It’s begun to feel like the Pirates, and especially their young players, are trying to outdo one another lately.
Sure, Pittsburgh has won just three games in a row, a drop in the bucket compared to the nine-game losing streak they just experienced in recent weeks, but those three games have still been encouraging. On Tuesday, they continued the mini roll they’re on with a second straight drubbing of the Chicago Cubs, 7-1.
The tone for the way the Pirates played Tuesday almost felt like it was set Monday. That was when newly called-up Oneil Cruz and Bligh Madris stole the show in a 12-1 win, arguably the Pirates’ best-played game of the season. In the second game of the series, the contributions were more widespread.
Cruz and Madris still pitched in, with the former lining a 111.8 mph RBI single into right in the three-run third inning and the latter smacking his first career MLB homer, a 394-foot solo blast to right-center in the seventh, but the two newest Pirates also didn’t have to get things going for the Pirates’ offense.
That honor belonged to the two more-usual suspects from seasons past. Third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes smacked a leadoff triple off the wall in left-center to start the first inning, and center fielder Bryan Reynolds scored him with a sacrifice fly. Veteran designated hitter Daniel Vogelbach went 2-for-2 with a double, single, two RBIs and two walks. Heck, even catcher Michael Perez, who entered the game hitting .111, bashed his first homer since May 9 in the second inning.
It was an immediate, consistent onslaught fueled by rookies and veterans alike, as the Pirates won their third in a row.
“We got offense top to bottom, which I think is important. The bottom of our order produced runs. We did a nice job at the top right off the bat with Key hitting the triple and Bryan getting him in to give us a 1-0 lead,” manager Derek Shelton said. “Overall, just a really well-played baseball game. We played well defensively. Bligh made the really nice catch. Key and Oneil made a couple nice plays. So yeah, it was a well-played baseball game.”
Of course, even if it’s true that Hayes, Reynolds, Perez and Vogelbach chipped in their fair share, the accolades will continue to go to the newbies. It’s only fair, considering both Cruz and Madris have warranted a special note for almost everything they’ve done in their two games together in Pittsburgh.
After Cruz set season-highs for the Pirates in throw speed from a position player, sprint speed on the bases and exit velocity at the plate Monday, his RBI single Tuesday put him in rarefied air. It gave him an RBI in his first four games in the majors, making him the first Pirates player to do so since Cookie Lavagetto in 1934.
Madris’ homer made him the fifth Pirate this season to hit his first career homer, something only six Pirates mustered last year.
It’s the type of career start that dwarfs teammates’ performances in comparison. That was true for fellow rookie right-hander Roansy Contreras, who started Tuesday’s game. He tossed five innings, striking out three and allowing just one earned run on a jaw-dropping 461-foot homer to Patrick Wisdom.
That was actually the first earned run Contreras has allowed at PNC Park this season. He started his home career with 19 2/3 scoreless innings, the longest home scoreless streak to start any Pirate’s career since Hal Smith in 1933.
“These are moments that we envisioned,” Contreras said. “These are moments that when we were down there in Double-A and Triple-A we continuously talked about. ‘Man, when we get up there, we’re going to dominate. We’re going to be able to play well. To have that focus, to have that mindset and be able to come up here and see the results flourish and show fruit, that’s something that’s life-giving. That’s something that’s really exciting as well.”
The superlatives are almost overwhelming at this point, but the point is in this one, they don’t even scratch the surface for how the Pirates pulled it out. As they say, a rising tide lifts all ships. Over the past three games, the Pirates have been on the upswing.
Mike Persak: mpersak@post-gazette.com and Twitter @MikeDPersak
First Published: June 22, 2022, 2:03 a.m.
Updated: June 22, 2022, 10:02 a.m.
