Pittsburgh Pirates Wake-Up Call – Marte Partay

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

The Pirates barely avoided getting swept yesterday after some 18th-inning magic by Starling Marte propelled the Pirates to a 2-1 win.  But the Bucs still lost the series to the Nationals, and it wasn’t pretty. The offense totaled three runs in three games and Gerrit Cole didn’t look good coming off the DL on Saturday. It’s important to acknowledge that it was a poor series for the Pirates, but also to put this into perspective. Last year, the Pirates were swept by the Brewers coming out of the All-Star break and then lost two out of three to the Royals. Now, the Pirates have an off day to look forward to tomorrow (which is important considering they essentially played two games yesterday), and then series against the Brewers and the Phillies. Needless to say, the Pirates need to capitalize on an easier stretch of games so they don’t start to slip out of playoff contention.

First, let’s look back on the Washington series. Game one went well for a while, but Clint Hurdle probably let Francisco Liriano go one inning too long. I would have lifted Liriano after six. His confidence would have been high, and the team wouldn’t be playing with fire letting him pitch into the seventh. If the team wants Liriano to rebound, they have to build him back slowly. His season ERA still dropped, and I still look at his start as a positive.

In game two, the Pirates got dominated by good starting pitching yet again. Cole also had his second-shortest outing of the season and did not look sharp from the start. That’s bad news if the Pirates plan on having any success the rest of the year. Without a good Cole, the Pirates have no legitimate number one or two starter. I still think it was just a bad game and he’ll rebound.

And yesterday, Chad Kuhl had a fantastic start, allowing just one hit in six scoreless innings. Mark Melancon did blow just his second save of the season, but Jon Niese looked good in relief, which is a good sign. Starling Marte, Jordy Mercer, and Adam Frazier each had three-hit games, but Andrew McCutchen, who seemed to be turning it around lately, went 0-8. The important thing is that the Pirates were able to salvage one game and not get swept.

Jeff Locke takes the mound tomorrow night, while Jameson Taillon will make his return from the DL on Tuesday. With Cole back and then Taillon, and hopefully Francisco Cervelli returning soon, the Pirates seem to be getting healthy at the perfect time. Now, the Pirates need to do some serious damage against some bad teams.

Yesterday’s Player of the Game

Who is your #Pirates player of the game in today's marathon 2-1 win?

— Jason Rollison (@jrollisonpgh) July 17, 2016

Baseball Talk from Around the Web

• The Braves placed their closer Arodys Vizcaino on the 15-day DL yesterday, which would put him on pace to come off the DL on July 31st. Vizcaino, who has struggled lately, would have been shopped by the Braves at the deadline. Now, that situation becomes murky.
• Another trade candidate, Rich Hill of the Oakland A’s, exited the game yesterday as he has been battling a blister on his hand. He hasn’t been placed on the DL, but blisters, while they sound harmless, can really affect a pitcher. This could impact his trade value moving forward.
• Major League Baseball might be considering going to a 154-game schedule with the next Collective Bargaining Agreement. Will it actually happen? I’m not sure, but it’s a valid topic worth discussing.

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