Ever since getting swept against the Dodgers, we have said that it would take a miracle for the Pirates to even sniff a playoff race again this season. Well, it may not have been a miracle run so far, but since that final matchup with the Dodgers, the Bucs have won five straight series and added to the drama by finishing off a three-game sweep of one of the better teams in the American League.
The Pirates landed in Chicago for a season-defining six-game trip, starting on the South Side against the White Sox before heading North to take on the Cubs. The White Sox have been one of baseball’s best surprises this season, as they entered the series in first place in the AL Central and were looking to add to that lead at home against the Pirates. However, the Battlin’ Bucs had other plans.
The Pirates made their presence known right from the jump in this series. They had five runs on the board before even recording an out in the first inning of the opener. Konnor Griffin, Bryan Reynolds, Oneil Cruz, and Esmerlyn Valdez all doubled off the starter Sean Burke, while Brandon Lowe walked and Spencer Horwitz and Rafael Flores Jr. added singles to cap off a huge inning. If you had taken a few minutes to get your TV or radio on as the game got underway, you probably would have been greeted with a 5-0 Pirates lead after a half inning of play.
That half inning represented the entire series as a whole. The Pirates were the ones in control from the very beginning, and they seemingly never gave that up. It just felt like this team knew what they had to do in order to keep themselves in a playoff race, and they went out and did just that for each and every game this series.
In the second inning, the Bucs went up by a touchdown with a two-run single from Horwitz to make it 7-0. In the fifth, against old friend Jose Urquidy, Pittsburgh continued to pound the Southsiders by adding two more runs. A solo homer from Flores and a Reynolds sacrifice fly made it 9-0.
Bubba Chandler looked great in the opener. He seemed to feed off of the Pirates’ offensive performance and pitched with tons of confidence. Chandler gave the Pirates six strong innings and only gave up two runs in the midst of a blowout. The Pirates would go on to take Game 1 by a score of 9-3.
Pittsburgh went with a bullpen game in Game 2, and the arms delivered for them yet again. The combination of Lake Bachar, Brandon Eisert, Carmen Mlodzinski, and Gregory Soto got the Bucs through six innings of shutout baseball. This gave the offense a chance to get ahead early.
The Magician got things started in the fifth with a solo homer the opposite way, and they added on with three more runs in the seventh. Flores picked up another RBI in the series with a single to score Billy Cook. Later in the inning, Griffin lined a huge two-run single to center to blow things open a bit and give the Pirates a 4-0 lead.
That lead would prove to be enough, but Camilo Doval and Luke Weaver certainly made things interesting. Doval had a blunder in the seventh by not covering first base while a run came in to score. However, he was eventually bailed out courtesy of a nice play by Jared Triolo to turn a huge double play with the bases loaded. This kept things at 4-1.
Weaver entered for the eighth and was immediately greeted by Munetaka Murakami with a solo homer to start the inning. The rest of the inning sort of felt like déjà vu. With the bases loaded and only one out in a 4-2 game, Chase Meidroth ripped a ball that looked like it was heading to the left field corner for a go-ahead, bases-clearing double, but Triolo had other plans. He reached up and snagged the line drive out of the air and touched third base for an unbelievably impressive double play to bail the Pirates out yet again. Mason Montgomery shut things down fairly easily in the ninth, and the Pirates had won Game 2 while officially taking their fifth-straight series.
This effort from the Pirates suddenly had the vibes through the roof, and it seemed as if the team was embracing the “one game at a time” dynamic. That said, they needed to cap off the series on the South Side of Chicago with a sweep, and they did just that.
Jared Jones took the ball in Game 3 and absolutely shoved. In a pivotal game for the Pirates to truly capitalize on some momentum, Jones made sure to put the team on his back. He pitched six innings of no-hit ball and finished his night with seven complete shutout innings. He allowed just one hit and struck out eight. Pure dominance in a huge spot, you love to see it from Jones.
Speaking of putting the team on his back, Oneil Cruz made sure to carry the offense in this one. He broke up a scoreless game by hitting a ball about 750 feet to make it 1-0 Buccos. Alright, maybe it was more like 440 feet, but it was an absolute missile. He added his own insurance in the eighth with a clutch RBI single to make it 2-0. Cruz has been playing like a man on a mission since his return from the IL, and the Pirates have needed every ounce of his production.
Weaver looked much better in this outing, tossing a 1-2-3 eighth inning while striking out two. Montgomery got the ball again in the ninth for another save opportunity, and he cashed in yet again. He ended the game with a strikeout and capped off an equal parts impressive and improbable sweep of the White Sox in Chicago.
Final Thoughts
The Pirates now sit at just 4.5 games back of a Wild Card spot. While there may not be many games left to overcome this deficit, this team has certainly put themselves in a position to make things interesting.
The Bucs lose Braxton Ashcraft to injury, which hurts bad, but they also get their offense back to full strength heading into the Cubs series as Ryan O’Hearn is set to return.
It is a lot to ask, but a sweep of the Cubs at Wrigley could take things from interesting to downright captivating. One game at a time.
The Pirates head North to take on the Cubs on Friday afternoon. Pittsburgh has yet to name a starter in place of Ashcraft, but the Bucs will face Shota Imanaga for Chicago. First pitch is set for 2:20 PM.
ONE GAME AT A TIME.
