Alek Manoah walked off the mound in the eighth inning Friday and was greeted with a standing ovation by the PNC Park faithful.
Manoah is a Blue Jay. Not that it mattered, as many -- if not the majority -- of the announced 18,057 crowd on the north shore were wearing blue and cheering on the Canadian club, who would go on to beat the Pirates, 4-0.
For the Blue Jays, the win matters because they are in the thick of playoff chases. For the Pirates, the loss matters because it's their 82nd on the season, clinching themselves a losing season, their 26th over the past 30 years.
Like loss No. 82 for many of those previous teams over the past three decades, this game featured glimpses of the season and how they got to that point.
In the third inning, catcher Tyler Heineman led off the inning with a double, presenting his team a chance with a runner in scoring position with the top of the order up. He erased that chance when a ball squirted away from Alejandro Kirk, but not by enough to safely move up a base. As a result, he broke a cardinal rule of baseball: Don't make the first or third out at third base:
In the bottom of the seventh, the Pirates finally had something cooking against Manoah with runners on the corners and two outs, but Michael Chavis could only top a ball for a swinging bunt up the third base line. Matt Chapman was able to come in on the ball to retire the first baseman, and the Pirates went hitless with runners in scoring position:
What's worse, they actually only went 0-for-3, so quantity of opportunities was just as big of a problem.
Despite that, the Pirates still went into the ninth down only two, keeping it a ball game despite being outplayed all night. Bo Bichette and freshly claimed reliever Yohan Ramirez connected to ensure sure that didn't stay the case:
It was a loss that fit alongside many of those other 81 from this year. Considering the Pirates play just three series (two with the Reds and one with the Cubs) that aren't against teams who are currently in first place, there will be more to come.
That puts them in very dangerous territory in terms of where this current stretch they're on puts them in franchise history:
• Only twice have the Pirates finished in last place four straight years, the 1952-55 clubs and the 2007-2010 teams. The Pirates are currently in the National League Central basement for a fourth straight year.
• You have to go back to those clubs from 1952-54 to find the last time the Pirates finished with 100 or more losses in consecutive seasons. Last year's team lost 101, and this year's club is currently on pace to repeat.
• This team spent just one day over .500 all season, when a 5-3 victory over the Nationals on April 17 improved their season record to 5-4. Even last year's team spent three days with their head above water.
• The Pirates are currently 27.5 games out of first. Considering they have nine games remaining with those first-place Cardinals, there's a chance they could finish the season more than 34 games out of first. That's the furthest they've ever finished out of first in the six division system, done in 2010 and 2021.
To repeat again, that stretch of 26 losing seasons in 30 years started in 1993, when Derek Shelton was still a player in the Yankees' system. Continuing on this 10-28 pace they have been on could have the club reach some incredibly unflattering milestones.
I asked Shelton how cognizant the group is of those potential negative milestones.
"I think what we're doing to do daily is just work on trying to get better," he responded. "We're not looking at milestones in that regard. We're just trying to focus on getting better."
Observers are looking at those mile markers, notably that potential 100th loss. With 31 games to play, the 49-82 club could spare themselves some history with a stronger finish or continue down a path that will cement themselves as one of the worst-performing clubs in the franchise's history.
MORE FROM THE GAME
• Johan Oviedo made his Pirates debut Friday night and tossed three scoreless innings, though it took a lot of pitches to do it.
The main piece of the José Quintana and Chris Stratton trade with the Cardinals, Oviedo started strong, striking out the side in the first in his Pirates debut, but he followed by throwing 11 straight balls in the second inning. He needed to navigate a bases loaded jam in the third, and while he was able to strand those five base runners without them touching home, his pitch count was pushed to 77 after just nine outs. Since he is being stretched out as a starter again after being a reliever with the Cardinals up until the trade, his limit was just 80 pitches, so his evening came to a quick end.
Foul balls played a major role in that elevated pitch count, with 22 of his 77 pitches resulting in a foul. The last time a proper Pirates starter (min. 50 pitches) allowed that high a percentage of foul balls was Mitch Keller on Sept. 10, 2019.
"My slider wasn’t really great today," was Oviedo's self-assessment. "I was kind of thinking too much about breaking it or throw it too perfect, so that’s kind of how I was getting behind hitters."
"Overall, impressed with the stuff," Shelton said. "We just need to make sure we condense the pitches. Just too many pitches per plate appearance."
High pitch count aside, Oviedo did show some good stuff at times, and he even had a couple extra ticks of velocity with some extra spin in his return to the majors. The Pirates were able to give him another chance to a team like this to prove himself in the majors.
"It means a lot," Oviedo said about he opportunity. "It means a lot to me and all the work that I’ve put in and to my family and to everyone, so I’m really happy and excited. Just to show up and see what I can do."
• Cal Mitchell, the other September call-up, went 1-for-2 with a walk in his return to the majors.
He was the hottest hitter for Class AAA Indianapolis, where he hit .375 with a 1.126 OPS in the month of August.
"He swung the bat really well," Shelton said before the game. "We knew it was a situation where we were going to get him back. When we sent him down, we challenged him on doing some things. He did a really nice job. He continues to get better. He continues to get better in all facets of the game."
• Ke'Bryan Hayes exited in the top of the sixth inning with what the club announced was left shoulder discomfort. He made a diving attempt on a fourth inning bouncer up the line, and after Shelton said he saw him favoring the shoulder a bit in the next at-bat and in the field, he opted to just have the third baseman call it a day rather than risk something serious.
He is currently considered day-to-day.
• Ben Gamel is also a bit banged up at the moment with a left foot issue, but Shelton says he is all right. He was not in the lineup Friday.
• With the loss, the Pirates fall to 49-82 (in case you missed the lede to this story) and 10-28 since the All-Star break. Their .374 winning percentage puts them on pace for a 61-101 final record. They need to go at least 14-17 down the stretch to avoid a second consecutive 100-loss season.
THE ESSENTIALS
• Boxscore
• Live file
• Standings
• Statistics
• Schedule
• Scoreboard
THE HIGHLIGHTS
THE INJURIES
• 15-day injured list: RHP David Bednar (back), RHP Colin Holderman (right shoulder), LHP Dillon Peters (left elbow)
• 60-day injured list: RHP Yerry De Los Santos (lat), OF Canaan Njigba-Smith (wrist), RHP Blake Cederlind (elbow), RHP Max Kranick (elbow), C Roberto Pérez (hamstring)
THE LINEUPS
Shelton's card:
1. Oneil Cruz, SS
2. Rodolfo Castro, 2B
3. Bryan Reynolds, CF
4. Jack Suwinski, RF
5. Ke'Bryan Hayes, 3B
6. Cal Mitchell, DH
7. Michael Chavis, 1B
8. Tucupita Marcano, LF
9. Tyler Heineman, C
And for Casey Candaele's Blue Jays:
1. George Springer, CF
2. Vladimir Guerroro Jr., DH
3. Teoscar Hernández, LF
4. Alejandro Kirk, C
5. Bo Bichette, SS
6. Matt Chapman, 3B
7. Cavan Biggio, 1B
8. Santiago Espinal, 2B
9. Jackie Bradley Jr., RF
THE SCHEDULE
Game two will take place Saturday at 6:35 p.m. Roansy Contreras (4-4, 3.57) will take on a yet to be announced Blue Jays starter. I'll be there to cover the game and all of the Hall of Fame festivities.
THE CONTENT
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