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Pirates Morning Report: Throwing The Game Away.

Final Score: Pirates 3 Diamondbacks 7

Why The Pirates Lost: The Pirates continue to follow the formula for defeat. Poor starting pitching, this time supplied by Rich Hill. He turned in a dominate performance of going 4 innings throwing 95 pitches, giving up 5 runs, on 7 hits, walking 4. Remember he did all this in four innings. The offense put 3 runs on the board getting only 6 hits to go along with 2 walks and a hit by pitch. There were lots of collars worn last night. Going that magical 0 for 4 were Bryan Reynolds, Ji Man Choi, and Nick Gonzales. Henry Davis would have done the same thing except he got hit by a pitch to go 0 for 3. The Pirates had 2 throwing errors that led to some runs but their entire game pretty much stunk.

Key Moment Of The Game: The bottom of the 3rd was pretty much a disaster. This is how you do not play baseball. Walking the first batter. Then allowing him to steal 2nd without throwing the ball to home plate. This exact same thing happened the next inning, which led to their 5th run. Then you misplay a bunt which allows the first run to score. You throw a 72 MPH curveball right over the middle of the plate and it is hit for a 3 run home run. Four batter equals 4 runs when you are playing the Pirates.

Next Game: This afternoon, thank God no more late games, Diamondbacks in Phoenix. The Pirates are now 1-4 on this road trip and spiraling into oblivion. In a nutshell, the pitching as totally collapsed. Only 2 games until the All Star break, and we all need a break from these Pirates. I know there have been a lot of injuries, but bad baseball is bad baseball. During this latest bad stretch, the Pirates have given away about half the games they lost. Can they somehow, someway win one of the these next 2 games. The so-called ace is going today. This should be their best chance, but I would not bet any appendages on it.

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Pirates Morning Report: Routine Loss

Final Score: Pirates 2 Dodgers 5

Why The Pirates Loss: The Pirates followed their typical formula for defeat. They barely hit and pitched mediocrely. The Pirates put together a nice 2nd inning getting a single, double, and another double to tie the game 2-2. It took them 17 batters to get another hit. They did manage one walk during that stretch. They only left 2 men on base, because hardly anyone got on base. Johan Oviedo pitched better than most starters lately but was done in by the home run ball. You could say the double and home run ball. The Dodgers scored 2 runs in the 1st and 2 runs in the 6th exactly the same way. Leadoff double and boom a long home run. The Dodgers added an unnecessary run in the 7th, because you knew on this night, the Pirates were not going to score anymore runs. Castro particularly looked bad at the plate against a left-hand pitcher, who Castro is supposed to crush. He struck out both times. The first at bat he swung at 2 balls in the strike zone, took one for a ball, but swung at a ball way inside. On the second at bat, he was even worse, fouling a strike, taking a strike, and swinging at a ball way low. He looks completely lost and needs a ticket to Indianapolis.

Key Moment Of The Game: Freddie Freeman, after he fouled off the first pitch by Oviedo to start the bottom of the 6th, got into a discussion with the umpire, most likely about the pitch clock or calling timeout. Nobody was sure what it was about, but it brought Derick Shelton out of the dugout, along with Dave Roberts. The umpires got in a huddle, then talked with both managers. This only caused a delay of about 2 minutes but when you are throwing pitches every 15 seconds or less it might have had an effect on Oviedo. It is only speculation, but the next pitch went for a double and 2 pitches later Max Muncy parked it, to give the Dodgers the lead they never relinquished.

Next Game: Tonight, Diamondbacks, in Phoenix. The Pirates are 1-3 on this road trip. I expected them to go 1-6 or even 0-7. However, there is some hope to be a little, and I do mean very little, optimistic. The Diamondbacks have lost 4 in a row, so maybe the Pirates are catching them at the right time. Plus, the Diamondbacks have a better road record than home record. I know it is not a lot, but for us Pirate fans we grab on to anything. Even so, if they win 2 out of 3, I will be shocked.

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Pirates Morning Report: What A Debacle

Final Score: Pirates 4 Dodgers 6

Why The Pirates Lost: Poor starting pitching again contributed to a loss. Given a 4-0 lead going into the bottom of the of the 4th inning, Osvaldo Bido decided to give the Dodgers 2 runs on a silver platter. He walked 2 and hit a batter to load the bases. A sacrifice fly scored one run and moved a runner to third, setting up the possibility that the Dodgers would score 2 runs without the benefit of a hit. Bido gave us some hope when he struck out the next batter, but then gave up a single and the score was 4-2. The Dodgers were right back in the game and virtually did nothing. Then Roansy Contreras came in the fifth inning to seal the deal. After getting one out, he walks the next 2 batters. Three pitches later, J. D. Martinez blasts one to left center field for a home run giving the Dodgers the lead 5-4. The Dodgers scored those 5 runs on just 2 hits. Make them work for those runs Pirates. Two pitches later, David Peralta homers and the Dodgers take a 6-4 lead. That would be the eventual final score. Late in the game the Dodgers decided they wanted to be gift givers, but the Pirates could not take advantage.

Key Moments Of The Game: The Pirates loaded the bases in the 7th and 9th innings with nobody out and failed to score. The Dodgers returned the favor by walking 2 batters each inning to help load the bases. What makes this even more galling is that in the 7th the Pirates had the 2, 3, and 4 hitters batting and in the 9th the 3, 4, and 5 hitters. Bryan Reynolds hit a fairly hard 98 MPH line drive but right at the shortstop in the 7th. Henry Davis hit a soft 78 MPH line drive to the second baseman after taking 2 called strikes. His at bat was even worse in the 9th, as he took a called third strike to make the first out. Carlos Santana popped out twice once to end the 7th and make the 2nd out of the 9th. The Pirates could not take advantage of 2 golden opportunities and went down to their 2nd loss on the road trip.

Next Game: Tonight Dodgers in Los Angeles. The Pirates sent down Luis Ortiz yesterday to AAA and should do the same thing with Roansy Contreras. Both pitchers have lost considerable velocity on their fast balls, and nobody seems to be able to do anything about it. They do not seem to be hurt. If this was something done by design, why keep it a big secret? It doesn’t seem to be working. This has to be one of the big coaching failures so far this season. Both pitchers looked so good last year. Johan Oviedo who is pitching tonight seems to be going in the wrong direction also. Why can’t the coaching staff seem to straighten these pitchers out. They are all 25 or younger and seem to be really talented. Player development in reverse. If it is not corrected soon, then the season could get very ugly.

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Pirates Morning Report: Surprise! Surprise! Surprise!

Before I get to the synopsis of the game, I know I wrote that I was going to take a couple of days off because of traveling, but I could not pass up such a stirring come from behind victory. Besides, just like people who drink say “It’s 5 o clock somewhere” I can write that it’s morning somewhere. Now to the game.

Final Score: Pirates 9 Dodgers 7

Why The Pirates Won: The bullpen came through after Luis Ortiz had a horrible start. In 3 and 1/3 innings Ortiz gave up 6 runs on 9hits and 1 walk. In the last 5 and 2/3 innings the bullpen game up 1 run and 2 hits while walking 2. The Pirates bats came alive and scored 9 runs including 3 in the 9th to turn a 7-6 deficit into a 9-7 lead. For the game the Pirates had 12 hits to go along with 7 walks. This was a game of missed opportunities for both teams. The Pirates left 10 men on base and the Dodgers 8, going 0 for 6 with runners in scoring position. The Pirates were able to survive giving up 4 home runs to the Dodgers. At the end the Pirates were able to come through and get a win on this road trip that I thought they might not be able to do.

Key Moment Of The Game: The 9th inning saw the Dodger closer, Evan Phillips walked 2 Pirates in a row after striking out Carlos Santana. Jared( I’m The Real Third Basemen Of The Future) Triolo singled to left to drive in the tying run and getting to second on a poor throw by the Dodger centerfielder. Josh(I Know You Just Wish That I Would Go Away) Palacios doubled, down the left field line to drive in runs 8 and 9. He made a base running blunder on the next play just to remind us why we want him to go away. But when you knock in the go ahead runs in the top of the 9th for a victory over the Dodgers all is forgiven.

Next Game: Tonight, Dodgers in Los Angeles. In order to win the last 2 out of 5 games the Pirates have had to score 3 runs in the 9th inning. You can look at this two ways. It’s great that they have been able to do comeback wins and both times against better than average teams. However, if this is what it takes every time just to win a game, then their luck is going to run out. I still don’t see them winning more than 2 games on this road trip but I will gladly be wrong. The starting pitching is going to have to step up, if that is going to happen.

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Pirates Morning Report: Jet Lag Loss

Final Score: Pirates 2 Dodgers 5

Why The Pirates Lost: It was a team just going through the motions. Mitch Keller pitched like a non All Star getting ripped for 5 runs on 3 doubles and a home run, giving up 8 hits and a walk overall, in just 5 innings on 101 pitches. One of the runs was unearned on a Carlos Santana error but overall a pretty pathetic performance by the starting pitcher. The top 3 batters in the Pirate order were 0 for 11 with 1 walk and Jack Suwinski got hit by a pitch twice. It’s hard to move out of the way of the ball when your body is telling you it’s after 11PM.

Key Moment Of The Game: Trailing 5-1 going into the top of the 6th the Pirates got something going with 2 hits and a walk sandwiched around one out. They allowed Austin Hedges to bat and yes he did get a sacrifice fly to drive in a run, but at that point in the game the Pirates needed so much more. Obviously Derick(The Dunce) Shelton didn’t think so and did not make a move to try and win the game for the 2nd day in a row. I guess you could blame this on jet lag but 9 losses in a row is still the most likely outcome of this road trip.

Next Game: Tonight, Dodgers in Los Angeles. The morning report will be taking a one or two day hiatus because I will be flying in from the west coast today and have early golf commitments for Wednesday. Since the Pirates are really not busting their ass, neither am I.

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Pirates Morning Report: Gift Wrapped Win For The Brewers

Final Score: Pirates 3 Brewers 6

Why The Pirates Lost: The Pirates did everything they could to make sure the Brewers won the game. The Brewers scored 3 runs in the third on one hit. Rich Hlll after getting the first 4 batters out then decided to hit a batter. He walked the next batter on 5 pitches. He served up an 89 MPH chest high fastball to William Contreras that he crushed for a 3 run 435 ft. homer. The scored stayed 3-2 Brewers until the top of the 8th. In the top of the 8th the first 2 Brewers batters made outs. Carmen Mlodzinski walks the next batter after getting ahead 1 ball and 2 strikes. He then gives up a single to put runners on 1st and 3rd. Derick(The Shadow) Shelton then decides to put the worse Pirate reliever in the most crucial part of the game instead of putting in the best reliever, David Bednar, who had not pitched since Thursday. Ryan Borucki did not disappoint. On a little chopper to the left of the mound he threw the ball away and the Brewers scored 2 runs to stretch their lead to 5-2. The Pirates scored a run in the bottom of the inning to cut the lead to 5-3, but Shelton leaves Borucki in the game to make sure that the Brewers score another run and Brewers win 6-3. Borucki left the game with a sparkling ERA of 9.82. Definitely the pitcher you want in the game when you are trying to win a series against your division rival.

Key Moment Of The Game: When the Brewers tried to give us some help we did not take advantage. In the bottom of the 5th Jared Triolo reached on a throwing error to start the inning. Then the Pirates had the pitcher, I mean Austin Hedges bunt him over to second. Jack Suwinski walked with Reynolds and McCutchen coming to bat. Two weak ground balls and the inning was over and the Pirates were on their way to their 2nd loss in a row. Shelton made sure of it.

Next Game: Tonight Dodgers in Los Angeles. This starts a 7 game road trip against the Dodgers and the Diamondbacks. I expect the Pirates to win only one game on this trip. I will be mildly surprised if they win 2 and shocked if they win 3 or more. Yesterday’s game was a horrible performance by all involved. I wrote yesterday that this game was so important on many fronts and the Pirates fell flat on their face. It was an awful managerial performance. There was no sense of urgency to win this game. When you leave your best reliever sitting in the bullpen when the game is on the line, all you can expect is a loss. This is the 2nd time he has done this in the last 10 days. It would be nice to see this team hold on until the All Star break but I do not see that, with managerial decisions that are so bad .

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Pirates Morning Report: Eight Runs Not Enough This Time

Final Score: Pirates 8 Brewers 11

Why The Pirates Lost: This was a complete pitching failure. Johan Oviedo and Roansy Contreras combined for 7 and 1/3 innings giving up 11 runs, 12 hits, and walking 4. Both pitchers just can’t seem to get any consistency going. At one point the Brewers led 10-0. The Pirates made it interesting scoring 2 in the 6th and 6 in the 8th to make it 11-8 but went quietly in the 9th to fall 4 games below .500.

Key Moment Of The Game: In the bottom of the 8th, the Pirates had a runner on 2nd base with 2 outs and had only scored 1 run to make the score 11-3. The Pirates went on a tear. Jack Suwinski hit a home run to quickly make it 11-5. Conner Joe walked, Henry Davis singled, moving Joe to third. Davis went to 2nd on a wild pitch. Tucupita Marcano tripled to make the score 11-7. Jared Triola doubled off the Clemente wall to get the Pirates within 3. Rodolfo Castro who has not looked good at the plate for the last 3 weeks struck out on a 3-2 pitch about 4 inches outside the zone and the inning was over. The Pirates made the Brewers sweat for a moment but it was not enough and the winning streak was over at 4.

Next Game: This afternoon, Brewers in Pittsburgh. I really look at this as a must win for the Pirates. They need this to win a division series. They need it for their psyche. A 5-1 home stand is a must after the hole they put themselves in. This has been the weekend of the veteran and you can’t get more veteran than Rich Hill. Hopefully he will have his at them ball working and the Pirates can pull out the win.

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Pirates Morning Report: Santana Walks It Off

Final Score: Pirates 8 Brewers 7

Why The Pirates Won: For the second straight game the Pirates fought back from a 4 run deficit and in this game they did it twice. The offense came alive for 8 runs and 11 hits. The Pirates were 5 for 15 with runners in scoring position. It was a big day for the veterans. Thirty six year old Andrew McCutchen and thirty seven year old Carlos Santana went 6 for 10 with 2 home runs and 5 RBI’s, on a day when the youthful Pirates were having a hard time. The game turned out to be an impromptu bullpen game for the Pirates, as Osvaldo Bido could only go 3 and 1/3 innings giving up 4 runs on 4 hits and a walk, while throwing 73 pitches. The bullpen gave up 3 more runs over the last 5 and 2/3 innings. It was Carmen Mlodzinski who shut down the Brewers the last 2 innings that enabled the Pirates to get back in the game.

Key Moment Of The Game: The Brewers had to go with the B squad for the bullpen and the Pirates finally made them pay. Leading 7-5 going into the bottom of the 9th, the Brewers had to rest closer Devin Williams and brought in Matt Bush to pitch. Ji Hwan Bae opened with a single. One out later McCutchen doubled him home to make it 7-6. Henry Davis grounded out. On the next pitch Carlos Santana blasted a home run into the Allegheny River and the Pirates had the walk off win to go to 39-42.

Next Game: This afternoon, Brewers in Pittsburgh. The big comeback win for the Pirates keeps the momentum going. They have now won 4 in a row and the last 2 have been come from behind victories from 4 runs down. The sweep of the Brewers is still in play and they need it. They need it to help erase the memory of the previous 13 games and give them confidence going into the tough 7 game road trip coming up.

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Pirates Morning Report: Getting A Helping Hand

Final Score: Pirates 5 Padres 4

Why The Pirates Won: Good fortune and a helping hand from the Padres enabled the Pirates to come away with a 5-4 victory and sweep the series. The Pirates trailed 4-0 going into the bottom of the 4th. The comeback started here with a run, they added another one in the bottom of the 6th and topped it off with 3 in the 7th to complete the comeback. Henry Davis was the star with 3 hits, driving in 2 runs, including the go ahead run, and scoring a run. Luis Ortiz did not have his best best stuff yesterday giving up 4 runs on 6 hits and 4 walks in just 4 and 2/3 innings. For the 2nd straight day the bullpen shutdown the Padres not allowing them to score a run. The record improved to 38-42

Key Moments Of The Game: Another game where the Padres could not come through with 2 outs and the Pirates did with a little help from the Padres. In the top of the 5th after one out Juan Soto walked. Manny Machado flied out. Xander Bogaerts singled and Jake Cronenworth walked to load the bases. The Pirates brought in Ryan Borucki and his 40 ERA. He got Brandon Dixon on one pitch to fly out to center and then pitched a scoreless 7th inning. Pretty miraculous. Going into the bottom of the 7th the Pirates trailed 4-2. Castro walked and Jared Triola singled to put runners on 1st and 3rd with nobody out. Jason Delay hit a hard shot up the middle that took pitcher Tim Hill’s glove off. He had time to get the runner out at second but elected to throw to first and did get the out. Suwinski hit a soft chopper down the first base line that Hill fielded but no one was really on first base and Hill threw the ball into right field allowing the Pirates to tie the game 4-4, with Suwinski winding up on 2nd base. Luis Garcia came in and got McCutchen to ground out. Henry Davis got the big 2 out hit, a blooper down the right field line and the Pirates had the lead 5-4 that the bullpen preserved for their 3rd win in a row.

Next Game: Tonight, Brewers in Pittsburgh. The Pirates must keep the momentum going and do some payback to the Brewers. Sweeping the Padres was huge and they took advantage of the breaks that they got. They need to at least take 2 out of 3 which will get them right back in the race.

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Pirates Morning Report: Pirates Win The Battle Of The Bullpens

Final Score: Pirates 7 Padres 1

Why The Pirates Won: After 6 innings the score was 2-1 Pirates and both starters were done. Each team had to turn the game over to the bullpens for the last three innings. The Pirate bullpen which has been having a rough time came through last night giving up no runs on 3 hits and a walk. The Padre bullpen got touched up and I do mean lightly touched up for 5 runs in the bottom of the 7th, as the Pirates won their second in a row to go to 37-42. Carlos Santana hit another home run, this time in the first inning to give the Pirates a quick 2-0 lead. Mitch Keller after a slow start hung in there giving up only 1 run in the top of the 6th.

Key Moments Of The Game: Even though the final score was rather lopsided, it could have been much closer if some things had gone a different way for both teams. Keller after getting 2 outs in each of the first 2 innings, ran into trouble. In the first the Padres had 1st and 3rd but failed to score when Xander Bogaerts grounded into a force out short to 2nd. In the top of the 2nd the Padres had 2nd and 3rd with 2 outs but Ha-Seong Kim flew out to left field failing to score again. In the top of the 7th everything went right for the Pirates. Nick Gonzales got an infield hit that the shortstop lost his balance fielding the ball making the throw late. Jack Suwinski walked. Jared Triolo got hit in the hand while trying to bunt. This is where the Padres lost 2 arguments. Did the ball hit the bat first but regardless did Triolo pull his bat back fast enough. The answer was no but the umps thought he did. Instead of the at bat continuing, the Pirates had the bases loaded and nobody out. Josh Palacios hit a line drive to right field that Tatis barely short hopped scoring the Pirates 3rd run and the bases were still loaded with nobody out. If the bunt play had been ruled correctly and Tatis makes the play the Pirates would have had 1st and 2nd with 2 out. If everything had gone exactly the same way the score would have been 4-1 rather than 7-1. It could have been a much more tense top of the 9th inning.

Next Game: This afternoon Padres in Pittsburgh. The Pirates are going to be going for the series sweep. I know, it is hard to believe. The Pirates had some really good breaks last night and maybe that will help them turn this thing around.