PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – It’s been a Pirates season akin to a rollercoaster, but it also has been a season of firsts for a couple of first round picks. Earlier this month 2021 first-round pick Henry Davis got his first hit and on Tuesday, the first for 2020 first-round pick Nick Gonzales.
Gonzales second-inning triple off the right-field wall in his 10th Major League Baseball at bat drove in Rodolfo Castro to earn his first RBI and his first run scored later off an Andrew McCutchen single. The 24-year-old starting at shortstop on Tuesday.
He would follow that up in the 7th inning with his first career MLB home run, a solo shot nearly off the batters eye in centerfield.
"Amazing," Gonzales said. "Obviously to get a win and then obviously to have my first hit and first home run is something special. But, to get the win I think is more important, obviously. We’re all excited here."
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"It was good to see," said Pirates manager Derek Shelton. "The first ball he hit, I think the most encouraging thing really was the first ball he hit, when a right-handed hitter hits the ball like that, it just keep going. It didn't hook, it didn't slice. So that's encouraging then just driving the ball to centerfield. Looked like some good free and easy swings."
"That’s the reason he’s here," said Pirates Andrew McCutchen. "We know what he can do. He knows what he can do. It’s nice for him to be able to do that here, get the triple, get the hit and the RBIs, the homer, too. He’s fun to watch. It’s part of the reason he’s here, to help impact this ball club. He can impact it in many ways. He was able to showcase part of that today."
"That’s special," Gonzales said. "That’s really cool. You can just play baseball and go out and compete and have fun. That’s what I plan on doing."
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