Chris Archer slumped at the waist, hands on his knees, head down. He didn't need to watch the ball rocket off Freddie Freeman's bat. The sound — and the reaction from the crowd — said it all: That ball was gone.
And it didn't surprise Archer one bit.
After the game at PNC Park, I asked Archer about his reaction there, and he told me it wasn't just a display of disappointment after giving up a home run. It was the fact he shook off the original pitch selection from Jacob Stallings in favor of the two-seamer that got ripped into the stands.
He breaks it down:
Now, consider this: The Pirates went on to win, 6-1. That home run conceded by Archer in the opening frame was his only blunder on the afternoon en route to a 6.0 IP, six hits, one earned-run, two walks, six strikeouts line. His performance embodied everything this Pirates team has shown in 2019. The player may falter, but it's the response that matters. Archer's clean slate through the five innings after that early homer is just the latest example in a season-long display of perseverance.
"I mean, look, it's a long season," Archer was saying postgame at PNC Park. "One out of 162 or a handful out of 162 is not going to bring us down. We have some veterans in this clubhouse who know that, and we have some young dudes in this clubhouse who don't know the difference... One bad game where we play poorly doesn't really have a lingering effect on us."
The win completed a 2-1 series victory over the Braves, with the Pirates bouncing back after a 12-5 loss in the series-opener on Tuesday to take the last two before shipping off to Milwaukee for a three-game set against the Brewers.
"It's just kudos to the starters," Josh Bell was saying in the locker room after the game. "[Joe Musgrove] last night, just lights out, and then Archer bouncing the tides back for us here today. Top-tier stuff getting us back on the right foot."
The performances from Musgrove and Archer set the stage, but the bats still needed to show up — and they didn't delay.
In the second inning, Bell hit his first of three doubles on the day (more on that in "The Good"), bringing Colin Moran to the plate.
Moran did this:
Not to be left out of the fun, Gregory Polanco followed up Moran's blast with one of his own in the next at-bat:
Those back-to-back dingers sealed the game early for the Pirates. Bell would add a two-RBI double in the eighth, and Elias Diaz would drive home the sixth run that same inning, but it was written from that first rip off Moran's bat. Archer did his part, then Francisco Liriano tagged-in for 1 2/3 innings to hold the Braves' score at one.
"The entire time he was out there, he pitched clean," Clint Hurdle said of Liriano after the game. "Really good effort from him to back up what Archer was able to establish early."
Then came Felipe Vazquez, who did what Felipe Vazquez does, sealing the four-out save with just a little drama. He allowed a single and gave up two walks to load the bases in the ninth, but it was all for nothing, as he eventually struck out Dansby Swanson to end the game and give the Pirates the win.
"What's gonna happen is gonna happen," Hurdle said. "If I need to start worrying about Felipe, I need to head to the house."
THE ESSENTIALS
• Boxscore
THE GOOD
It's getting difficult to talk about Bell without sounding like you're lying. After putting up three doubles in four at-bats, Bell himself is starting to get a little baffled by the performances.
"Couldn't tell you," Bell said when he was asked to recall the last time he hit three doubles in one game. "I don't know. Have I done that ever?"
No, Mr. Bell, you haven't. Not in the majors, at least. After being named the NL Player of the Month in May for tallying 12 home runs, 12 doubles and 94 total bases in the 31-day span, Bell received a rest day to open the series against the Braves — his first of the season. Apparently, the break was put to good use, as Bell charged back Thursday and continued his brilliance, going 3 for 4 with two RBIs and two runs.
While three doubles in one game is nice — and 25 in 61 games is nicer — none impressed more Thursday than Bell's last cut, a two-strike beauty that brought home Adam Frazier and Bryan Reynolds to give the Pirates a commanding 5-1 lead in the eighth.
"I feel like two-strike doubles are cool," Bell said. "We wanna just not miss on that fastball that I've been missing on for probably a series and a half now. It was nice going into this next series, so hopefully I can punch the Brewers back a little bit."
THE BAD
Kevin Newman has played well both offensively and defensively of late, but after shifting from second base to third late in the game, he committed the team's only error.
Fielding a Josh Donaldson grounder, Newman whipped the ball to Bell at first, but the throw was off target, ricocheting off an attempted scoop from Bell and allowing Donaldson to reach. Ultimately, the Braves couldn't capitalize on the error, but that represented the lone smudge on an otherwise clean game from the home team.
THE OTHER SIDE
Mike Foltynewicz fell to 1-5 this season with a 5.89 ERA, giving up six hits and three earned runs in 6.0 innings of work. His play wasn't up to standard, but help could be on the way. The Braves are reportedly leading the charge to acquire Dallas Keuchel.
Think that could make for an interesting series when the two teams meet again in just a week?
THE DATA
• Bryan Reynolds extended his hitting streak to 14 games, the longest by a National League rookie this season. He went 2 for 4 and is now 21 for 53 (.396) during the streak.
Cole Tucker, decked out in Frozone garb for the team's Superhero Trip, is loving every hit of it:
• Since being moved to the No. 3 spot of the batting order on May 25, Starling Marte has gone 21 for 49 (.429) but he went hitless today — 0 for 4.
• Don't look now, but Moran is heating up. In his last seven games, Moran has hit three of his seven home runs on the season.
• Tucker's bat is waking from its slumber, too. He went 1 for 3 today with a double, giving him five straight games with a hit. He's 7 for 13 (.538) during that run.
• With 10 hits today, the Pirates have notched at least eight hits in 13 consecutive games. That's the team's longest such streak since August of 2007, when they rang up at least eight hits in 14 straight.
• Vazquez's save was his 15th of the year
• Attendance: 18,232
• Time of game: 2 hours, 58 minutes
THE INJURIES
• Corey Dickerson, left fielder, is on the 60-day IL with a right posterior shoulder strain and is on a rehab assignment with Class AAA Indianapolis, but he is traveling with the Pirates to Milwaukee.
• Jung Ho Kang, third baseman, is on the 10-day IL with a left side strain and is on a rehab assignment with Indianapolis.
• Francisco Cervelli, catcher, is on the seven-day concussion IL.
• Trevor Williams, right-hander, is on the 10-day IL with a right side strain.
• Jameson Taillon, right-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 Kela, right-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 Pirates hopped a charter to Milwaukee today, where they'll play Friday, Saturday and Sunday against the Brewers. Dejan Kovacevic is on site with all the coverage.
THE COVERAGE
All 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.
MATT SUNDAY GALLERY
Pirates vs. Braves, PNC Park, June 6, 2019 - MATT SUNDAY / DKPS