Three Takeaways: Pirates Historic Fail Gets Redemption
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PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates failed to take advantage of a great opportunity this weekend, but they managed to end it on a high.
The Pirates won just one of three games against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field, an 8-6 win in the series finale on June 21, after losing 3-2 in the series opener on June 19 and 2-1 on June 20, losing the series.
It ended a six-game road trip that the Pirates went 3-3 on, taking two out of three games against the Athletics, June 15-17, at Sutter Health Park, ending 39-39 through 78 games this season.
Pittsburgh failed to get more wins against a poor Colorado team, but the final game kept them from having a truly terrible weekend.
Pirates Offense Takes Too Long to Get Going
Coors Field is the ultimate hitter's ball park, with dry air and mile high elevation that allow for big time home runs and extra base hits.
The Pirates also faced Rockies starting pitchers who all had a poor ERA before this series started, with left-hander Kyle Freeland at a 7.98 ERA, right-hander Tomoyuki Sugano at a 4.54 ERA and right-hander Michael Lorenzen at a 7.13 ERA.
Pittsburgh didn't take advantage of this in the first two games, as Freeland allowed two runs over 7.1 innings with eight strikeouts and Sugano allowed just a solo home run to first baseman Spencer Horwitz over six innings with five strikeouts.
The Pirates eventually got after Lorenzen, scoring four runs against him over 5.1 innings in the series finale, but the missed chances against Rockies starting pitching in the first two games.
It was a prime chance for the Pirates to really get a few wins and move further into the race for a National League Wild Card spot, but they failed to do that with those two defeats.
Pirates Fail Late in Games in Historic Fashion
The Pirates managed to get things going late on in their two defeats, but their unsuccessful attempts ended up making MLB history.
Pittsburgh was behind 2-0 through the first seven innings, but a three-run eighth inning put them ahead, before falling behind after Colorado scored two runs in the eighth inning themselves.
The Pirates then loaded the bases with no outs in the ninth inning, but Tyler Callihan struck out and then Jared Triolo hit into a game-ending double play.
Pittsburgh gave themselves another chance to win with runners on the conrers and no outs in the ninth inning in the second game.
Ryan O'Hearn struck out, Nick Gonzales got hit by a pitch to load the bases with one out, but Callihan again struck out for the second out.
It looked like Jake Mangum tied it up with a grounder that he got to first base safely, but pinch-runner Billy Cook clipped Rockies third baseman Kyle Karros' glove, getting called out for interference and losing the game.
The Pirates became the first team in more than 50 years to lose back-to-back games where they had runners on the corners with no outs.
Both games were ones that the Pirates really needed to win, but will have to simply rue those missed chances and work to avoid them going forward.
Pirates Starting Pitching Not Rewarded For Solid Outings
The Pirates starting pitchers could've had an issue with Coors Field, but they managed to go out and execute their plan.
Bubba Chandler and Paul Skenes threw six innings and allowed just two runs each, giving the Pirates offense a chance to win the first two games.
Chandler earned just his second quality start of the season, showing off his four-seam fastball and sinker and posting only one strikeout, inducing weak contact to throw just 74 pitches.
Skenes would've liked to have had a lower pitch count to go deeper, throwing 104 pitches, but he posted eight strikeouts and was dominant for the most part.
Jared Jones threw three innings and gave up a run before departing after getting hit by a line drive, where he might've ended up having a solid start.
Good thing for the Pirates that x-rays were negative on Jones and that he will hopefully return in the near future.
Both Chandler and Skenes pitched good enough for the win, which should be encouraging for a Pirates team that is one of the better lineups in baseball normally scoring enough runs to get wins with those kinds of starts.
Skenes perhaps hasn't gotten the run support he's wanted in recent games, with just 16 runs scored over his last eight starts, but with the Pirates getting Konnor Griffin and Oneil Cruz back from injury in the coming weeks, he should start earning some more wins again.
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Dominic writes for Pittsburgh Pirates On SI, Pittsburgh Panthers Pn SI and also, Pittsburgh Steelers On SI. A Pittsburgh native, Dominic grew up watching Pittsburgh Sports and wrote for The Pitt News as an undergraduate at the University of Pittsburgh, covering Pitt Athletics. He would write for Pittsburgh Sports Now after college and has years of experience covering sports across Pittsburgh.