◆NEWSPirates Notes: Keller, Pitching Pursuits, Lineup◆ROSTERSigned free agent RHP Enmanuel Nunez to a minor league contract◆STATPaul Skenes ranks 4th in the NL in strikeouts (200)◆STATNick Gonzales ranks 4th in the NL in batting average (.303)
◆NEWSPirates Notes: Keller, Pitching Pursuits, Lineup◆ROSTERSigned free agent RHP Enmanuel Nunez to a minor league contract◆STATPaul Skenes ranks 4th in the NL in strikeouts (200)◆STATNick Gonzales ranks 4th in the NL in batting average (.303)
The Pirates were shut down by Boston starter Sonny Gray as he struck out seven across seven innings of work in a 4-0 loss to the Red Sox. Jared Jones went five strong innings with seven strikeouts as well, but the one run allowed was enough to beat the Pirates Saturday night. The Pirates mustered six hits in this game, but all were singles. Their best shot (only?) came in the 5th inning when they loaded the bases against Gray on two singles and a walk with two outs, but Brandon Lowe struck out swinging to end the threat. Aroldis Chapman pitched the 9th inning for Boston and slammed the door on the Bucs with two strikeouts. Luke Weaver pitched late in a close game finally and gave up three runs in the inning. DiNardo and Tyler break this loss down on the NS9 Postgame Show powered by Primanti Bros. You can watch or listen here:
Should Jake Mangum stay in the leadoff spot over Spencer Horwitz?
normo0066NS9 Legend· 88d ago
Hard to believe they could not score one run !
With Anthony DiNardo and Tyler Sweeney.
Chapters
Key takeaways
1
The Pirates' best chance was to run up Sonny Gray's pitch count and get him out early. They didn't, and he cruised through seven innings on only 86 pitches.
2
Jared Triolo's at-bat with the bases loaded was 'a joke.' He had no plan, checked his swing on balls way off the plate and took pitches down the middle. That's terrible situational hitting.
3
On a day when the lineup needed pressure on the bases, Jake Mangum should have stayed at leadoff instead of Spencer Horwitz going back there.
4
Jared Jones could have gone past five innings and probably should have. Leadoff walks in back-to-back innings didn't lead to runs, but they cost him pitches.
5
Every series is now a must-win. If the Pirates drop this one to the Red Sox, 'you might as well just shut the lights off.'
Yo. Welcome to the North Shore Nine podcast presented by FanDuel. This is the NS9 postgame show powered by Permanente Brothers. I'm your host, Anthony DiNardo. With me, we have Tyler Sweeney. Tyler, fire slew today for nothing. How you doing?
That was boring.
I'll tell you what, it was a, it was a good game for seven innings if you really enjoy pitching.
Yeah, I didn't really find it enjoyable because Sonny Gray was on the mound for the Red Sox and it felt like the Pirates were not going to score any runs all day and they didn't.
But it, every time the Pirates were at the plate, I could pretty much go do laundry.
Yes.
Pirates offense didn't come alive.
And the one thing yesterday, there was a left-handed pitcher on the mound.
That's usually when the Pirates go to sleep.
They came alive.
They scored eight runs yesterday.
They showed up back-to-back games.
Offense came through in a big way.
Today, it was a tough pitcher on the mound, Sonny Gray.
Sonny Gray, who's having a tremendous season in Cy Young talk.
But he is a right-hander.
Pirates farewell versus right-handers.
they have one of the better offenses in baseball.
So even though it's a very tough pitcher, there's still a chance.
this team shouldn't just collapse and fall asleep.
There's still an absolute chance this team can come alive.
And, like, I'll say this, he didn't completely shut this offense down.
They just weren't able to capitalize the way they did yesterday.
Right?
Like, we talked yesterday, they were very efficient.
When guys got on, they found ways to score them and drive them in.
Today, not so much.
Yes and no.
But I agree with you.
He didn't – he shut them down, but they were able to threaten.
And they didn't capitalize when they did have the opportunities.
But the big issue, I think, with today is that they just did not make him work.
Like, he had an inning, maybe inning and a half where he really had to work.
But he could have threw a complete game today.
Their best chance to win this thing was to get Sonny Gray out of the game early by driving his pitch count up, and they just flat out did not do that.
They had really bad at-bats.
They extended one inning, really.
And he was able to just dice them up outside the one time they threatened.
Yeah, that's a good call because he did throw only 86 pitches today.
for the Pirates fans that love to talk about pitch counts going deeper in the games and such, like, Sonny Gray could have easily gone deeper into this game.
And he was cruising, like I said, and you're right.
Like, I'm not here saying that the Pirates were getting to him in a sense, but they did enough to score a run or two against him.
They just weren't able to capitalize.
And that's all they needed to do at that point was at least score a run or two.
It was a 1-0 ball game the whole time he was there.
So, they were unable to capitalize on that.
But you're absolutely right.
He could have went longer.
They pulled him in.
Again, they had two lefties ready to go.
Usually that's the Pirates kryptonite.
Obviously, it also was tonight as well.
But, yeah, again, like, they could not get to Sonny Gray at all.
He goes to seven innings today, gives up to six hits, one walk, the seven strikeouts.
But, again, like, six hits.
They had, what, seven yesterday in a walk, and they scored eight runs.
like, that's what I'm alluding to.
Like, yesterday they were able to maximize and capitalize.
And we had opportunities.
Today they didn't.
And the big one you're talking about is when they had the bases loaded.
Because the third base umpire had a clearly different definition of a swing than the first base umpire.
Brandon Lowe got boned on that at bat.
But puts him in a hole with two strikes.
He swings at a breaking ball in the dirt.
That's the inning.
The bigger thing in that inning, the biggest thing than Brandon Lowe's up there with two outs, it is what it is.
Bigger part of that inning is Jared Triolo had an absolutely joke of an at bat.
Just not even interested in swinging.
He just looked completely lost.
Had no idea what he was doing at the plate there.
Not a plan.
Just absolutely guessing.
Can't have that.
Cannot have that in that situation.
Terrible situational hitting.
That's really the important part there.
That time.
Yeah.
you're right.
He's checked swinging at balls that are way off the plate, and then he just watches pitches down the middle.
It's a pathetic at bat.
Yeah.
There was a few of those today as well.
But you're right, man.
offensively, the team had six hits.
again, six hits, one walk, all with Sonny Gray up there.
Once he was out, they did absolutely nothing after that.
But six hits, two of them coming from Jake Mangum, who's been very consistent.
He's been doing his job.
Two hits from Esmerlin, which Esmerlin now had a five-game hit streak.
He's, like we've talked about, coming back alive.
Five-game hit streak, but six out of the past seven games he has hits in as well.
he's looking a lot better at the plate.
he faced the lefties.
I know yesterday one went down as an error, but he had a hit.
Would have been two hits.
They took that one away.
Today, he did get two for four.
Two strikeouts.
Two strikeouts.
Those are still a thing.
But the two hits today, he was helping the team.
And then Brandel Al had the one hit.
Also two strikeouts with a strikeout we talked about.
Rafael Flores, one hit as well.
That's it.
But the team, ten strikeouts today.
Too many.
Just way too many.
Strikeouts continue to be a problem here.
And, you see the issues when this team doesn't hit the ball over the fence.
When they don't have the long ball, it's really hard to string together enough hits to score eight runs like you did.
It's hard to do that.
Right.
That's what it was yesterday.
That's, they got the guys on.
Two big home runs that scored a bunch of, runs in here.
They were unable to do that today.
They're unable to really do anything other than singles.
That's all they had today was singles.
Infield singles, too.
Yeah.
they just didn't hit.
Their at-bats were just really bad today.
Right.
I didn't like the approach they had.
It felt like they were trying to do what I was talking about and driving up Sonny Gray's pitch count.
And they were trying to do that in a way that was counterproductive because they were taking all the good pitches of the at-bat early in counts, getting down in 0-2, 1-2 holes.
And then he just puts you away at that point.
They probably should have came out and attacked early.
They didn't do that.
The offense just wasn't good enough.
And, like, also, again, I understand the audience I'm speaking with.
This isn't me excusing them.
Like, Sonny Gray is having a fantastic year.
That was the game plan.
And this dude just knows how to pitch.
He's a veteran of veterans.
There's a reason why the Red Sox wanted him.
He's pitching amazing.
And, yeah, those seven innings he had, it was very effortless for the most part outside of that.
Like you mentioned, that one inning really is really just like the one inning.
We can give him one and a half.
But it was that one inning where it was like, okay, here's some real trouble.
And he got right out of it.
He got right out of it.
Brandon Lowe, who's also a very confident, good hitter, especially versus righties.
And he made him look silly.
So that's Sonny Gray.
That's why this entire series is going to be tough.
There's two lefties sandwiched outside of Sonny Gray.
They did the hard part, which is facing any lefty.
Now you get Sonny Gray, which truly should be the hard part.
And, he did his thing.
He did his thing.
Nine whiffs today.
He just looked like a good, solid veteran pitcher.
And this lineup was no match for him.
He just plain and simple diced them up all day.
wanted to get nitpicking, complain about moving Horwitz back up in the lead off right now, just because Mangum's played well there, I think.
I think you can talk about that, especially versus.
Yeah.
But at the same time, Horwitz was really leading this offense for a while before his injury.
While hitting in that spot.
But today felt like a day you almost needed a Jake Mangum at the top of your lineup that can take second after an infield single or a bunt single.
He was on base twice today.
You needed to apply pressure.
And this lineup's not exactly conducive to doing that.
Top of your order is just, it doesn't exactly run that well.
They're not slow, but they're not the biggest threat.
Yeah.
And I guess I'll say to that is, to me, like, that's a flip of the coin.
Comments· 1
Should Jake Mangum stay in the leadoff spot over Spencer Horwitz?