Pirates Finish Off the Cubs Behind Solid Six Innings from Dario Agrazal

The Pirates take two in a row from the Cubs and bounce them from playoff contention.

By defeating the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday night, the Pittsburgh Pirates have taken the Cubs out of playoff contention. This provides a bitter consolation to the Pirate's horrid season, but is a consolation nonetheless.

The pitching matchup last night was very similar to the one the night before. The Pirates sent out Dario Agrazal, a rookie who is looking to finish his up-and-down season strong, while the Cubs called upon a veteran in Jon Lester.

Like Mitch Keller the night before, Agrazal won the night, but got a no-decision in the box score. Agrazal pounded the strike zone and was incredibly efficient - throwing only 72 pitches through six innings. This was another performance by a Pirate rookie pitcher that can be built upon and provides confidence going into the offseason.

Keone Kela gave us another interesting storyline in this game. After Pirate's all-star closer Felipe Vazquez was arrested more than a week ago, a void was left in an already struggling bullpen - particularly at closer. Kela was the obvious choice to take Vazquez's vacated role and got his first save opportunity last night and he cashed in. Kela allowed only one baserunner on a walk. The bullpen as a whole had a fine night. The Pirate's best relievers, Francisco Liriano, Michael Feliz, and Keone Kela combined for no runs, no hits, and three walks in their three innings pitched. Strengthening this bullpen should be a point of emphasis for Neil Huntington in the offseason.

The Pirate lineup is a diluted version of the one we've seen all season. Injuries and the fact that the team has nothing to play for has led to key players being shut down for the rest of the season in favor of preserving their health for 2020. This lineup struggled to produce, but got the job done behind Erik Gonzalez's big night (3-3 with 2 RBIs).

Joe Musgrove will take the mound for the Pirates tonight against Jose Quintana as the Bucs look to complete the sweep against their division rivals. This will be Musgrove's final start of the season. He has been the Pirate's best starter all year.