Tag: Helpful Nationals

Final Score: Pirates 7 Nationals 1

Why the Pirates Won: The Pirates took advantage of a very fortunate 2nd inning, scoring 4 runs. For a change, they made it hold up with a good overall pitching performance to win rather easily. The Pirate bullpen did not give up a hit for 3 and 2/3 innings, but somehow still made it interesting. The vaunted Nationals offense could not really get untracked. They hit into 3 double plays and only had 5 at-bats with runners in scoring position. James Wood took Braxton Ashcraft’s first pitch of the game and drilled it 428 feet for a home run. After that, the Nationals could not do much with 5 hits and 5 walks, thanks to those double plays. The Nationals helped out the Pirates with some questionable moves and plays something that the Phillies hardly ever do.

Key Moments Of The Game: The score was tied 1-1 going into the top of the second. The Pirates did not hit a ball over 88 MPH but managed to score 4 runs. It was Nick Gonzales’s opening ground ball single that went 88 MPH. Jake Mangum got hit by a pitch on the 7th pitch of his at-bat. Tyler Calihan bunted for a single down the 3rd base line to load the bases. Henry Davis hit a weak 38 MPH ground ball that the 3rd baseman could not handle to score a run. Konnor Griffin struck out on a 9-pitch at-bat by swinging at 3 balls that were way out of the strike zone. Brandon Lowe hit a kind of knuckling looper at 87 MPH into centerfield for a single scoring 2 runs. Bryan Reynolds popped out for the 2nd out. Esmerlyn Valdez hit this pathetic 77 MPH low blooper that fell in at 243 feet for a single, driving in the 4th run of the inning. For the next 5 innings, the Pirates got 1 hit and 1 walk. Going into the bottom of the 7th, the score was still 5-1 Pirates. Yohan (I Want Unlimited Challenges) Ramirez had relieved Ashcraft in the 6th inning, getting the final out. He started the bottom of the 7th. He walked the first two batters. He threw 12 pitches, and only 2 were in the strike zone. This brought up the weak-hitting Nasim Nunez. The first pitch to him was a ball nowhere near the plate. He swung at the next pitch that was borderline low and grounded into a double play. Take sign anyone? Ramirez walked James Wood, which was probably not a bad idea. The Pirates pulled him to bring in Mason Montgomery. For the record, Ramirez threw 26 pitches, with only 9 finding the strike zone. Then the Nationals made a Pirate move. They pinch-hit for Luis Garcia Jr., who hits lefties at a .242 clip, with a right-handed batter who is hitting .159. Montgomery struck him out. Great use of analytics there, Nationals. The Pirates added 2 in the 8th, and this game was over.

Next Game: This afternoon, Nationals in Washington D.C. The Pirates have a chance to win the series and have a 4-3 road trip, which is something I did not think they would do. Even if they lose today, 3-4 is not too bad. With the next 6 games against the Braves and the Brewers, it would be a big win today. They would pick up a full game on one of their wild card competitors. While the Pirates have been treading water, their opponents have been getting hot and are now 4 games out of the wild card. This is the furthest out they have been all season. At the very least, they need to tread water over these next 7 games. Lose the next 5 or 6 games, and the trade deadline could become insignificant.