7/16/23- By Michael Castrignano – @412DoublePlay on Twitter
The old quote of “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results” really seems to hit home when a scuffling offense with clear areas of struggle sees no change after the All Star Break. Austin Hedges caught two games this weekend. Jack Suwinski led off two games despite performing poorly in the 1 spot this season (now with a .357 OPS over 20 plate appearances). We have seen prospects debut and find varying levels of success – Henry Davis hit a home run yesterday and a long double today after a slow first week of July – but when a season is going downhill as quickly as this one is, maybe it’s time to put even more reps on the prospects. Alright, ending rant now. Let’s talk about the game:
Both starting pitchers today had fairly abbreviated outings as Pirates starter Osvaldo Bido lasted just 2.2 innings, allowing 3 runs off 4 hits with 2 walks and 3 strikeouts. Giants southpaw Alex Wood only went a bit longer: 3.2 innings, 5 hits, 1 run, 3 walks and a single strikeout himself.
Pirates got on the board first in the 2nd inning after a Jared Triolo single, Jason Delay 2-out double and a Connor Joe walk loaded the bases for Bryan Reynolds, who hit a dribbler up the middle that Giants shortstop wasn’t able to get to second baseman Brett Wisely in time to get Joe, leading to a run scoring.
Unfortunately, the next inning turned tides quickly. Wisely led off with a single to center, LaMonte Wade, Jr. followed with a full-count walk before a full-count hit by pitch to Joc Pederson loaded the bases for the Giants. JD Davis singled to right, scoring Wisely before Wade followed him in following a Henry Davis bobble. Rookie Luis Matos managed to drive in another run with a groundout to 2nd to give the Giants a 3 spot in the inning.
Davis rebounded in the 6th inning as he led off with a double, stole third and scored on a Jared Triolo groundout to shortstop. Triolo would drive in another run via a sac fly in the 8th after Cutch singled, and then Carlos Santana and Davis both walked before Triolo managed to drive a full-count sinker to right field and tied the game at 3.
But the real fireworks were in extras today as the 10th inning as the Giants plated 5 runs in the inning. With Clarke Schmitt starting the inning at 2nd base, Flores singled to right, Pederson hit sac fly to center, JD Davis walked and Michael Conforto hit a long double that scored two. Patrick Bailey doubled in two more later in the inning. Pirates managed to get one back as Davis singled to drive in a run but the rally fell well short, dropping their third straight.
The long-and-short of it is that this team needs to score more than 1 run in the first 5 innings. They need length from their starters but also runs from their offense.
News & Notes
- Davis’s error in right field was his 2nd in as many days as he still is learning to navigate the position.
- Carlos Santana had a scary moment in the top of the 7th inning as his foot caught first base while he was moving to catch a foul ball. After making the catch, he was visibly limping off the field. He came back out for the 8th inning and then batted in the bottom of the frame, walking, before being pulled for pinch-runner Josh Palacios.
- The team’s struggles to score runs continued today as they went 2-for-10 with runners in scoring position, stranding 11 runners on base over the 10 inning affair.
- In his first game back from the injured list, Cutch went 1-for-5.
- Triolo sliced a single to center in the 2nd inning to push his hit streak to 9 games.
- Today is the last scheduled game for streaming services (AppleTV/Peacock) for this season.
- Pirates look to bounce back tomorrow with #4 prospect Quinn Priester making his major league debut against the Cleveland Guardians at home. First pitch is at 7:05PM. Let’s Go Bucs!
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