In what was never an “on-the-edge-of-your-seat” win, the Pittsburgh Pirates split the two-game interleague series vs. the Seattle Mariners, taking Game Two 8-1.
Takeaways
- Those bats were a-workin’ early – the Pirates were hitting on all cylinders – starting early with a homer from David Freese and single by Marte in the second. Polanco singled in the third, followed by a Marte single, Sean Rodriguez double and Mercer single in the fourth to bring the score to 5 – 0 Pirates.
- Rookie Pitching – Through five, which of late has been the death nail in the Pirates’ pitching coffin, Jameson Taillon, in his fifth Major League Baseball start, had thrown just over 60 pitches, gave up four hits, one run and had four strike-outs.
- BONUS: Taillon’s brother, who just took a job in Seattle, being on hand to cheer his brother on. Tight families are awesome!
- BONUS: Pedro Alvarez, on an off night with the Orioles (who finished their series versus the Padres and traveled up to Seattle for a four-game series), was on hand at Safeco taking in the game…from the stands.
Throwaways
- Seth Smith’s 13- pitch at-bat – He saw everything Taillon had to offer and then some, finally netting a single to centerfield and bringing Taillon’s pitch count to 85 for the game with one out in the sixth. It gave Robinson Cano an opening for a first-pitch base hit which ushered Nelson Cruz to the plate. Taillon took care of him with a strike-out and then got Kyle Seager to ground out to get out of the inning without adding a run to the scoreboard, but certainly the fatigue was starting to set in.
- Cutch’s issues persist – Andrew McCutchen’s light has been getting brighter, but it was dimmed significantly by his teammates during this game. In five at-bats, he struck out once and was left on base once, having the dubious honor, along with catcher Erik Kratz, of being the only guys in the Pirates line-up without a hit in the game.
W– Jameson Taillon (2-1)
L– Wade Miley (6-4)
Line of the Night: I said it before the season started and I’ll say it nearly halfway through – this is Sean Rodriguez’s year. In this game he scored two runs, had two hits, four RBIs and a walk. Sean Rod has already surpassed his 2015 RBI, walks and runs totals (credit to Joe Block and Root Sports Pitt) and there doesn’t seem to be a hint of a slow down.
BONUS Line of the Night: Goes to Bob Walk, who overturned his chair during in the ninth during the radio broadcast.
https://twitter.com/fugimaster24/status/748379240412946432
Next Up: An off day!! After 16 straight games, preceded by a most epic run of baseball, the Pirates finally get a Thursday off. Expect some fun photos from the Bay Area in Saturday’s Social Media Round-up. On Friday, they start a three-game series against the Athletics where Jeff Locke (7-5) will take on a pitcher to be determined later.
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