Was the quick hook on Anderson the right call? We'll 'never know'

PHOENIX -- Before Tuesday’s game against the Diamondbacks, the Pirates’ pitching staff got some much-needed reinforcements in right-handers Max Kranick and Nick Mears from Class AAA Indianapolis.

“With where our bullpen is at right now, it’s kind of all hands on deck tonight,” Derek Shelton said before going on the field for pregame work.

Shelton clarified post-game that sense of urgency among the relievers is partially based on the workload in the first four games after the All-Star break, but also over the season as a whole. The latter has been a concern all season, coming off 2020’s 60-game campaign. 

The saving grace appeared to be that Tuesday, the Pirates had Tyler Anderson on the bump. The lefty, if nothing else, has eaten innings all year, going at least five frames in every start.

He continued that streak Tuesday, going six innings on 77 pitches. He was pulled there, though, and Austin Davis and Clay Holmes combined to allow eight runs in a disastrous seventh, cementing an 11-6 loss to the Diamondbacks in Chase Field.

Shelton said it wasn’t a matter of pitch count for Anderson. He saw signs that his starter was fatigued.

“He started getting away from his delivery,” Shelton said. “He was missing high and to his arm side with the fastball. His arm just wasn't catching up. That's a sign of fatigue right there.”

Anderson said he felt some of his cutters weren’t getting in during the fifth inning, but it wasn’t until the sixth that he felt his mechanics were off.

His pitch chart in the sixth would support Shelton's point. Almost all of his misses were to his arm side, and by quite a lot:

“In the sixth, I just felt like for probably 10 pitches, I feel like I got out of my delivery a little bit there,” Anderson said. “When I say that, pitches were non-competitive. Like in the general direction of where I wanted them to go, which is non-competitive, in terms of execution.”

Anderson’s night had begun to turn south before then. After retiring his first 10 batters faced, he allowed a run in the fourth, fifth and sixth. It was still a quality start, but concerns about how his outing were going seemed justified.

So even though Anderson would have the hand advantage against the first two hitters of the seventh, Shelton went with southpaw Davis to face the bottom of the Diamondbacks' order, Daulton Varsho and Josh VanMeter. Varsho, who entered the day hitting .144, drew a four-pitch walk before VanMeter, who was hitting .182, tripled him home. 

Nick Ahmed would single him home shortly after, and Davis was removed after facing five batters and getting just one out.

Part of the reason the Pirates are short on bullpen is because they designated Kyle Crick for assignment Tuesday in order to open a spot for recently acquired lefty Dillon Peters. Crick had been wild and struggling of late, but the decision cut ties with one of the few pitchers on staff who did have some late-inning experience, even if Crick had mostly been pitching in lower-leverage spots of late.

Shelton said Monday the decision came down to "trying to give opportunities to other guys in our bullpen."

While Davis was not named, it would seem safe to assume he could have been one of those pitchers who would get more opportunities. After starting the year on the injured list, he allowed just one earned run over 6 ⅓ major-league innings and had a 2.57 ERA with Class AAA Indianapolis. 

If Tuesday was an audition for a higher-leverage role, it did not go well.

“It looked like he was missing off the plate against his arm side, and when you do that, it gives you issues,” Shelton said. “And because we weren't on the plate, we ended up not getting those left-handers out."

Holmes is in a similar situation, in which he also could get more impact innings with some good outings. But with the bases juiced and two outs, he hung a belt-high slider to Josh Reddick, who ripped it for the game-winning single.

The inning was extended when shortstop Wilmer Difo could not convert back-to-back 50-50 plays, allowing two more runs to score before VanMeter struck again with a two-run double. 

All the while, Anderson, who has been the Pirates’ most reliable starter, watched from the sidelines.

“In that situation, you always want to [be in the game],” Anderson said. “But [I] definitely understand in that situation why. Haven’t pitched in 10 days now. Only threw 65 [pitches] my previous start.”

But did he feel like he had enough in the tank for one more frame?

“Never know. Didn’t happen,” Anderson said. “You can never say if you go out there and you don’t get three … you would hope so, but you never know.”

MORE FROM THE GAME

• John Nogowski's first big league homer was for naught. 

Up 3-1 already in the fifth, due in large part to a Gregory Polanco homer the previous inning, Nogowski got a hanging Taylor Widener slider over the heart of the plate and got ahold of it:

Nogowski knew he hit it well, but didn't know if it would go out. After all, he felt he had tagged a couple of balls with the Pirates, but didn't have a dinger to show for it.

"I was busting it and I was telling Joey [Cora] it was going to be a triple out of the box," he said.

Instead, he could jog the rest of the way.

"It was a pretty special moment, man," Nogowski said. "It’s something I’ve dreamed about for a long time, and a lot of work went into it. My mom. My dad. My girlfriend is there every step of the way, so a pretty special moment to get that. It meant a lot."

The Pirates' other two runs came when Ben Gamel beat out a fielder's choice the batter before Nogowski, and a base hit from Ke'Bryan Hayes with two outs in the ninth.

• Also for naught, this highlight reel catch from Bryan Reynolds in the second:

As the inning ended, Anderson was one of the Pirates who waited for Reynolds to jog in so they could acknowledge that grab.

"He’s a stud, man," Anderson said. "Reynolds is a really, really good player. Offensively, defensively, great arm, gets good jumps. He’s a special player. He’s fun to watch."

For someone who started in left and was the team's third option to play center, he has looked natural at that position. He may be there for good.

• In his fourth stint in the majors this year, Nick Mears finally got into the game, striking out a pair in a 1-2-3 eighth. 

He has good stuff, flashing a curve with close to 12-to-6 movement and an upper-90s fastball he can throw high. I'd keep an eye on him.

• Before the game, the Pirates placed right-hander Chase De Jong on the 10-day injured list with left knee inflammation. That opened a spot for Mears, while Kranick took the place of Crick.

The Pirates also signed four draft picks, the most notable being second-round pick Anthony Solometo. More on that here. Additionally, 11th-round pick right-hander Jack Carey, 13th-rounder righty Owen Sharts and 15th-rounder lefty Tyler Samaniego signed. The Pirates also added left-hander Nick Dombkowski as an undrafted free agent.

THE ESSENTIALS

• Boxscore
• Scoreboard
• Standings
• Statistics

THE LINEUPS

Shelton's card:

1. Adam Frazier, 2B
2. Ke'Bryan Hayes, 3B
3. Bryan Reynolds, CF
4. Ben Gamel, LF
5. John Nogowski, 1B
6. Gregory Polanco, RF
7. Wilmer Difo, SS
8. Michael Pérez, C
9. Tyler Anderson, LHP

And for Torey Lovullo's Diamondbacks:

1. Nick Ahmed, SS
2. Josh Rojas, LF
3. Eduardo Escobar, 3B
4. Christian Walker, 1B
5. Andrew Young, 2B
6. Josh Reddick, RF
7. Stuart Fairchild,CF
8. Daulton Varsho, C
9. Taylor Widener, RHP

THE SCHEDULE

It's up to the rookie Kranick (1-1, 3.38) to try to try to prevent the sweep at the hands of the team with the worst record in baseball. Madison Bumgarner (4-6, 5.35) will deliver the first pitch at 3:40 p.m. Eastern time.

IN THE SYSTEM

• Indianapolis
• Altoona
• Greensboro
• Bradenton

THE CONTENT

Visit our team page for everything.