Pittsburgh Pirates Wake Up Call – Familiar Foes Haunt Bucs in Atlanta

In our daily Wake-Up Call, we get you ready for the day with a complete look at all things Pittsburgh Pirates.

Is it 2013?

Yesterday the Pittsburgh Pirates lost a disappointing game to the Atlanta Braves. Given the Pirates had Gerrit Cole on the mound, this loss is very frustrating.

The loss featured some old foes coming back to hurt the Pirates. Brandon Phillips and Matt Adams both hit home runs for the Braves. Bringing back memories of the Pirates contests against the Reds and Cardinals in 2013. It’s funny because I saw a lot of people saying that Matt Adams owns the Pirates, which is absurdly incorrect. In his career, Adams slashes .205/.246/.322/.568 with 43 strikeouts against the Pirates. So the fact that Adams had a multi-hit game yesterday is actually the exception and not the norm. Doesn’t make his two-run home run any less frustrating but it’s important to remember that this isn’t something that Adams normally does against the Pirates.

Brandon Phillips, however, is a different story. In his career against the Pirates, he hits .311/.353/.477/.830. The man likes Pirates pitching and it doesn’t matter if he’s wearing an Indians, Reds, or Braves uniform.

Ump Show

Perhaps the biggest takeaway from yesterday’s game was Homeplate umpire, Phil Cuzzi. His strike zone was very inconsistent and because of that, David Freese and Clint Hurdle were both tossed from the game. One play in particular potentially changed the dynamic of the game:

Call hurts #Pirates
Strike 3 should be ball 3
Top 4 Foltynewic vs Freese
4% call same
3.9in from edge pic.twitter.com/tU2paCF6Pe

— Pirates Strike Zone (@PiratesUmp) May 23, 2017

This pitch was nowhere close to a strike but Freese was called out. He began chirping from the bench, which lead to the umpire, Phil Cuzzi screaming at the Pirates’ bench, “You know better than that!” Freese and Hurdle were then both ejected. I really hate when umpires attempt to make the game about them. Not a single person in Atlanta came to see the umpire, yet far too often, the umpires put on an Ump Show.

David Freese is a valuable contributor for the Pirates and him not being in the game, makes the Pirates worse. I am not saying Phil Cuzzi cost the Pirates the game but I am saying his horrible strike zone was an issue and really needs to be addressed. Umpires are basically untouchable and can get away with consistent failure. That’s not right and MLB really needs to do something in the future to improve how umpires call balls and strikes.

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