Final Score: Pirates 0 Padres 5
Why The Pirates Lost: They were shut out for the second time this season. Both shutouts, the Pirates had a decent amount of traffic on the base paths. In the 2-0 loss to the Reds, they had 4 hits and 5 walks. They went 0 for 6 with runners in scoring position and left 8 on base. Last night, they had 7 hits and 5 walks. They were 1 for 10 with runners in scoring position and left 9 on base. The reason the hit did not score a run was that the 3rd base coach of the Pirates apparently lost sight of the ball and held up the runner when he would have easily scored. He then had to send him when the runner from 1st was heading to third. The Padres easily threw Ryan O’Hearn at the plate. In the 7th, Henry Davis was doubled off first on a relatively soft (87 MPH) line drive. Of course, when you get on base as little as Davis does, it is hard to know what to do. Bubba Chandler continues to have control problems, this time walking four in 4 and 1/3 innings. In 8 and 2/3 innings of work this year, he has walked ten batters. Three of the four walks scored. Bryan Reynolds fell down trying to catch a fly ball in the top of the 5th, which helped the Padres score 2 runs. The Pirate pitchers did get racked up for 11 hits, with four of them being doubles. To me, this was just one of those games that even the best of teams will have once in a while. We will see if the Pirates will bounce back.
Key Moments Of The Game: The base running blunder in the bottom of the 2nd was a pivotal moment, when the third base coach made the crucial mistake of not sending the runner home. This costly mistake not only denied the Pirates a run but also meant they would have had 1st and 3rd with one out. In a twist of fate, the Padres took advantage of the Pirates’ missteps and scored 2 runs in the top of the 5th without technically earning a hit, a situation that arose due to Reynolds misjudging a high fly ball, which fell just out of his reach. The Pirates, however, showed signs of life with a leadoff double in the bottom of the 6th, igniting hopes for a comeback. Unfortunately, the severely slumping Marcell Ozuna, who has been struggling at the plate for quite some time, could not even advance the runner to third base, by grounding out to short. Nick Gonzales stepped up next, hitting a fly ball deep enough that would have surely scored O’Hearn. For whatever reason, the Pirates looked sluggish in this contest, failing to capitalize on opportunities that could have shifted the momentum in their favor. As the game unfolded, it was clear that a lack of urgency and execution plagued their performance. Hopefully, there are better days ahead for the team.
Next Game: Tonight, Padres in Pittsburgh at 6:40 PM. Paul Skenes goes for the Pirates tonight. He looked better than in the opening day outing. With the Pirates’ batters, it is either feast or famine. In last night’s game, the Pirates had 3 batters that are way over the league average in OPS. They had two just slightly above the league average. They had four that are way below the league average. Then there is Marcell Ozuna. He could not have gotten off to a worse start. In 34 plate appearances, he has a slash line of .065/.171/.236. If he does not come out of this soon, the Pirates are going to have to make some tough decisions. At the very least, they are going to have to consider putting him much further down in the batting order and maybe even the possibility of platooning him. The offense is better, but that is because of about 5 players. In the long run, other players are going to have to step up, or some replacements are going to need to be made. The only player that has gotten off to a slow start who looks like he is starting to come around is Spencer Horwitz. In my view, the Pirates need to find a way to get Nick Gonzales and Nick Yorke in the lineup at the same time. The Pirates are never good at making difficult decisions. I do not expect them to start now.
The Goofy Game of Golf/Life Searching for the Answer 