SAN DIEGO -- I've often heard Derek Shelton speak of "growth moments" since he became the Pirates' manager a pandemic ago and, to tell the truth, it's felt perfect every time it's been applied.
Want a fun example?
OK, Tuesday night here at Petco Park, David Bednar, rookie rock-star reliever from Mars, had runners at second and third when the Padres put forth Fernando Tatis Jr. as a pinch-hitter. The place erupted, if only because that's what's universally expected from Tatis' prodigious bat. And it didn't stop there. Almost all of the sellout crowd of 15,250 stayed standing and roaring through all five pitches that'd follow.
The final one of which brought a popup.
I'd been negligent in my duties that night to ask Shelton why he had Bednar pitch to the sport's brightest young star with a base open while clinging to a one-run lead, but I finally got around to it Wednesday afternoon. And his answer was worth the wait.
“My thought process was that he was going to go right after him and he was going to execute pitches," Shelton began. "We’ve talked about different things. We’ve talked about growing experiences, learning experiences. I mean, he pitched through it. That’s a learning experience. That’s man-to-man stuff. He’s going after one of the best players in the game. Those moments are cool. Those moments are, when guys come off the field, you see growth in them. You see it in their face, and you’re excited about it. It was a big moment in the game, and it was a big moment for Bed."
Shelton valued the moment. Bednar embraced the moment.
I witnessed it from the press box. Shelton was at the top step, hand extended for the first high-five. Other coaches and players bunched behind him, a handful of them hopping. And Bednar basically sprinted over there to partake, almost as fast as the 96.7 mph heat he'd just delivered.
It was, in fact, "cool."
Yeah, I know, "growth moments" can be seen as semantics by a cynic. When the team wins, everyone talks about wins. And when the team doesn't win, it can seem awfully convenient to turn the conversation to a corporate-sounding term like that. I get it, believe me. I know which franchise I'm covering.
Except that this concept played out with that Bednar moment, which wound up a win, and it played out again within the series finale on this Wednesday night, which wound up a 4-2 loss.
Here, for instance, JT Brubaker locates a 95-mph fist-fighting sinker to shorten Wil Myers' arms for the final out of the third inning:
That's a beauty. Might as well whack at it with the bat handle.
Not pictured: In that same inning, Brubaker served up a long leadoff home run to Victor Caratini, stomped around the mound a bit, struck out the next two batters he faced, conceded a smashed single and a squibbed single, picked up the latter himself and fired it into right field, walked the bases loaded, ran the count full on Myers ... then executed what's seen above.
I asked how he kept the brain clear through all that.
"Just realizing that I made a mistake pitch, making sure multiple mistake pitches don’t linger." he replied with a small shrug. " Really just honing in and making sure I get back onto what I need to do to throw quality pitches."
Which he did in cobbling together five fine innings -- two runs, six hits, seven Ks, three walks, 93 pitches, 60 strikes -- that left his season ERA at 2.78, still lowest on the Pirates' rotation and 13th-lowest among all National League starters.
Oh, and before I forget: He was functioning with maybe half his arsenal. He didn't find his changeup until the fifth, and his slider apparently spent the day sipping tequilas in nearby Tijuana.
"He didn't have his best stuff, didn't have the slider that he's had," Shelton bluntly observed. "But to come back and do what he did ... we’ve seen him handle it well. I think he continues to get better start after start, and that’s really promising for us."
Couldn't agree more. And can't say enough about Brubaker's progress. Even though he'd fared well enough as a rookie in 2020, he still felt like an afterthought through most of spring training. But here he is, better even than Tyler Anderson's been in this rotation and, infinitely more important, at age 27, lining up to be a significant part of this team's future.
That's a mighty big W within the L. And those matter more in 2021 than anyone might be comfortable admitting.
• This column can't proceed without first crediting two extraordinary blocks by Jacob Stallings for Brubaker's third-inning escape. The guy's so, so much better than most seem to realize.
If there's one veteran it'd be truly painful to see go, he'd be the one. With a young pitching staff, there's always a benefit to employing an elite defensive catcher.
• Those Ls aren't out of hand yet, but that's six in the seven games since the Pirates poked their heads above .500 a little more than a week ago. I won't rule out that they'd have another surge in them along the way, given the rotation exceeding expectations and the bullpen being outright excellent, but these bats, man ... I don't know. That's four total runs in as many games now, accompanied by much sickly contact.
• On the bright side, Bryan Reynolds went oppo -- and hard -- for this solo shot in the sixth ...
... that ended the Pirates' home run drought at 55 innings and pulled them within 2-1 on the scoreboard.
Reynolds is having his own sequence of "growth moments" in bouncing back from a miserable 2020 -- .291/.376/.473, three home runs, 14 RBIs -- though it tends to be fruitless to bring that up with him. I recalled from Bradenton how much he hates being asked about anything related to last summer, but then, I'm the one tasked with asking the questions, so I went ahead, anyway, and asked after this one if he felt like he was reverting to his rookie form of 2019.
“Uh, I mean, I’m not going to live in the past. It’s 2021," Reynolds came right back with the same defiant tone from the spring. "I’m just trying to be the best version, the best player that I can be. That’s putting the barrel on the ball, trying to drive it and help us win. That’s my focus this year. I’m not trying to recreate anything.”
Good for him, I say. Keep taking it out on the ball.
• How about Hunter Owen's day?
He finally get his call to the bigs at age 27, and a year after taking a part-time job working at a golf course, calling his journey "the culmination of a lot of hard work, a lot of help from a lot of people growing up. It's a dream come true just to be able to step out on a big-league field today.”
He started in left field, batted seventh ... and was struck out twice by Yu Darvish, then plunked on the right hand by a rare Darvish fastball. He promptly dashed to first base -- hey, who knows if he'll have the chance again? -- but would be lifted later in a double-switch.
Shelton afterward called the injury "a contusion," though it remains to be seen if he'll miss time.
• Erik Gonzalez was charged with three errors at third base, but none of those, to me, were indicative of their defensive shortcomings. Rather, that came in the sixth inning when back-to-back singles by Eric Hosmer and Wil Myers eluded, in order, Adam Frazier and Kevin Newman, both showing negligible range. The latter brought San Diego's first run.
In baseball, range is probably about 90% of the battle. The Pirates have reasonably good gloves in the infield, provided they're not required to move much.
As for Gonzalez, his first was a wide throw that still should've resulted in an out had the umpires correctly ruled Tommy Pham well inside the baseline. His second was a miscommunication in covering second base on a shift. His third was an awkward backhand attempt while shifted from third to short.
Gonzalez hadn't had an error all year. Shifts are smart, and shifts work, but shifts come with positional consequences at times.
• Shelton's going to pop a blood vessel soon if the Pirates don't have one of these baseline calls go their way. He briefly argued with crew chief Joe West following this one, to no avail.
"I thought that one was as clear as the ones that have been called against us. Obviously, they did not think that," Shelton said. "My opinion of that is it should be a reviewable play. That should be something that we add to replay because you get a very clear shot of that, guys going down the line."
Sounds reasonable.
• Todd Frazier bounced out as a pinch-hitter in the ninth, and he's now 1 for 23 for a .048 average. When Anthony Alford was DFA'd, he was 2 for 24 for an .083 average. Dustin Fowler, also DFA'd, was 7 for 41 for a .171 average. Just saying.
• Don't expect to see Steven Brault back until the All-Star break. Just sharing.
• Ke'Bryan Hayes keeps getting closer. The kid's had no setbacks, director of sports medicine Todd Tomczak affirmed Wednesday, and he's expected to take another step this weekend in Chicago by taking swings on the field, not just in cages. And if that sounds like they're taking it slow, just remember they already went through this once.
“Just having him around and having him being conversant with our group is important, not only for Ke' but for our other guys,” Shelton said. “I mean, he's a key member of our club, and while he's doing his rehab, him being with us and being in the dugout, and having conversations is extremely important on both sides of it.”
Can't come back soon enough.
FOR DKPS
Andrew Gottlieb and Laura Aung take in the scene Wednesday night at Petco Park.
• It's nice having fans back. In bunches.
Above is a pic that longtime subscriber Andrew Gottlieb sent me during the game. We couldn't have a meetup out here for obvious reasons, but this city's always been among the best for those. And we will do it next year. That's a promise.
Related: I'll say it one final time from this special place, but it was a joy to experience the virus-limited sellout crowds of 15,250 sentient beings bursting at every little thing they witnessed. Baseball's taking a beating all across the country these days, and not without cause, but this trip reminded me of how much it remains lovable in the right setting.
I asked Shelton about it. He hadn't been to this city since 2005, and he emerged impressed.
"I think it was great," he said. "It’s a totally different atmosphere than ‘05. They’re on top of it. They’re after it. And it’s important for our guys, especially for our guys who played 2020 through COVID with nobody in the stands. This atmosphere ... you talk about teaching moments, growing moments, this atmosphere is awesome for our group. I think we build off it."
Thank you, San Diego, for this. Feels like it was needed.
THE ESSENTIALS
THE LINEUPS
Shelton's card:
Adam Frazier, 2B
Bryan Reynolds, CF
Erik Gonzalez, 3B
Colin Moran, 1B
Jacob Stallings, C
Ka'ai Tom, LF
Hunter Owen, RF
Kevin Newman, SS
JT Brubaker, P
And for Jayce Tingler's Padres:
Tommy Pham, CF
Jake Cronenworth, 2B
Fernando Tatis Jr., SS
Eric Hosmer, 1B
Wil Myers, RF
Jurickson Profar, LF
Ha-Seong Kim, SS
Victor Caratini, C
Yu Darvish, P
THE SCHEDULE
Thursday will bring a mid-trip day off in Chicago, and Friday will open a weekend set at Wrigley. Gerard Gilberto will pick up our coverage there. I'm flying home after a business meeting up in L.A.
THE CONTENT
Visit our team page for everything.