There is a youth movement right now in Pittsburgh, and it hasn’t been more apparent this year than it was in the Pirates’ most recent weekend series against the Blue Jays. Rookie studs got a plethora of chances to shine this weekend, and even if the Pirates’ didn’t come away with a series win, they can feel positive about what took place during the series.
This attitude is very important when talking about game one. Yes, the Pirates would go on to lose 6-2 due to three errors and a team 0-9 with runners in scoring position. However, Bubba Chandler looked nearly masterful, striking out eleven Blue Jays over five innings to set a new career high for himself. Brandan Bidois and Justin Lawrence came in after him to keep the score 3-2, which the Pirates were able to get from a Bryan Reynolds ground out and a Spencer Horwitz sac fly. Unfortunately, fallen star Dennis Santana gave up three runs in his one inning of work, and it appears as though an IL stint may be in his immediate future. Jhostynxon Garcia continued to succeed in his first taste of the big leagues this year, as he was able to tally a hit. Other than that, Brandon Lowe, Nick Gonzalez, and Endy Rodriguez all tallied two hits. Esmerlyn Valdez started this game in right field for him MLB debut, and while he didn’t get a hit, he was able to reach with a walk and provided solid defense.
On paper, game two looked to be an easy win for the Pirates. Paul Skenes was on the mound matched up against veteran Patrick Corbin, who has been okay this year but bad for most of the decade. However, it was Corbin that ended up on top this game. He allowed just one run over six innings of work, while Skenes surrendered nine hits and four runs. Yohan Ramirez also gave up a run, and that gave the Blue Jays more than enough of a cushion, as they would hold on for a 2-5 win. Marcell Ozuna drove in both of the Pirates runs as he looks to get his bat going, and Konnor Griffin was able to tally his twelfth stolen base of the season. Bryan Reynolds continued his nice stretch with a two hit day, but that was about it for the Buccos on Saturday.
Game three on Sunday felt like a must-win, and the Pirates showed up with the right attitude. Mitch Keller gave a prototypical Mitch Keller performance – working around plenty of traffic but providing six good innings of one-run ball. Yohan Ramirez, Mason Montgomery, and Gregory Soto all shut the door after that, and the Blue Jays could only squeak across a single run for the entire game. This could have been partially due to injury – Vladimir Guerrero Jr. exited after a HBP to the forearm early in the game, and his spot came up repeatedly with runners on base. Regardless, it was the youth movement that showed up this game. Valdez, after not getting a hit the first two games of the series, provided the most important one for this game. After Spencer Horwitz and Oneil Cruz had blasts off stud starter Dylan Cease earlier in the game, Valdez was able to poke out a Chase Lee pitch on the outside corner. Off the bat it looked like a pop up, but with Valdez’ unbelievable power he was able to get it out of the stadium down the right field line. Similar to Konnor Griffin earlier this year, he was met with the silent treatment in the dugout, before his teammates rushed him and he got to don the welder’s hood.
Overall, this wasn’t a great series. However, the flashes by Bubba Chandler and Esmerlyn Valdez provide enough sparks that losing a series 1-2 on the road does not feel like the end of the world.
The MVP of this series is going to be Mitch Keller. The Bucs needed Mitch to be great, and he absolutely was, giving the Pirates the runway to win a pivotal game three.
The Pirates now travel back home to face the struggling Cubs in a division matchup. Lets go Bucs!
