In the second of their two-game series in Detroit, the Pirates accomplished two things they hadn’t done for 15 games: they won without Mitch Keller on the mound and they scored more than four runs. Rich Hill and three relievers combined to throw a one-hitter and the Pirates won, 8-0.
The matchup didn’t bode well, as the Detroit starter, Eduardo Rodriguez, was one of the few pitchers in MLB having a better year than Keller. But, despite Derek Shelton’s best efforts, the Bucs got to him in the second. Connor Joe and Rodolfo Castro started the inning with a single and a walk. Always eager to repeat a mistake, Shelton had Ji-Hwan Bae bunt with Chris Owings and Austin Hedges due up. Bae bunted into a force at third and Owings struck out, but the Pirates finally got a break. Hedges flied deep to right-center and the Tigers’ center fielder, after taking a looping route, dropped the ball. The scorer gifted Hedges with a double and two RBIs, and the Pirates led.
Castro added another run in the fourth with his fifth home run of the year. He’s barely been seen since he hit the game-winning home run on May 8, but he finished today with two hits and a walk, two runs and two RBIs, and also a couple good defensive plays at second. The Pirates made it 4-0 the next inning when Bryan Reynolds doubled with two outs and Andrew McCutchen singled him home.
Meanwhile, Hill was pitching as well as Keller did in his last two starts. He even fanned five straight at one point, and won a “race” to first with Miguel Cabrera on a grounder in the hole on the right side. Hill went six on 84 pitches, fanning seven, allowing just one hit and walking two.
The Pirates got to do some regressing against the Tigers’ bullpen in the seventh, scoring four times to ice the game. Carlos Santana doubled in a run, and Joe, Castro and Hedges each singled one in. That gave Hedges three RBIs on the day. Reynolds had three of the Bucs’ 14 hits, and Cutch, Joe, Castro and Hedges each had two.
After the Bucs made it 8-0, Robert Stephenson, Jose Hernandez and Dauri Moreta made quick work of the last three innings. Stephenson gave up a walk and that was the only runner. He and Hernandez each fanned two, and Moreta struck out the side, throwing ten of ten pitches for strikes. Pirates’ pitchers had 14 whiffs on the day.
