thought that this was the stopper of the four-game losing streak. You barely sat down on those cold seats when the Cardinals hit a home run, followed by an infield single, a strikeout, and another home run. Before you could say, “It looks like we are going to lose five in a row,” it was 3-0 Cardinals. The Cardinals touched up Skenes for two more runs over five innings. The Pirates did come back to trail just 5-4 after seven innings. Then came the disastrous eighth inning, highlighted by Bryan Reynolds losing a ball in the lights, Oneil Cruz not knowing what to do with the ball, allowing the second run of the inning to score, two walks to load the bases, and then bringing in 35-year-old Chris Devenski to ensure the Cardinals would break open the game.

Next Game: Tonight, the Reds are in Pittsburgh at 6:45. A five-minute later start because the game is on Apple TV. Apple said they needed the extra five minutes to try and explain the Pirates’ thinking. Playing 13 games in 13 days is too much for the Pirates’ management team. There is one thing we know for sure: Gregory Soto is available tonight. He has not pitched since Monday. The Pirates look to snap their five-game losing streak against the first-place Reds. As crazy as sports are, they probably will. Mitch Keller takes the hill for the Pirates. The Reds show how mismanaged the Pirates are. The Reds are in first place, and the Pirates are in last place. The Pirates have scored more runs, have a higher on-base percentage, and a lower ERA than the Reds. They trail the Reds by 4.5 games. Do you think we need a new manager?

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Pirate Morning Report: Lack Of Big Hit Leads To Fourth Straight Loss.

Final Score: Pirates 4 Cardinals 5

Why The Pirates Lost: Another disappointing outing for Bubba Chandler. He went 5 innings, giving up 3 runs on 3 hits and walking 4, pushing his ERA to nearly 5. He worked from behind most of the game. The Pirates went with the B squad in the bullpen, and it cost them. Evan Sisk and Chris Devenski pitched a combined 2 innings, giving up 2 runs on 2 hits and a walk. At one point in the game, the Pirates trailed 5-1 going into the bottom of the 7th inning. They scored 2 in the 7th and 1 in the 8th to pull within one run of the lead. They could have done so much more. In the bottom of the 9th, after Ryan O’Hearn singled to left, Marcell Ozuna had a typical frustrating Pirates at-bat. He took 2 strikes and swung at a ball out of the strike zone to strike out. The first pitch was a 97 MPH fastball sinker right down the middle. What are you waiting for? Nick Gonzales hit a high drive into left field that Nathan Church got a great jump on and caught right before it went over the fence to end the game. When you are on a losing streak, things just go this way. Maybe better luck this afternoon.

Key Moments Of The Game: The Pirates had scored 2 runs in the bottom of the 7th. Then they loaded the bases with one out, now trailing by just 2 runs. Ryan O’Hearn was at the plate. He picked this time to have one of his worst at-bats of the season. Just like Ozuna was going to do, he took the first pitch right down the middle for a strike. He swung at the next pitch that was 6 inches inside and below the knees and fouled it off. He tried to check his swing on a sweeper, but the 3rd base umpire said he swung. Marcell (Rally Killing) Ozuna, on a 3-2 count, swung at a pitch about 3 inches inside and grounded out to third to end the inning. In the bottom of the 8th, Gonzales singled and Spencer Horwitz walked to put runners on first and second with no outs. Konnor Griffin struck out swinging on two balls outside the zone. Jake Magnum loaded the bases when his line drive one-hopper to short was booted, and everyone was safe. For the second straight inning, the Pirates had the bases loaded and 1 out. Oneil Cruz grounded out, scoring a run and putting runners on 1st and 3rd with two outs. Nick Yorke, who had gotten a big pinch hit in the previous inning, hit a soft liner to right to end the inning. The Pirates had the bases loaded with one out twice and could muster only 1 run. It was the difference in the ball game.

Next Game: This afternoon, the Cardinals are in Pittsburgh at 12:35 PM. Paul Skenes goes today for the Pirates, and let’s hope that he can help stop the skid. He has been almost unhittable since Opening Day. Keeping Ozuna in the 4th and 5th spots in the order has proved costly for the Pirates. I know that they cannot give up on him quite yet, but how about batting him 7th or 8th? I would assume that he will be rested tomorrow. You never know about the Pirates. Maybe they will bat him leadoff. They waste Cruz in that spot now. What an organization. Five easy ways to mess up a good team, written by the Pirate management team. I guess they are literate, maybe.

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Pirates Morning Report: Proving A Point Rather Than Trying To Win

Final Score: Pirates 7 Cardinals 11

Why The Pirates Lost: The Pirates wanted to show everyone that their bullpen was depleted. In reality, it was not. The Pirates, however, live in the Twilight Zone. Don Kelly and his staff must believe that if the Pirates are 2-3 runs down going into the 7th inning, they are out of the game. This is the second time this year in that scenario that the Pirates went with a struggling pitcher when there were much more viable options available. The first time, the Pirates were only 2 runs down. Last night, the score was 6-3 going into the 7th. Yohan Ramirez was available; he had not pitched since Saturday. Isaac Mattson had only thrown 3 pitches the night before. Mason Montgomery had thrown 7 pitches the night before, and Justin Lawrence 9 pitches. Any one of those 4 pitchers could have come in. Instead, the Pirates decided to let Hunter Barco take a beating, to hell with his psyche. The Pirates wanted to show everyone that, see, our bullpen is totally exhausted, so there is no way we can win this one. The only good news here is the offense came alive, hitting 3 home runs and scoring 7 runs, but without a bullpen, what can you do but lose? It does appear that this team is going to be so mismanaged that there is no way they are going to contend.

Key Moment Of The Game: It had to be the pregame meeting. What were they going to do if Braxton Ashcraft had a bad night? I can hear the discussion now. If Ashcraft can’t go 6 innings or more, then we will put Hunter Barco out there until his arm falls off. What do you think, Don? Great plan, hope we score 12 runs tonight. Plus, there was real high-level strategy late in the game. With the score 11-3, Kelly pinch-hit for Brandon Lowe with Nick Yorke against a left-hander on the mound. I’m sure he wanted to show he still thought this was a good move. Yorke struck out, so at least he did not hit into a double play. Other Pirates took care of that as they hit into 4 double plays for the game. With score 11-3 don’t you think it would have been nice for Lowe to see a left hander. He also pinch-hit for the .160 batting average Henry Davis with the .161 batting average Marcell Ozuna. He struck out. I think what Kelly should have done is let Justin Lawrence bat just to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that the Pirates had no intention of trying to win this game.

Next game: Tonight, the Cardinals are in Pittsburgh at 6:40 PM. I knew that playing 13 games in 13 days would really mess the Pirates up. When you have a team that is this old and fragile, you cannot expect them to perform at a high level for this many days in a row. Now that they have had two days of rest, maybe they can salvage a series split. Bubba Chandler is going tonight for the Pirates. It was thought that he was going to start last night, but Ashcraft started instead. Chandler does need to have a good start for everyone concerned. The Pirates have lost three in a row and are in last place. It is where this team feels comfortable.

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Pirate Morning Report: Inflexible Plan Leads To Defeat

Final Score: Pirates 2 Cardinals 4

Why the Pirates Lost: The Pirates had a bullpen game with a plan. Unfortunately, it was an inflexible plan. Mason Montgomery threw 7 pitches, Justin Lawrence threw 9 pitches, and the designated bulk guy Wilber Dotel threw 44 pitches. Isaac Mattson threw three pitches. The first three pitchers were highly effective, throwing a perfect game through 6 and 2/3 innings. The Pirates could have easily stretched out this game to the point where they probably would not have had to use Soto or Dennis Santana. The Pirates had a plan and stuck with it, no matter how ridiculous it was. Dotel is a starter, for God’s sake; he could have thrown at least 16 more pitches. Mattson and Montgomery could have thrown another inning. All of this stupidity led to having to use Dennis Santana in the 9th with no backup plan. He had one of his worst outings as a Pirate, and it led to a 4-run 9th inning. Another defeat that lands squarely on this bizarre management group. I honestly think they know nothing about baseball. Even though the offense got 8 hits and 2 walks, they could only manage 2 runs. They never really threatened to score more, getting only 5 men in scoring position. This defeat really stings.

Key Moments of the Game: Not letting Mason Montgomery come out for the 2nd inning. Not letting Wilber Dotel come out for the 7th inning. That was the big bonehead move. This kid was mowing them down. Thirty-two of the forty-four pitches he had thrown were for strikes. He was in command of the game. He could have easily thrown 15 to 20 more pitches. Mattson had thrown 3 pitches and could have come out for the 8th inning. When this debacle was over, the Pirate broadcast booth said that tomorrow would be tough with a worn-out bullpen. The bullpen is not worn out. Only Santana, Dotel, and maybe Soto cannot pitch tonight. In the 4-run 9th inning, the Cardinals did get a nice break when a little chopper went down the third base line and stopped on the foul line just short of 3rd base. The rest of the Cardinals’ hits were rockets: 2 home runs and a double. You can only mismanage a game for so long until it comes back to bite you.

Next game: Tonight, the Cardinals are in Pittsburgh at 6:40 PM. Bubba Chandler is going for the Pirates tonight, and it is time for him to step up and have a good start. The offense also needs to pick up the pace. This is the first time the Pirates have lost two in a row since the opening two games of the season. Hopefully, management may learn from their mistakes, but I doubt it. It’s not a good start to the homestand, but maybe this will wake the offense up a little bit. There is no question that the Pirates need to shake this one off. Can they do it?