The Pittsburgh Pirates will go for the sweep on Sunday against MLB’s best team, the Philadelphia Phillies.
After winning a wild game on Friday, the Pirates handled the Phillies more easily on Saturday, with a 4-1 win led by Luis Ortiz on the mound, and power from Andrew McCutchen and Oneil Cruz.
The game was scoreless heading to the bottom of the sixth, thanks to shutout ball from Ortiz. That’s when McCutchen put the Pirates on the board with a solo homer, his 13th of the year. They added a second run when Cruz hit a double, knocking in Friday’s walk-off hero Nick Gonzales.
Cruz extended the lead in the eighth inning with a two run homer, for his 15th of the year. The homer from Cruz traveled 422 feet at 112 MPH. McCutchen’s homer traveled 431 feet at 107.7 MPH.
Aroldis Chapman and David Bednar closed out the win.
Marco Gonzales will take the mound for the Pirates on Sunday, hoping to complete the sweep and push the Pirates to a 51-48 record.
The Breakout of Luis Ortiz
This year’s Pirates rotation has been highlighted by the rookie debuts from Paul Skenes and Jared Jones, along with Mitch Keller taking another step forward. One of the best stories lately has been the breakout performance from Luis Ortiz.
After throwing seven shutout innings on Saturday, Ortiz has a 2.57 ERA in 73.2 innings this year. That includes a 2.09 ERA in 43 innings since the start of June, when Ortiz started being used in extended relief and as a starter. His last three appearances have been in the rotation, with an 0.48 ERA in 18.2 innings.
Ortiz is getting his results by throwing strikes and getting weak contact. In Saturday night’s game, he had eight whiffs on 41 swings (20%), led by four against his slider and three against his four-seam. He had 18 called strikes, led by six against the four-seam and seven on his sinker. In total, Ortiz had a 29% called and swinging strike rate, with three pitches at 33% or higher. Only the slider was fueled to those levels by swing and miss.
This is just good pitching from Ortiz. He’s shown flashes of potential in the past, but has never been consistent. His control held him back in previous MLB appearances, but he’s taken a big step forward this year. He would need to walk 29 batters in his next 13 innings to match last year’s walk pace in the majors.
The Pirates have a pitching staff that could do some damage in the playoffs, and Ortiz is looking like the latest reliable addition to that group, with the chance to complete the starting unit.
Stacked For the Cardinals
There were some complaints that the Pirates saved Paul Skenes and Mitch Keller from pitching in the series against the Phillies. That’s currently looking like a good move.
With a chance for a sweep against the Phillies today, the Pirates will invite the St. Louis Cardinals to Pittsburgh to start the coming week, with a fresh Skenes and Keller combo hoping to continue this second-half winning.
The Pirates are currently half a game back in the Wild Card race, with the Cardinals occupying the second of three spots. With a big series, the Pirates could reverse the standings, putting them in playoff position.
That would certainly be a big statement as the trade deadline approaches. It would be difficult to justify the Pirates doing anything other than buying if they take a series from two current playoff teams.
Roster Moves
Yesterday’s First Pitch detailed a lot of roster moves to open the second half. A few updates today:
**Hunter Stratton was sent on a rehab assignment to Bradenton, rather than Indianapolis.
**LHP Magdiel Cotto was activated from the 7-day IL in Bradenton.
**The Pirates released infielder Joe Perez last week. Perez was added for depth around this time last year, and filled that depth role in the top two levels this year. He combined for a .220/.288/.352 line with six homers between Altoona and Indianapolis.
Pirates Prospect Watch
Thomas Harrington struck out ten batters in his latest start for Altoona. This was his second start in a row with double-digit strikeouts, allowing two runs in 13 innings during that span. Termarr Johnson extended his hitting streak to 14 games in Greensboro, while Anthony Solometo returned in the FCL. Read about all of Saturday’s action in the latest Pirates Prospect Watch:
Pirates Prospect Watch: Thomas Harrington Strikes Out Ten For Altoona
