Musgrove digs deep to go deep taken at PNC Park (Courtesy of StepOutside.org)

Joe Musgrove stands on the pitcher's mound in the ninth inning Wednesday night at PNC Park - MATT SUNDAY / DKPS

Facing major-league hitters is never easy, especially a lineup as potent as the one the Braves roll out on a nightly basis.

Yet Joe Musgrove made it look almost effortless Wednesday night at PNC Park. He sliced through the batting order three times before tiring in the ninth inning as his bid for the first complete game of his four-year career fell three outs short.

There was a reason Musgrove looked like he was coasting. Let’s let the Pirates right-hander explain:

“My rhythm felt good,” he said. “My delivery was clean. It didn’t feel like I was using much effort and the ball was coming out of my hand clean. Any athlete will tell you, you hit that point in the game where you get in the zone, there's no real stopping you. You're not thinking about anything. You're seeing the glove and throwing to it."

Musgrove (4-6) pitched a career-high eight innings and retired 14 batters in a row at one point in pitching the Pirates to a 7-4 victory. It was just the fourth win for the Pirates (29-31) in their past 12 games.

Musgrove allowed three runs and five hits while striking out six and walking one. He needed just 99 pitches to get into the ninth.

I asked Musgrove about the importance of making it to the final inning:

However, Musgrove’s bid to pitch nine innings for the first time in 56 career starts ended when, with a 7-1 lead, he gave up back-to-back home runs to Ronald Acuna Jr. and Dansby Swanson to start the ninth.

"The two homers, it doesn't feel good to leave on that note, but I'm more happy with how I feel going into my next start," Musgrove said. "I feel like this is something I can build on and something that can turn my season around."

Nobody was complaining about Musgrove's finish. Everyone in the clubhouse was raving about him.

“He was really good,” Colin Moran said. “He was rolling. He was efficient and quick. It was the type of effort we really needed.”

The Pirates’ pitching staff is in shambles with Jameson Taillon, Trevor Williams and Keone Kela on the injured list. Opponents had scored in double digits in six of the previous 12 games, overtaxing a bullpen, whose ERA rose to 5.27 after Felipe Vazquez allowed a run in relief of Musgrove.

“We needed a start like that, and he gave us one,” Clint Hurdle said. “It was a strong effort, a super strong effort.”

Musgrove got stronger as the game went on.

After a two-out double by Swanson in the third inning, Musgrove sat down 14 batters in a row, including striking out the top of the order – Acuna, Swanson and Freddie Freeman -- in the sixth.

Here is the strikeout of Freeman:

“It’s good to see the swing and miss from him,” Hurdle said. “When he does that, it means he’s pitching well.”

Ozzie Albies drew a one-out walk in the eighth to end the streak but was erased on Matt Joyce’s double-play grounder.

Musgrove’s performance was certainly a departure from his most recent outings. He had lost his previous two starts,

allowing 11 runs and 21 hits in 11 innings. Furthermore, he had been tagged for at least five earned runs in four of his previous six starts.

But it was a rare night when everything felt perfect for the big right-hander.

“I had good fastball command and I was able to attack hitters form the start of the game and I’m at my best when I’m on the attack,” he said. “When I’m commanding the fastball, all my other pitches are better, and it was one of those games where it was all working.”

THE ESSENTIALS

• Boxscore

• Video highlights

Scoreboard

• Standings

THE GOOD

Hurdle gave Gregory Polanco three days off in hopes it would spark the slumping right fielder. It turned out to be the right move.

Polanco was 3 for 4 with a double and his first two stolen bases of the season. He entered the game on a 2 for 18 slide that included 11 strikeouts.

Polanco got the Pirates’ five-run second inning started with a one-out single off Kevin Gausman and Elias Diaz followed with a home run to make it 2-1.

“It’s been a real scuffle and the swing and miss was alarming,” Hurdle said. “So, the strikeouts were racking up and he was getting to the point where he was frustrated. You want more out of yourself, your team is out there battling, you’re a primetime player for us and you’re not involved in the mix. I thought the down time would do him good, freshen up his legs and give him a mental break.”

Polanco is hitting .260/.319/.449 with five home runs in 33 games this season after undergoing major shoulder surgery last September.

THE BAD

Somebody in the Pirates’ stadium operations department goofed.

The game was scheduled to start at 7:05 p.m. but the first pitch wasn’t thrown until after a two-hour, four-minute delay. The Pirates felt it was unwise to get the game started on time because of the threat of rain. However, the rain was minimal and the teams could have played through it.

Thus, the two-hour, 48-minute game did not end until three minutes before midnight. And that’s with the teams scheduled to play a game at 12:35 p.m. Thursday.

“It’s frustrating but it’s something you’ve got to deal with,” Musgrove said. “The other team’s pitcher has to deal with it, too. I just try to stay loose, not get stressed about it, not get too upset about it and when they say go, get fired up and go out and pitch.”

THE OTHER SIDE

Gausman (2-5) was raked for seven runs and 12 hits in five innings. That came after he was rocked for eight runs in one-plus inning by the Nationals in his previous start.

"Just not doing a good job of keeping the big innings from happening and just really had to grind out there today and you give them a five spot in the second, definitely not what you're trying to do," Gausman said.

The Braves (33-28) had won 15 of their previous 22 games.

THE DATA

• Bryan Reynolds singled and scored in the second inning to extend his hitting streak to 13 games, the longest by a National League rookie this season. Reynolds is 19 for 49 (.388) during the streak.

• Starling Marte was 3 for 3 with a double and a hit by pitch. Since being moved to the No. 3 spot of the batting order on May 25, he has gone 21 for 49 (.429).

• When Musgrove retired the Braves in order in the first, it marked just the fourth time in the past 26 games that the Pirates had a 1-2-3 opening inning.

• Diaz’s home run was his first of the season and Moran hit his seventh, a solo shot off Gausman in the fifth.

• The Pirates had lost six of their previous seven games against the Braves.

THE INJURIES

Corey Dickersonleft fielder, is on the 60-day IL with a right posterior shoulder strain and is on a rehab assignment with Class AAA Indianapolis.

Jung Ho Kangthird baseman, is on the 10-day IL with a left side strain and is on a rehab assignment with Indianapolis.

Francisco Cervellicatcher, is on the seven-day concussion IL.

Trevor Williamsright-hander, is on the 10-day IL with a right side strain.

Jameson Taillonright-hander, is on the 60-day IL with a right elbow flexor tendon strain and is rehabbing at the Pirates' training facility in Bradenton, Fla.

Keone Kelaright-hander, is on the 10-day IL with right shoulder inflammation and is rehabbing in Bradenton.

Chris Stratton, right-hander, is on the 10-day IL with right side discomfort.

• Erik Gonzalez, shortstop, is on the 60-day IL with a left clavicle fracture.

• Nick Burdi, relief pitcher, is on the 60-day IL with right elbow/biceps pain caused by a nerve problem and is rehabbing in Bradenton.

Lonnie Chisenhall, outfielder, is on the 60-day IL with a left calf strain and is currently rehabbing at his home in North Carolina.

THE SCHEDULE

The three-game series concludes at 12:35 p.m. Thursday with Chris Archer (2-5, 5.66) pitching against Mike Foltynewicz (1-4, 6.10). Archer ended a five-start losing streak Sunday when he beat the Brewers at PNC Park. Hunter Homistek and Matt Sunday will be covering.

THE COVERAGE

All our expanded baseball coverage, including Indy Watch by Matt WelchAltoona Watch by Jarrod Prugar, and Mound Visit by Jason Rollison, can be found on our team page.

MATT SUNDAY GALLERY

Pirates vs. Braves, PNC Park, June 5, 2019 - MATT SUNDAY / DKPS

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