Struggles from backend starters puts spotlight on need for more pitching

Most teams have one, maybe two No. 5 starters on their major-league staff. 

The Pirates pitched five pitchers who more or less fit that bill Wednesday, none of whom offered much in terms of results in a 5-1 loss in the first half of the doubleheader to the Mets at PNC Park and a 10-0 defeat in game two.

After Duane Underwood Jr. served as an opener in game one, Bryse Wilson provided the Pirates six innings, but was tagged for back-to-back home runs in the fourth as the Mets piled on four runs in the span of four batters.

Miguel Yajure tossed two quiet innings to get through the rest of game one. In the nightcap, Johan Oviedo became erratic in his second inning and could not finish the frame after 57 pitches, being tagged for four runs. So far during his process of being stretched out as a starter, the pitcher from the José Quintana trade has yet to throw more than 3 2/3 innings in a start.

Here is where those pitches were located, with many of the misses being non-competitive:

Zach Thompson and Tyler Beede came on in relief after effectively being removed from the starting rotation in the second half of this season. Thompson allowed three runs over three frames, and Beede two in his inning.

All told, it was a day where the Pirates got a sample of what they have as far as backend starters, but very little of it encouraging for the future.

To make a comparison to a different sport the old football adage is that if you have two quarterbacks, you don't really have one. Well, if you have five No. 5 starters, you need more pitching depth.

The Pirates can feel good about heading into 2023 with Roansy Contreras, JT Brubaker and Mitch Keller as parts of their rotation, three young pitchers who each have taken a step forward this year to provide at least league average results, if not better. They've rolled the dice on a veteran reclamation project the last two years, and it would make sense to do it yet again this winter. Prospects like Quinn Priester and Mike Burrows should be called up at some point next year. They have some options.

And some combination of Wilson, Oviedo, Thompson, Yajure or Beede could prove to be big-league worthy as either a backend starter or reliever. This last month of the season is an opportunity to show they can do that. But as far as being a starter, none have definitively shown why they are worthy of that spot.

Wilson's outings are becoming quite predictable, where he tosses several quality innings but then hangs a couple gopher balls that leave the yard, ruining his line.

“Lack of execution is probably the biggest thing," Wilson said. "I need to control my misses, make sure my misses are at least competitive pitches. It’s execution.”

Thompson has also more or less died based on the quality of contact he allows. Yajure has struggled while bouncing between the majors and minors in what has been a challenging year for him in terms of health and mechanics. Beede was doing fine as a reliever, but hasn't been effective of late since the experiment to stretch him back into a starter took place. He threw just one inning Wednesday and appears to be back in more of a hybrid role.

And Oviedo is still trying to stretch back out into a starter after being used as a reliever for most of the season. Being pulled after 57 pitches and five outs isn't going to help with that. And for someone who had just two months to make an impression as a starter after the trade, he hasn't shown he can give length yet.

"It’s not the first time that a pitcher or player has struggled," Oviedo said about if he feels he has missed out on an opportunity to establish himself as a rotation member early. "I feel a lot of confidence in myself and what we’ve been doing here and our goal, at some point, we’ll get some results. I feel really good. My body feels great. My pitches feel great. I’ve just got to clean that up.”

"We like the stuff, we've just got to get the stuff on the plate," Shelton said. "I think that's the big thing is scattered command, and we've got to make sure he's on the plate. His stuff is good, but especially against good lineups, if the stuff isn't on the plate then it doesn't play."

Stuff can play, and all five have shown moments. But in an audition month for a last place club, they might not have many opportunities outside of this month to show they belong to be in a rotation moving forward.

• Jacob deGrom vs. the Pirates' offense went about as expected.

After Oneil Cruz and Bryan Reynolds singled to start the first, the best pitcher on the planet would finish his seven shutout innings with just two more base runners allowed. He struck out eight as he lowered his ERA to 1.66.

"As screwed up as it sounds, you pick the small victories, because, I mean, the slider today was electric," Shelton said. "Hopefully we don't see many guys that throw that. So we have to build off some of those things. When you have a guy like him that's such an outlier, sometimes you realize you're facing one of the best pitchers in baseball."

That outing came just a few hours after Chris Bassit also tossed seven strong innings, allowing one run and striking out 10 in his game one germ.

All told, one run in 18 innings simply will not get the job done on offense. Nothing else needs to be said.

• At least Cruz had a solid showing, picking up three hits on the day to push his hitting streak to five games.

"He's having way more consistent at-bats, he's swinging at the right pitches, and I think that's an encouraging sign and something we've been working on," Shelton said.

• Factoid of the night: Game two was the fifth time this season the Pirates lost by at least 10 runs while recording four or fewer hits. The only other team to have five such games in a season in the modern era was the 1977 Mariners.

• The Josh VanMeter era is over in Pittsburgh. He was designated for assignment shortly before game one of the twin bill as part of another fleury of roster moves and waiver claims. Hoy Park is taking his place on the major-league roster. I wrote about those moves here.

Eric Stout was the 29th man in game two and pitched 1 1/3 innings. Hoy Park was recalled to take VanMeter's spot on the major-league roster.

• Ben Gamel made the start at first in game two, playing a quiet and efficient game there. The Pirates have been working with him and Kevin Newman at that position of late, so it could be something we potentially see again down the stretch.

• With the losses, the Pirates fall to 50-86, and 11-32 since the All-Star break. Their .368 winning percentage puts them on pace for a 60-102 final record. They need to play .500 ball -- 13-13 -- down the stretch to avoid their second straight 100-loss season.

THE ESSENTIALS

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

THE HIGHLIGHTS

THE INJURIES

• 15-day injured list: RHP David Bednar (back), LHP Dillon Peters (left elbow)

• 60-day injured list: RHP Yerry De Los Santos (lat), OF Canaan Njigba-Smith (wrist), RHP Colin Holderman (right shoulder), RHP Blake Cederlind (elbow), RHP Max Kranick (elbow), C Roberto Pérez (hamstring)

THE LINEUPS

Shelton's card for game two:

1. Oneil Cruz, DH
2. Bryan Reynolds, CF
3. Rodolfo Castro, 2B
4. Ben Gamel, 1B
5. Ke'Bryan Hayes, 3B
6. Jack Suwinski, LF
7. Kevin Newman, SS
8. Cal Mitchell, RF
9. Jason Delay, C

And for Buck Showalter's Mets:

1. Brandon Nimmo, CF
2. Pete Alonso, 1B
3. Francisco Lindor, SS
4. Jeff McNeil, 2B
5. Daniel Vogelbach, DH
6. Mark Canha, LF
7. Tyler Naquin, RF
8. Eduardo Escobar, 3B
9. James McCann, C

THE SCHEDULE

After a day to lick their wounds, the Pirates will return to action Friday, welcoming the Cardinals for a three-game weekend set. Roansy Contreras (4-4, 3.41) will take on Miles Mikolas (11-10, 3.22), with first pitch coming at 6:35 p.m. I'll have you covered the entire weekend.

THE CONTENT

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