PHOENIX -- Their efforts Monday would wind up being in vain, ultimately losing to the Diamondbacks, 4-2, at Chase Field, but for being a man down, the Pirates’ bullpen did cover three scoreless frames to at least keep the hitters within striking distance all night.
It was a commendable performance, especially since they were doing it down a man. Monday afternoon, the Pirates designated righty reliever Kyle Crick for assignment after they acquired left-hander Dillon Peters from the Angels for cash considerations. The move came too late for the Pirates to get a player from Class AAA Indianapolis in time for the game, so they played with one fewer man in the bullpen.
Duane Underwood Jr., Chasen Shreve and Kyle Keller each pitched an inning, giving the backend of Richard Rodríguez, David Bednar and Chris Stratton some time off after being used for multiple innings against the Mets this past weekend.
Even after two disappointing, injury-shortened seasons, Crick entered spring training in the mix for closer and a late-inning role. But as a midseason slump continued to carry over, the Pirates started putting him in lower-leverage roles, where he was still wild. In 24 ⅓ innings this year, Crick walked 19 and hit five more.
Rather than option him to the minors or do something else to see if he could rectify the control problems that have hampered him the last three years, the Pirates decided to expose him to waivers.
"It's a challenging decision,” Derek Shelton said before the game. “Anytime you need a roster spot, it becomes challenging, and I think we've seen that over the last couple weeks. Right now, we're just trying to give opportunities to other guys in our bullpen, and because of that, he ended up being kind of the odd man out on the 40-man.”
Looking at who could get those opportunities, it’s not clear who could step up internally, considering this will very likely not be the only bullpen job that opens. Rodríguez has been one of the most discussed relievers on the market for months, and while the Pirates have him under team control through 2023 and don’t have to move him, his trade value probably will never be higher than it is this year. While they are not as likely to get dealt, Stratton and Shreve both have pitched very well and could be enticing for clubs looking for middle relief help that won’t cost a lot, in terms of dollars or prospects.
Although It’s unlikely that the Pirates will end up trading more than three pitchers, with starter Tyler Anderson seeming like a safe bet to get moved as well, it's not impossible. Even if it’s just Rodríguez who is traded, think about all of the leverage relievers the Pirates have let go of in the past year: Keone Kela, Nick Burdi, Crick.
Then there’s the next tier of relievers with whom the Pirates have parted ways. Geoff Hartlieb, their fireman from last season, was designated for assignment earlier this month because of control problems. He’s now with the Mets. They pulled the plug on Edgar Santana in April. Michael Feliz was let go.
You can make a bullpen out of notable players they have mostly cut over the past 12 months. These opportunities Shelton referenced almost have to go to newcomers by default.
There’s Bednar, this year’s poster boy for taking advantage of what is presented. He’s gone from fighting and clawing for an Opening Day roster spot in March to gradually getting higher leverage spots, to now, when he is effectively the setup man. Two weeks from now, odds are that he’ll be the closer.
Could Stratton be the next setup man? Shelton has not shied away from using him in big spots, either to start an inning or strand runners on base. A lot of his value also comes from his ability to throw multiple innings, so pigeon-holing him in a one-inning role would hurt the bullpen in other spots. Sam Howard has had two terrible outings recently that caused him to land on the injured list. Can they count on him in big spots? Shreve has been reliant on his defense because of his mediocre strikeout and walk numbers, but a 2.25 ERA over 24 innings is hardly shabby. Then again, he didn't even make the Opening Day roster.
The only safe bet is that Crick’s departure will create a more permanent spot for one of the relievers who has been bouncing between Class AAA and the majors. Kyle Keller, Austin Davis, Nick Mears. Perhaps one clicks. None of the pitchers the Pirates let go of this year had. If they don’t work out, the player-acquisition team can start anew.
Going back to Bradenton, Fla. during spring training in February, Crick was excited about the chance of possibly closing, but was complimentary to the competition, too. He thought the bullpen had talent. A lot of those players are gone.
"What an opportunity,” he said then. “I'm embracing the competition. We have a lot of good arms here. It should be a great competition.”
Most of those arms have moved on. Now it’s on to the next group.
MORE FROM THE GAME
• Chase De Jong could not get into a groove Monday and wound up allowing three home runs to the Diamondbacks over five innings pitched.
The right-hander has now allowed five home runs in his last two starts and at least one long ball in six of his last eight.
"It's been the consistency of location," Shelton said. "We’ve seen it good. We’ve seen it bad. When it’s not consistent, it’s been hit hard. And unfortunately, it was hit hard and out of the ballpark."
Without context, the location of some of those big hits looked innocent. Diamondbacks third baseman Eduardo Escobar delivered the deciding shot in the fifth inning on a pitch on the low, inside corner, traditionally a safe spot to pitch. But catcher Jacob Stallings called for the pitch high and away.
"If I’m able to throw that four-seam to the top of the zone and expand off it, it’s my bread and butter, and that’s what I need to do a better job of," De Jong said. "If I execute that, then I’m not getting behind in counts. I’m not having to pitch behind all the time, and the contact is a lot softer."
De Jong thinks his struggles go back to a mechanical problem, coming down to when his right foot is landing. It's a cue to help him get his fastball up in the zone.
He wasn't doing it consistently Monday.
"I made three poor pitches that ended up over the fence," he said.
• De Jong did provide some length, though, when it looked as if he might be pulled early. In the third, he was nailed in the left leg with a line drive by David Peralta. De Jong was able to get to the first base line in order to flip the ball to first for the out, but then he stayed down on the ground in pain.
After getting checked out by the medical staff, De Jong threw a couple warm-up pitches and stayed in the game.
"Once I recognized where I got hit and that I could still bend my knee, I needed to try to get through that and give those boys innings, because we’ve got a few more games here and then in San Francisco," De Jong said. "We don’t need to be having starters coming out early in the game right now."
Shelton said postgame that De Jong had a "significant" bruise on the inside of his knee.
"Our bullpen was a little bit strapped," Shelton said. "For him to go out and continue to finish, I really appreciate the fact that he grinded through that."
• On offense, the Pirates didn't have any answers for Diamondbacks lefty Caleb Smith until the end of his outing.
"He kept us off the barrel all day long," Shelton said. "He kept us in the air, which we knew he was going to do. But we weren’t able to square him up."
The Pirates did mount a couple late rallies to make it interesting. Ke'Bryan Hayes and Bryan Reynolds recorded back-to-back two-out RBI singles in the seventh, but pinch-hitter Adam Frazier struck out on three pitches to leave the bases loaded. In the ninth, Reynolds and Gregory Polanco failed to get one more hit, representing the go-ahead run in both at-bats.
Frazier was out of the starting lineup because it was his second trip out west recently, the other being the All-Star Game last week. Shelton said pregame that Reynolds will likely get a day off soon, too.
Frazier entered as an outfielder in the seventh, and nearly collided with Reynolds on a fly ball to left-center.
"I held my breath for more than a second," Shelton said.
THE ESSENTIALS
THE LINEUPS
Shelton's card:
1. Kevin Newman, SS
2. Ke'Bryan Hayes, 3B
3. Bryan Reynolds, CF
4. John Nogowski, 1B
5. Ben Gamel, LF
6. Wilmer Difo, 2B
7. Jacob Stallings, C
8. Phillip Evans, RF
9. Chase De Jong, RHP
And for Torey Lovullo's Diamondbacks:
1. Josh Rojas, SS
2. Kole Calhoun, RF
3. Eduardo Escobar, 3B
4. Christian Walker, 1B
5. David Peralta, LF
6. Pavin Smith, CF
7. Josh VanMeter, 2B
8. Bryan Holaday, C
9. Caleb Smith, LHP
THE SCHEDULE
Anderson (5-8, 4.35) will make his first start since the All-Star Game Tuesday, taking on Taylor Widener (1-0, 2.54). First pitch is coming you way at 9:40 p.m. Eastern. I've got you covered from the desert.
IN THE SYSTEM
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