DENVER — The Pirates totaled two touchdowns during their 14-3 victory against the Colorado Rockies on Monday at Coors Field. They also collected 16 hits, an offensive onslaught where every starter — except poor Connor Joe, who was playing in his former park — had at least one. Eight of the nine starters scored runs. Seven had RBIs.
Yet the surest sign of the Pirates’ progress came on a ball that was hit just 89.6 mph, a bouncer to shortstop off the bat of 37-year-old cleanup hitter Carlos Santana.
Had Santana, who probably could have used a chest protector or some bubble wrap over the weekend in St. Louis, jogged down to first, nobody would’ve blamed him. Only the well-respected veteran did the exact opposite — he sprinted. Beating out the double play netted the Pirates an extra run. Bigger than that, it continued to set a tone.
That this group, now 10-7 and playing an exciting brand of baseball, will indeed hustle and do the little things right, a way of functioning that certainly has eluded them at times in the past and also one that helped them cruise to a series-opening victory against the reeling Rockies.
“I try to set an example,” Santana said. “We’re playing well. We’re fighting. The energy is great. We’ve talked about that. We have to keep it up and win games any way we can.”
The areas to highlight were everywhere after this one. Rich Hill was really good. Mark Mathias had a career-high four hits. The Pirates made a couple terrific defense plays — shocker, Ke’Bryan Hayes was involved — and they applied constant pressure on the Rockies.
It’s also hard to get past the sight of Santana booking it down the line. Need a quick snippet of this team should operate? Save that one.
“If he’s doing it, why isn’t everyone else doing it?” Andrew McCutchen said. “We want to maintain a level of play that’s high. We run hard. We hustle. We have to. We don’t get to get by here. We need to do the little things, that being one of them.”
“There's a reason why we wanted him in our clubhouse,” Pirates manager Derek Shelton added.
Before Monday’s game, Shelton was asked about Santana, who was playing in his 1,800th MLB game, seventh-most among active players. The context was how tough and fearless he played on defense. Who knew Santana would’ve offered evidence on the baserunning side, too.
“You don't play that many games unless you're good and resilient,” Shelton said. “He’s both.”
The Pirates were also due for this sort of night, when balls actually found holes. Think back to Friday’s loss, where Pittsburgh wasted a seven-inning, 10-strikeout gem from Johan Oviedo. Pittsburgh hit 16 balls that carried an exit velocity of 95 mph of greater. Barely any fell in, and the Pirates had it made up to them in Denver.
The game tilted for good thanks to the Pirates’ six-run second, but it started with a solo blast in the first inning from McCutchen, his third of the year. Mistake slider from Kyle Freeland, goodbye. Expected stuff from someone who prior to Monday was hitting .307 with seven doubles, three triples, eight home runs and 23 RBIs in 44 career games at Coors Field.
The deluge followed.
Mathias lined a single up the middle, 2-0. Ji Hwan Bae put down a bunt, Rodolfo Castro scored, 3-0. Austin Hedges singled, 4-0. Ke’Bryan Hayes shot one back up the middle, 5-0. Bryan Reynolds singled through the left side, 6-0.
“We did a good job of making [Freeland] bring the ball up and swinging at our pitches,” Shelton said. “We're talking about one of the best lefties in the National League, we got him to the middle of the plate, and we took really good swings."
Bae (fielder’s choice) and Hayes (another single up the middle) upped the Pirates’ lead to 9-0 the next inning. After Rockies right fielder Kris Bryant homered in the third, Hayes (sac fly), Reynolds (single) and Santana (two-run single) notched RBIs in the fifth.
That was more than enough for Rich Hill, who delivered the seventh consecutive quality start for Pirates pitchers. He allowed one run over six innings, walking two and striking out seven. During this recent stretch, Pirates pitchers have a 2.30 ERA. Furthermore, they began the game having worked the fourth-most innings in the National League (85 1/3).
“The effort the entire game and the continued pursuit of putting runs on the board,” Hill said, describing what he liked about this win. “I think that’s something everyone is starting to see throughout the beginning part of the season.”
ON THE MOUND
Overshadowed, of course, by the avalanche of offense, Hill fared extremely well in what has always been a tough place to pitch for fly-ball pitchers.
Even the Bryant homer should’ve been forgotten two seconds after it happened. Big lead, nobody on base, throw it over the plate, Bryant got one.
The bigger story with Hill is that, after two starts where he allowed 10 earned runs and five homers in nine innings, he has given up just three earned runs over his past two starts (12 innings). He’s been way better.
“The intensity and effort continued to build over the six innings,” Hill said. “That’s something that I liked to see.”
Wil Crowe and Jose Hernandez finished the game to allow the leverage guys to save it for another day.
AT THE PLATE
The notes and nuggets were bountiful from this one, starting with another strong performance from Castro. The Pirates’ de facto shortstop collected two hits and extended his hitting streak to seven games. Castro actually has hits in eight of his last nine, going 13 for 28 (.464) with three doubles and a home run.
After starting the season just one for 15 (.067) across five games, Mathias’ four-hit outburst surely felt good for him and buttressed a bottom of the lineup that kept busy.
Austin Hedges picked up a hit for the third consecutive game — an RBI-single up the middle on an elevated sinker in the second — and also scored a pair of runs.
“The thing I liked about the entire game was we did not give away any at-bats,” Shelton said. “I think that says something to the growth of our team and how we're getting better."
Hayes finished with two hits and three RBIs, his first three-RBI game since Aug. 3, 2022.
Jack Suwinski smashed a 461-foot homer in the ninth, the longest for a Pirate this season.
QUOTABLE
“He’s the best in the league, in my opinion. It’s a guy who’s on the cusp of winning a Gold Glove and going out there every single day and putting in the work and the effort. We’re really fortunate to have him.” — Hill on Hayes.
UP NEXT
In the middle game of the series, the Pirates will face right-hander Jose Urena, who hasn’t gotten much run support. In his last eight starts dating back to 2022, Urena has enjoyed just seven runs of support.
Jason Mackey: jmackey@post-gazette.com and Twitter @JMackeyPG.
First Published: April 18, 2023, 3:32 a.m.
Updated: April 18, 2023, 10:00 a.m.
