DUNEDIN, Fla. — The Pirates will begin the season with Joe Musgrove in their starting rotation. That has been the plan since the right-hander was acquired from the Astros in the Gerrit Cole trade in January; however, his status has been in question since he experienced discomfort in his throwing shoulder in the bullpen at Pirate City more than five weeks ago.
Musgrove, making only his third start this spring, showed Sunday that he's almost ready for the regular season and flashed the potential that made him attractive to the Pirates in the first place. The 25-year-old used improved four-seam fastball command, as well as an effective two-seam fastball, to allow one earned run in five innings in the club's 7-4 victory over the Blue Jays at Dunedin Stadium.
He'll join the club for opening day in Detroit before returning to Pirate City on Saturday for a six-inning start in a minor-league game, but Musgrove expressed confidence that he'll be ready to make his scheduled start in the Pirates' series against the Reds at PNC Park from April 5-8.
"Considering the circumstances, how it’s gone for me and how it was scheduled out, yeah, this is where I want to be," Musgrove, who allowed six runs in his previous start, said. "I think so. Ultimately I would have liked to have another outing or two under my belt already. For where we’re at, I think I’m in a good spot."
It was the first effective outing for Musgrove this spring. He threw 45 of his 65 pitches for strikes, allowed five hits and stranded five runners on base. Typically a pitcher's final start of spring training is designed to get him physically and mentally prepared for the season. The second-to-last outing is treated more like a regular-season game.
But Musgrove's schedule is vastly different. He didn't make his first start of the spring until March 9 after experiencing shoulder discomfort before throwing his first live batting practice session last month. As a result, he's made only three starts. To compare, Ivan Nova and Jameson Taillon have started six and five games, respectively.
That shortened calendar is particularly challenging for Musgrove since he spent the second half of last season and the postseason in the Astros' bullpen. He had not started a game since July 15 of last season. In addition to getting himself stretched out, Musgrove needed to get reacclimated to throwing each of his five pitches in a game. He threw mostly four-seam fastballs and sliders as a late-inning reliever, but he has a changeup and curveball.
The rust with the curveball in particular was evident against the Blue Jays. Musgrove threw one high and over the middle of the plate that Steve Pearce hit for a solo home run in the second inning. His changeup wasn't entirely effective, either. Throwing the pitch led to a leadoff double in the third, but he was able to rebound by leaning on his sinker, which helped him produce four groundouts.
"I was definitely limited in the bullpen because I was expected to get minimal outs compared to a starter," Musgrove said. "Going back to five pitches, I’m sure I’ll end up scratching one of those, two of those maybe, when it comes to the season. I feel good and want to keep working on them right now. Trying to get the command and the feel and the consistency back with five pitches is tough after not doing it for a while. It’s all about the fastball. If I can repeat that fastball delivery and be consistent, then it’s just wrist positions."
The limited arsenal worked well for him, though. Musgrove had a 1.44 ERA and 0.86 WHIP in 31 1/3 innings in relief last season. On the other hand, he had a 6.12 ERA and 1.51 WHIP in 78 innings as a starter. The Pirates acquired him to start, filling Cole's spot in the rotation. The variety of weapons has played to his advantage at times, particularly in his first start against the Yankees, when he had five strikeouts.
"His arm bounced back," Ray Searage said. "Did some different things. Threw the fastball to both sides of the plate, in and down. Was also able to get that slider and cutter involved. Also the changeup today was very key. The only thing we had trouble with when he was warming up was the feel of the curveball. But he still threw it."
Musgrove said his six-inning, 100-pitch start on the back fields of Pirate City on Saturday will be the outing where he stops working on adjustments and pitches as if it's the regular season. He'll then rejoin the team in Pittsburgh for the home opener on April 1 and begin preparation for his first start. Musgrove wants to improve his breaking pitches and the timing of his delivery, but he said he'll break camp with a confidence that he's ready for a familiar role.
"For the most part, I think I’m in a good spot right now," he said.
• Bullpen candidates Kevin Siegrist, Kyle Crick and Josh Smoker also pitched in the win, but two of the three struggled. Siegrist, a minor-league free agent, allowed one run on two hits in the sixth inning, raising his ERA to 7.94. Crick, the right-hander acquired in the Andrew McCutchen trade, was tagged for two runs on three hits with two walks in 2/3 innings.
He has a 5.73 ERA and has allowed at least two earned runs in three of his 10 outings. Smoker, a left-hander, pitched a scoreless eighth inning with two strikeouts. Siegrist, 28, has struggled with command and his fastball velocity is down after an injury-plagued season in 2017. Additionally, his velocity has dipped steadily since 2015.
Searage offered far different reviews on each pitcher.
On Siegrist: "From what I’m seeing, the command isn’t there. The arm strength comes and goes. We’re just trying to get him out there as many times as possible and see if he can get his feet under him so this way he can compete and give us a better look."
On Crick: "I’ve seen a good fastball but I haven’t seen the hard slider yet. Today was a rough day for him. Couldn’t command the fastball. Got behind and had to come right at them. Slider helped out but it didn’t really offset the fastball because of being behind in the count. He’s got potential."
On Smoker: "He shows flashes of being a consistent left-handed reliever. There’s a lot of deep counts he gets into. We had a serious talk — I won't tell you what went on — but I told him you’ve got the weapons to get people out but you’re behind in the count all the time and you’re treading water when you’re facing these guys. You go in there and throw strike one, boom, man. … It’s still a working process with Smoker, but there’s something to work with there. There’s tools, there’s weapons."
• Francisco Cervelli went 2 for 3 with a home run and three RBIs. He's hitting .400 this spring with four home runs and 12 RBIs in 14 games. Jose Osuna went 2 for 3 with a two-run homer in the third inning. Elias Diaz caught the final four innings and went 2 for 2 with a double and two RBIs.
• With Clint Hurdle spending the day at Pirate City, bench coach Tom Prince managed the Pirates on Sunday. Here was his lineup:
1. Adam Frazier, CF
2. Francisco Cervelli, C
3. Sean Rodriguez, SS
4. Jose Osuna, 3B
5. Ryan Lavarnway, 1B
6. Kevin Kramer, 2B
7. Bryan Reynolds, RF
8. Jason Martin, LF
9. Joe Musgrove, P
• The Pirates will host the Phillies on Monday at 1:05 p.m. Trevor Williams is scheduled to start with George Kontos, Michael Feliz, Dovydas Neverauskas, Edgar Santana and Bo Schultz in relief. Additionally, Josh Smoker and Kyle Crick will pitch in a minor-league game at Pirate City.
