Tag: Offense comes alive

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Pirates Morning Report: Several Players Have Big Day As Pirates Defeat Royals

Final Score: Pirates 8 Royals 5

Why the Pirates Won: Led by Konnor Griffin, who went 4 for 5, the Pirates put 8 runs on the board. The game started out as if the Pirates might give one away. They had 3 hits in the 1st inning, with one being a double, and they did not score a run. In the 2nd inning they had a walk and a double with one out and could not score. They finally broke the ice in the 3rd scoring 2 runs on a Brandon Lowe 2 run homer. Griffin was not the only Pirate who had a big day at the plate; Bryan Reynolds went 2 for 5, with both hits being doubles. Oneil Cruz went 3 for 5 and scored 2 runs. Griffin, Brandon Lowe, and Spencer Horwitz each had 2 RBIs. Henry Davis went 1 for 3 to bring his OPS up to .585, and he may not be the worst hitter in the league anymore. Not all the news was good, as Paul Skenes got knocked around pretty well. He did finish strong, managing to go 6 innings and retiring the last 8 batters he faced. Before that, he had given up 5 runs on 6 hits, including 2 home runs. Skenes saw his ERA rise to 3.91. The Pirates remain 8 games out with 8 games to play.

Key Moments Of The Game: The Pirates had just tied the game in the bottom of the 5th. Skenes breezed through the top of the 6th. The Pirates had a chance to take the lead in the bottom of the inning. They had runners on 1st and 2nd with one out but failed to score. Brandon Eisert came on to pitch the top of the 7th. He had not given up a run in his last 4 outings since his September call-up. The Royals got a bloop single off him that went off Nick Gonzales’s glove. He walked the next batter. The Royals gave the Pirates an out with a bunt that moved the runners to 2nd and 3rd. Eisert struck out Carter Jensen on a 3-2 pitch. This brought up Bobby Witt Jr. Then, lo and behold, Don Kelly made a move. It is a good thing I do not have a heart condition. Witt does hit lefties a little better, and by God, Kelly made the move bringing Yohan Ramirez to face Witt. He threw him 4 straight sweepers and got Witt to ground out to third to end the inning. In the bottom of the 7th, the Pirates had runners on 2nd and 3rd with no outs, thanks to a single, a hit by pitch, and a wild pitch. Ryan O’Hearn struck out, and Ronnie Simon popped out. Spencer, who seems to have finally found his groove in the last 7 games, singled to left field to drive in the 2 runs. After the Royals committed the sin of walking Henry Davis, putting runners on 1st and 2nd, Konnor Griffin got his 4th hit of the game to make the score 8-5. Ramirez and Gregory Soto finished up the game, and the Pirates climbed back up to .500. Too bad the Pirates are not in the American League.

Next Game: Tonight Royals in Pittsburgh. Bubba Chandler will go for the Pirates facing left hander Noah Cameron. I was going to do an essay on the Pirate catchers today but with Henry Davis having his little hot streak I felt it would only be fair to hold off. There is plenty of time to evaluate this team position by position. We will see how he does the rest of the weekend. The Pirates have an off day on Monday. This could be elimination day for the Pirates. Stay tuned.

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Pirates Morning Report: Are They Ready To Turn It Around?

Final Score: Pirates 8 Cardinals 4

Why The Pirates Won: By far their best offensive game and their best game all around. The Pirates finally did something right by piggybacking Carmen Mlodzinski and Thomas Harrington. Harrington did get touched up a little bit. Still, it was a better outing than his first one. Sometimes, it is difficult pitching with a big lead. The bottom line is that the Cardinals really never threatened to make a game of it. The Pirates managed to keep the real bullpen out of the game. Hopefully, this is something they will continue to do in the rotation. With the Pirates, you never know. The offense won this game. The Pirates scored 8 runs on 10 hits. They struck out only 7 times for the game. The Pirates were 4 for 4 with runners in scoring position. They only left 4 men on base. The big contributors were McCutchen, Rodriguez, Bart, and IKF. They had 2 hits each. As a group, they drove in 6 runs and scored 6 runs. It was the second win in a row for these much-maligned Pirates.

Key Moments Of The Game: For the first time this year, the Pirates struck early. Joey Bart hit a home run in the 1st. The Pirates scored 3 runs in the 2nd on 4 hits. IKF delivered the big blow with a two-run single. Ke’Bryan Hayes had a 2-out hit to drive in IKF. Before you could say, “baby, it’s cold outside,” the Pirates had a 4-0 lead. When the Cardinals cut the lead to 4-2, Harrington had his best inning in the top of the 7th. In the bottom of the inning, the Pirates added 4 more runs where no runner was wasted. McCutchen, Bart, and Cruz had the RBIs. The Cardinals picked up a couple more runs to make the final 8-4. By far, the best game of the year for the Pirates.

Next Game: Tonight, Cardinals in Pittsburgh. Weather may be a factor tonight, but if they play, Paul Skenes will get his third start of the year. Can the Pirates turn this thing around? A better question, will management let them turn this around? In my view, a lineup has been established. These are the 7 guys that should be playing every day. Reynolds should play when he is able. Bart, Rodriguez, IKF, Hayes, Cruz, and McCutchen should also play daily. It is time to give Tsung-Che Cheng a shot at short. Move IKF over to 2nd base. Play musical chairs with Suwinski, Pham, and Canario until one of them shows some signs of life. Right now, Pham seems to be perking up a little bit. Whoever is in there, please bat them 8th or 9th. Do not lead off with them or put them in the middle of the order. Management did their first smart thing last night with the piggyback start. They put McCutchen near the top of the order. They scored 8 runs. Do I need to repeat myself? I am almost afraid to see the lineup tonight.

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Pirates Morning Report: What A Difference A Week Makes

Final Score: Pirates 9 Reds 5

Why The Pirates Won: A week ago today Mitch Keller and Hunter Greene had one of the best pitcher’s duel of the year, each giving up just 2 hits. Last night they would have been happy if they had just given up 2 runs a piece. Greene seemed to be under the weather but the Reds didn’t seem to care. Keller took 104 pitches to struggle through 5 and 2/3 innings. Granted there should have been some outfield plays that could have been made, especially by Michael Taylor, but Keller walked 3, hit a batter, and had only one inning where he retired the side in order. The Pirate offense took advantage of Greene’s stomach problems belting him around for 6 runs on 7 hits and 2 walks. I was surprised he came out for the 2nd inning. The Reds are dumber than the Pirates. It was a much needed win for the Pirates.

Key Moments Of The Game: After Andrew McCutchen walked to start the game, Greene got Bryan Reynolds to foul off the first pitch. He turned around and vomited on the mound. After much discussion he stayed in the game. Reynolds worked the count to 3-2 and then hit a slider out of the park to give the Pirates a quick 2-0 lead. The Pirates added another run thanks to a Rawhide Rowdy stolen base and Nick Gonzales single. The Reds allowed Greene to throw 3 more innings. It only took him 93 pitches to do it. He gave up 3 more runs in the 3rd. In the bottom of the 3rd after 1 out, the Reds loaded the bases thanks to a Cruz error and Keller hitting a batter, then walking another one. Keller struck out the next 2 batters to keep the Reds from getting back in the game. The Pirates added 3 more runs and the Reds made it somewhat interesting, but the Pirates handily evened the series.

Next Game: This afternoon, Reds in Cincinnati. Somebody please tell Derek Shelton that there is a day off tomorrow and nobody needs a rest. McCutchen seemed to hurt himself on his last at bat, but that should be the only player who might not play. The Pirates need this win heading to Atlanta.