After a tough series loss earlier in the week to the Texas Rangers, the Pirates looked to start a 10-game stretch of division games off hot versus the rival Milwaukee Brewers this weekend, and for the most part, they delivered.
Friday was a matchup between Paul Skenes and Brandon Woodruff, who has dominated the Pirates for almost a decade now. The first two innings were clean for both sides, but in the third inning, Konnor Griffin blasted the first home run of his career to the opposite field. Friday was also his 20th birthday, as he became one of just a few players every to homer on their 20th. Skenes continued dominating throughout the game, and 6.2 innings through, he had not given up a baserunner and had only allowed a single ball to even be hit beyond the infield. Unfortunately, Jake Bauers was able to bounce a single past second base for the Brewers only hit of the entire game, ending the perfect game bid. Skenes struck out seven and walked none, lowering his season ERA to 2.48, a shocking number after he had a 67 ERA after Opening Day. By that point, the Bucs were up 4-0 anyways, thanks to Nick Gonzales and Spencer Horwitz RBI singles to go along with an Oneil Cruz fielders choice. Konnor Griffin had his best game as a Pirate so far, as he tallies two more hits and RBI along with a stolen base. Mason Montgomery fired two no-hit innings after Skenes exited the game, and it was a clean victory in the series opener for the Bucs.
Saturday was another elite starting pitching matchup. Mitch Keller looked to continue his great start to the season, and he was matched up against electric arm Jacob Misiorowski, who looks like he could be one of the next greats in the league. He showed off this potential in the first inning, as he was blowing by hitters with a 103 mph fastball, and it looked like it might be a long day for the Bucco bats. However, Keller kept matching him, both teams entered the fourth inning tied. Tit was then that Spencer Horwitz and Konnor Griffin were both able to drive in runs with singles, as the Pirates took a 2-0 lead. However, the Brewers answered immediately, scoring on a groundout and a sac fly in the bottom of the fourth to tie the game. The score remained until the sixth, when Horwitz collected another RBI with a sac fly. And, yet again, the Brewers were able to match the Bucs, as Sal Frelick had another sac fly to tie the game again, as Isaac Mattson got the out but Mitch Keller’s run scored. The line might not look amazing at three runs over five innings, but Keller had a great outing. He allowed basically no hard contact, and all of his runs came on sac flies or fielder’s choices. Since game one was an easy victory, the Bucs were able to run out their best relief effort in this contest, and they met the challenge. One by one, Isaac Mattson, Mason Montgomery, Dennis Santana, Gregory Soto, and Yohan Ramirez shut down the Brewers offense, allowing just a single hit between them. The Pirates offense did not meet the call during regulation innings, but broke out during the tenth. Bryan Reynolds bounced an RBI single to give the Bucs a 4-3 lead, and then Nick Gonzales brough home two more with a single of his own – his fourth hit of the series already. Ramirez locked the game down in the bottom of the tenth, and the Pirates claimed the series victory with a 6-3 win. Konnor Griffin answered the call again, tallying two more hits and another steal, his sixth of the season, and the Bucs went into game three looking for a sweep.
Unfortunately, game three did not go the Pirates’ way. Carmen Mlodzinski had his first rough outing of the year, giving up five runs, and wasn’t able to get through four innings. Meanwhile, Brewers lefty Kyle Harrison dominated a getaway day Pirates lineup, as the bats only tallied two hits the entire day and struck out an astounding 18 times. The only offensive plus from the day was Bryan Reynolds, who walked two more times to bring his season total to 22 – the second highest number in the entire National League. Nick Gonzales also blooped in a double down the line to put a cap on a solid offenseive series for him, but that was it. Questionalble relief arms Evan Sisk, Cam Sanders, and Justin Lawrence all looked solid, not giving up another run, but it was a quiet way to go out for the Pirates
Series MVP is a tough call between Konnor Griffin, Paul Skenes, and Nick Gonzales. However, Griffin looked like he turned a corner this series, as he hit a homer and reached base five other times, along with swiping two bags. We’ll let that be the tiebreaker.
The Buccos return home to face the Cardinals in another division matchup starting tomorrow, kicking off a crucial four game set. Lets go Bucs!
