PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – The Pirates aren't going to have a lot of flashy wins, they may not have a lot of wins period. Wednesday, the played the style they need and ended with a 6-2 victory over the Cubs.
That style is led by stellar defense, creative pitching and timely hitting.
"There are different ways to win ballgames and we are going to go about it differently," said Pirates pitcher Wil Crowe. "Our key is to win. That rebuild crap is annoying to here. We are trying to win and if that's how we have to do it, that's how we have to do it."
Crowe is one of a number of Pirates pitchers hoping to be a starter, but he is in a role that most resembles a long reliever. However, with Bucs starters going shorter that can provide opportunities for wins or in Wednesday's case, a first ever professional save.
"I think Bob Walk is going to be the most excited man in Pittsburgh because he loves the three-inning save," said Pirates Manager Derek Shelton as Crowe gave up a hit, a walk and struck out four. "To be able to deploy him in different ways has been really useful for us. He consistency of his velocity and his stuff was maintained. For him to be able to finish the game is big for us."
"It's the same," Crowe said of his mindset for whatever is thrown his way. "That's the key for us, for me, to help the guys win. So if you are getting a win or a save, it's the same thing. Just happy I was able to go do my job and help close that one out."
"I think we've talked from day one of Spring Training of how we are going to deploy our bullpen," Shelton said. "It's not going to be traditional and I know a lot of people don't like that. We are going to try to put guys in the best situation possible."
Zach Thompson started and came out after taking a line-drive off his shoulder in the fifth inning. Thompson joked that it wasn't fun, but he's feeling good and expects to be back out there 'soon'.
"He was good, exactly what we thought," Shelton said. "He commanded the ball, used the two-seamer. He put the ball on the ground which goes back to the point of how well we played defensively. I thought he stayed composed. Overall a really solid first outing."
"You definitely have the first inning nerves," Thompson said who gave up a solo homer to Willson Contreras, the third batter he faced. "New team, new ballpark, once I got through that, it eases and gets it off your shoulders. You go out and compete."
Thompson finished with four innings giving up five hits, two runs, a walk and three strikeouts. Dillon Peters came in after Thompson left due to injury, got a strikeout. A walk loaded the bases and then what Shelton called the play of the game, a double-play turned by Ke'Bryan Hayes, Josh VanMeter and Yoshi Tsutsugo.
"That was phenomenal," Thompson said. "They were really good for me. I think that's what really made my day better than it could have been."
There were several other Grade-A defensive plays"
· a diving catch by Bryan Reynolds robbing Jonathan Villar in the third
· next inning a diving stop by Kevin Newman on Frank Schwindel
· Tsutsugo's play on a hard-hit ball in the seventh
· Ben Gamel's giving catch robbing Seiya Suzuki with a runner on and no outs in the ninth
Shelton said they played another game really well defensively. Even when they had equipment issues. Hayes noticed late in the game his glove webbing broke and had to replace it mid-batter.
"I kind of stuck with it even though it's not the prettiest," Hayes said of his 'old' glove. "I feel comfortable with that glove. I'm not a flashy guy, so I don't care how it looks as long as I can catch everything with it. Hopefully we can get it where I can take it back out there."
Hayes said he's not superstitious, but instead of getting a new glove. This one is being laced back up by the Pirates equipment staff. It's also the one he's used to win three minor-league Gold Gloves.
Hitting
All of the Pirates runs scored with two outs. It started after a double play in the first, a Hayes single, Tsutsugo worked a walk and then Ben Gamel homered.
"It's honestly a pitch I shouldn't have swung at," Gamel said. "Just kind of blacked out and it kind of worked out."
Kevin Newman with a two-run triple in the third and Hayes a RBI single in the fourth inning.
"The one thing I thought we made Hendricks do, we made him work throughout that first inning," Shelton said. "The one thing Kyle does a really good job of, he throws the ball on the edges. The thing that stood out to me is that we didn't chase balls to the edges. I thought our approach was outstanding."
DH Leadoff
It's obviously the first time in PNC Park history given the designated hitter has been around in both leagues for only two games in Pittsburgh. Both teams used the designated hitter in the leadoff spot. While Rafael Ortega will steal you a base in a more traditional role for the Cubs. Pirates used 270-pound Daniel Vogelbach who has exactly zero steals in his career.
"He gets on base," Shelton said. "He works counts. The fact against right-hand pitching he gets on base, today he had three really good swings. That was important, when you come to a new team. You are hitting in a different spot in the order that is non-traditional for him. Having three good swings was really important."
"If you look around the league now, the traditional guy that led off 20 years ago doesn't hit there because of how we value spots in the lineup. With the pitcher not there, the function of the bottom of the lineup really plays into that also."
Quote of the Day
"We got a group that maybe doesn't believe in what everyone says," Crowe said. "We know if we get hot, we think and we know we can contend."
Up Next
RHP JT Brubaker makes his second start against Washington RHP Joan Adon at 6:35 Thursday on 93.7 The Fan.
