Pirates hope Thompson's a starter, but struggles continue

When the Pirates acquired Zach Thompson as part of the Jacob Stallings trade last winter, a Pirates source told DK Pittsburgh Sports that, internally, they thought he was a big-league starter. A league source was more skeptical, viewing him as a No. 5 or a reliever.

So far this season, he has shown some decent batted ball and whiff peripherals, but has not posted the necessary results as a starter, being the shakiest member of what is already a very shaky rotation. That includes allowing four runs over 4 1/3 innings Friday, taking another loss in a 7-3 Pirates loss to the Padres at PNC Park.

On the year now, Thompson has allowed 21 runs --16 earned -- over 14 1/3 innings. While he ranked above average in terms of exit velocity, whiff rate and chase percentage coming into the game, those run totals are impossible to run away from.

"We'll continue to look on what adjustments it can be that he can continue to make," Derek Shelton said.

Following a nine run outing last Saturday against the Cubs -- a good chunk of which was fueled by a pair of infield errors -- Thompson got eight whiffs Friday, kept most of the hard contact on the ground and did a good job retiring the top half of a difficult Padres' order.

It was the bottom third that gave him trouble, though, with all four of his runs allowed coming from the bottom spots, most notably a walk to Trayce Thompson in the third followed shortly after by a Ha-Seong Kim home run to left.

Going based on where Andrew Knapp set his target, that was a case of a home run being pitched more so than being hit:

“Yeah, that’s not the best but I just have to move into it going forward knowing that I have to attack one through nine the exact same way," Thompson said. "It doesn’t matter who it is.” 

Thompson would then put the bottom of the order on again before being pulled in the fifth and watched those runners score from the dugout.

It is just four starts in a long season, but while the Pirates view him as a starter, he spent time bouncing between the Marlins' rotation and bullpen last year. Given how the Pirates are utilizing pitchers differently this year, a shakeup in his role or usage could be in play if those results don't start matching some of his peripherals. 

• The Pirates picked up 10 hits Thursday, but all of them were singles. Daniel Vogelbach was able to drive in a pair and Diego Castillo picked up another, but 3-for-10 with runners in scoring position isn't enough without any extra-base hits.

"We've got to keep swinging the bats," Shelton said. "It's by no excuse, we really haven't caught a break. We need to find some offense and maybe find it in some different ways. Sometimes, when we're in deficit games, it's hard to be a little more creative in terms of it we're going to hit-and-run, if we're going to move. We're searching a little bit for the slug right now."

The Pirates have gone six straight games without a home run.

• In the bullpen, Aaron Fletcher, Heath Hembree and Sam Howard each allowed a run in their inning of work. They have season ERAs of 9.35, 6.48 and 9.00, respectively.

• I caught up with Greg Allen before the game. After rehabbing his hamstring injury down in Bradenton, Fla. for most of the month, he was brought back up to Pittsburgh to be with his teammates or for the coaching and medical staff to get a live look at his progression.

He's running again, both on the treadmill and on the field, which is obviously a big step coming back from a hamstring injury. He didn't want to predict when he will come back, but based on where he is and medical updates from the team, there seems to be a good chance he will be ready to be activated about when that 60 day mark hits.

Had he not hurt his hamstring, there's a pretty good chance that Allen would have been a regular in the Pirates' outfield early this season, an opportunity he has been working towards for some time. I asked how big a bummer it is to be sidelined when that shot was so close.

"You can't think about it too much," he responded. "Process it and move on. Why cry over spilled milk?"

It's good to see that he still has that upbeat, positive energy that he had in spring training during his rehab.

• Some roster news to go through:

Anthony Alford has cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment to Class AAA Indianapolis. Alford was DFA'd Sunday to make room for right-hander Beau Sulser.

Cole Tucker is expected to be activated off the COVID-19 injured list Saturday. After Friday's game, utilityman Tucupita Marcano was seen cleaning out his locker and getting hugs from teammates, making him by far the most likely person to get sent down.

Right-hander Max Kranick has been activated off the 10 day injured list (forearm) and optioned to Indianapolis.

THE ESSENTIALS

• Boxscore
• Live file
• Standings
• Statistics
• Schedule
• Scoreboard

THE HIGHLIGHTS

THE INJURIES

• COVID injured list: INF/OF Cole Tucker

• 10-day injured list: SS Kevin Newman (groin), RHP Duane Underwood (hamstring); Underwood threw a scoreless inning for Class Low-A Bradenton to start his rehab assignment.

• 60-day injured list: OF Greg Allen (hamstring), RHP Blake Cederlind (UCL), RHP Nick Mears (elbow surgery)

THE LINEUPS

Shelton's card:

1. Ben Gamel, LF
2. Bryan Reynolds, CF
3. Ke'Bryan Hayes, 3B
4. Daniel Vogelbach, DH
5. Diego Castillo, SS
6. Jack Suwinski, RF
7. Michael Chavis, 1B
8. Josh VanMeter, 2B
9. Andrew Knapp, C

And for Bob Melvin's crew:

1. Trent Grisham, CF
2. Jake Cronenworth, 2B
3. Manny Machado, 3B
4. Jurrickson Profar, DH
5. Eric Hosmer, 1B
6. Austin Nola, C
7. Matt Beaty, RF
8. Trayce Thompson, LF
9. Ha-Seaong Kim, SS

THE SCHEDULE

The Pirates and Padres will play again Saturday. JT Brubaker (0-2, 6.46) will take on Sean Manaea (2-2, 3.47) with first pitch coming at 6:35 p.m. I've got you covered for that one.

THE CONTENT

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