ARLINGTON, TEXAS – The Pirates’ offense is highly unlikely to turn into a juggernaut this season. Even on one of its best days, the lineup’s overall ineffectiveness was illustrated in a roundabout way.
The Pirates beat the Rangers, 7-5, Wednesday afternoon to sweep the two-game series at Globe Life Park and even their record at 14-14. That tied the Pirates’ season high for runs scored as they also put up a seven spot against the Reds on April 7 at PNC Park.
In today’s offensively charged game, seven runs are not a lot. To not be able to exceed that through 28 games is concerning. However, the Pirates saw a glimpse in the seventh inning of why the offense has a chance to at least be decent.
Ahead 4-2 with a runner on third and two outs, Starling Marte whacked an RBI double to right field. A few moments later, after Marte stole third base, Gregory Polanco smoked a double into the gap in left-center.
The consecutive two-base hits did more than just give the Pirates some necessary cushion to hold off the Rangers in the late innings. It showed that Marte and Polanco -- who hit second and third in the batting order – might be ready to start rolling.
Marte is hitting just .213/.250/.413 with three home runs and 12 RBIs in 18 games. He was activated from the injured list Wednesday after missing nine games with a bruised abdominal wall and ribs.
Polanco spent the first 2 ½ weeks of the season on the IL while recovering from shoulder surgery. He is batting .267/.353/.333 in eight games. The double gave Polanco his first RBI and second extra-base hit of the year.
“It’s huge for the offense,” Clint Hurdle said of Marte and Polanco. “You look at the offenses that are clicking, look who’s hitting two and three and the damage that’s being done accordingly. They’ve got the skill set to do the same. Marte, I thought he was showing signs of coming out (of it) then he had 10-11 days off. I think he’s responded well in the two games since he’s been back. And Polanco, you see some signs, but you see some rust, too. It’s going to take some time. When they are on, they are really good hitters and really good players.”
Last year, Marte won the Roberto Clemente Award from the Pittsburgh Chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of America as the Pirates’ MVP, hitting 20 home runs and stealing 33 bases. Polanco had a career-high 24 home runs and at least an outside shot at 30 before being injured Sept. 7.
Polanco admits he does not feel completely comfortable in the batter’s box, though it is more to do with timing than shoulder pain. Marte has said his struggles are more on the mental side and even admitted to me just before going on the IL that he had lost a bit of confidence.
However, the Dominican duo has never lost the confidence of their teammates. Jameson Taillon can attest to the importance of Marte and Polanco.
“It’s not a secret that when Marte plays really well, we play really well,” Taillon said. “He makes everything go. He’s got the speed, the power, he can play defense, he’s got the arm, plays a great center field. As he goes, we go. Polanco has that kind of power where the ball sounds different coming off his bat. It’ll be nice to get him and Marte both going.”
Perhaps Wednesday will mark the point when they did get going. That would be welcome news for an offense that entered the day 28th in the major leagues in runs scored with an average of 3.33 a game.
Polanco is hopeful they are back on track:
THE ESSENTIALS
• Boxscore
THE GOOD
Bryan Reynolds continues to make hitting major-league pitching look a lot easier than a rookie should.
His bases-loaded double that one-hopped the 390-foot sign in left-center field in the fourth inning snapped a 1-1 tie and chased Rangers starter Shelby Miller. The Pirates never trailed after that.
The outfielder has a hit in each of the first nine games of his major-league career. He is batting .414/.433/.724 with six doubles, a home run and four RBIs.
The Pirates had been 0-for-16 with the bases loaded this season until Melky Cabrera hit a tying single with one out in the fourth. After Colin Moran popped out, Reynolds came up with his big hit.
“You’re going to go through ups and downs, that’s baseball,” Reynolds told me. “Right now, I’m feeling good and I just want to keep riding it out.”
THE BAD
The offense erupted – at least by its standards – despite leadoff hitter Adam Frazier going 0-for-5.
The second baseman’s hitting line has dropped to .245/.321/.327 in 25 games. The Pirates are going to need Frazier to be better than that if they hope to have even a league-average offense.
Frazier is 10-for-52 (.192) in his last 13 games.
THE OTHER SIDE
Rangers first-year manager Chris Woodward made a difficult decision when he had Hunter Pence bat for Rougned Odor with two outs in the ninth.
Odor went 0-for-4 on Wednesday and is 2-for-24 since returning from a sprained right knee. Woodward opted for the right-handed hitting Pence over the left-handed hitting Odor to face Vazquez, a lefty.
Odor is hitting just .136/.219/.212 in 17 games. He is in the third year of a six-year, $49.5-million contract.
"It hurts to have to do that because I feel like he's going to be one of our foundational players," Woodward said. "And he knows that. I had a good talk with him before the game. It's not that I've lost any trust in him."
THE DATA
• Cabrera went 2-for-3 with a walk to run his hitting streak to eight games. He is 12-for-28 (.429) in that span.
• Taillon (2-3) got the win while allowing four runs (three earned) in 6 1/3 innings. He gave up solo home runs to Joey Gallo in the sixth and Danny Santana in the seventh after not surrendering any long balls in his previous four starts. It was also Taillon’s first win in seven career May starts.
• Felipe Vazquez is a perfect 7-for-7 in save opportunities. He pitched a scoreless ninth, ending the game with back-to-back strikeouts of Shin-Soo Choo and Pence with runners on second and third.
• Josh Bell was 1-for-4 with a double and a walk and went 3-for-8 in the series. Bell is a native of nearby Irving, Texas, and had scores of family and friends in the stands for both games.
• The Pirates are 4-0 in interleague play this year and 19-5 over the past two seasons.
THE INJURIES
• Chris Archer, right-hander, is on the 10-day IL with right thumb inflammation. He is expected to resume throwing in a few days and could be activated when eligible May 7.
• Corey Dickerson, outfielder, is on the 10-day IL with a strained right shoulder. He joined Triple-A Indianapolis April 26 but did not begin a rehab assignment as expected because of tightness in his shoulder. He has been shut down for a few days and is expected to resume throwing and hitting this weekend.
• Nick Burdi, relief pitcher, is on the 10-day IL with right elbow/biceps pain. He got a second opinion Monday from Rangers team orthopedist Keith Meister, who agreed with the Pirates' diagnosis of no structural damage, though he did suggest getting a third opinion.
• Lonnie Chisenhall, outfielder, is on the 10-day IL with a broken right hand. His rehab assignment at Indianapolis was stopped April 27 because of left calf tightness, though he has since resumed light baseball activities. He had gone 3-for-17 with four strikeouts in five games.
• Kevin Newman, infielder, is on the 10-day IL with a lacerated right ring finger. He is on a rehab assignment with Indianapolis and is 7-for-27 with two doubles, four walks and seven strikeouts in seven games.
• Jacob Stallings, catcher, is on the 10-day IL with a cervical neck strain. He is on a rehab assignment at Indianapolis and is 3-for-10 with two home runs, a walk and three strikeouts in three games.
• Jose Osuna, infielder/outfielder, is on the 10-day IL with neck discomfort. He had his rehab assignment transferred to Indianapolis from high-Class A Bradenton on April 30 and has gone 1-for-5 with a strikeout. At Bradenton, he was 4-for-20 with two walks and three strikeouts in five games.
• Erik Gonzalez, shortstop, is on the 60-day IL with a fractured right clavicle and had it repaired surgically April 25. He will not return until at least mid-July.
THE SCHEDULE
The Pirates are off Thursday before opening a three-game series and five-game homestand Friday night against the Athletics at PNC Park. Joe Musgrove (1-2, 1.54) will oppose left-hander Brett Anderson (3-2, 4.35). I will be on the scene for the coverage.
THE COVERAGE
All of our expanded baseball coverage, including Indy Watch by Matt Welch, Altoona Watch by Jarrod Prugar, and Mound Visit by Jason Rollison, can be found on our team page.
