Wil Crowe didn’t do great tonight, but overall he hasn’t looked terrible; which might not matter to some because he still came away with the L . Many Pirates fans are searching for an Ace, or the clutch hitter, to come in, step up and save the day; but, unfortunately, I have bad news for all of you…not everyone is going to fit that mold. Whenever a pitcher has a bad appearance or a batter goes 0 for 3, many hastily set them aside, just like fans are quick to react to a homer in the midst of hitless streak or a sword after giving up the lead. That’s not how this works; that’s not how any of this works.
As a life long Pirates Fan, I understand that supporters are looking for the next best thing, the player that will make a difference, and ultimately the one who will lead Pittsburgh out of obscurity, and back to meaningful baseball. Some will perform this task by themselves, and in spite of the hardships it could entail, while others fill a gap, meet expectations, and/or slot into a role that could make the team successful at some point.
Wil Crowe could eventually meet that criteria; so could Cody Ponce, or Will Craig, Cole Tucker and even JT Brubaker; and in all honesty you need bunch of role players as much, if not more, than a single ace or superstar. Believe me it doesn’t hurt, and will eventually be essential to the rebuild; like McCutchen was for the Pirates in 2013-2015. Nevertheless, that team doesn’t go anywhere without the likes of Neil Walker, Jordy Mercer, Jeff Locke, Josh Harrison and many more.
The problem with the Pirates now is that they don’t have a McCutchen-many believe Hayes could be that guy, and he eventually he could be-and they don’t have enough of the role players to make any really difference; as evident by last night’s 4-1 loss to the Cubs, and old friend Trevor Williams.
News and Notes
- Wil Crowe was forced from the game after only 1.1 innings; while allowing 3 runs on 5 hits, with a lone strikeout and 2 walks. This was obviously Crowe’s worst start of the year thus far. He just didn’t have it last night, but I thinks it’s worth a shot to see if he more of the pitcher he was when he faced the Cubs back on May 8th, or if this is the more likely outcome.
- Pittsburgh’s only offense on the night came from the a few unlikely sources; Ben Gamel, Kevin Newman and Eric Gonzalez, with Gonzalez driving in the Pirates only run in the bottom of the 6th.
- Adam Frazier’s most recent hitting streak ends at 10 following an 0 for 4 night with 2 strikeouts.
- Bryan Reynolds hasn’t looked like himself the last two games; combining to go 0 for 7 with four strikeouts and a walk. I would say he needs a day off to reset and recharge, but I don’t really want to see an outfield without him.
- The Pirates bullpen performed well; giving up only one run over 7.2 innings. However, they can’t take too many games like this with their next off day not scheduled until Wednesday June 2nd.
Pittsburgh doesn’t have much time to regroup, as they take on Chicago for the third game of the series at 12:35 PM EST; while trying to avoid the sweep.
For the Pirates, Tyler Anderson (3-4, 4.73 ERA) is looking to bounce back from his last outing versus Atlanta. Opposing him is Kyle Hendricks (4-4, 4.74), who is searching for his first win over the Pirates this year.
Inside The Bucs Basement 