The game was coming down to a call from New York.
Trailing 8-7 in the bottom of the 10th, Oneil Cruz went after a Chris Stratton 3-0 curveball and hit it hard off of the glove of first baseman Alec Burleson. As the ball rolled away, Kevin Newman rounded third and made a break for home.
Cardinal second baseman Brendan Donovan was able to cleanly field the dribbling ball and fired a strike onto home, just beating Newman according to home plate umpire Brennan Miller.
Upon review, the call stood, and the Pirates would fall to the Cardinals a batter later by an 8-7 final Tuesday at PNC Park.
"I think he was safe," Derek Shelton said. "I think whatever they called on the field was going to stand."
And with that defeat, the Pirates once again have lost 100 games. It's the 10th time in the history of the franchise they lost 100 or more, and just the second stretch ever where they have lost at least 100 games in consecutive seasons, the other being a three-year run from 1952-54.
A 100th loss appeared to be a landmark out of reach even midseason, but a 21-46 post All-Star break record made that seem possible. The team took hits with its depth during that time, which included trading away veteran players like José Quintana and Chris Stratton -- the latter of whom was Tuesday's winning pitcher -- further cementing the youth movement and some growing pains that come with it.
When asked if losing a 100th game has an impact on development and what they are trying to build, Shelton responded in short, "No, it has no impact."
But losing 100 for a second consecutive season? Ke'Bryan Hayes may have put it best with a simple, "It sucks, obviously."
"I don't think anyone came in here today like, 'Oh man, if we lose, that's going to be 100 losses,' " Hayes said when asked if that number was hanging over the club's head. "We were just coming in to play hard and win the ballgame, and at the end of the game, whatever the result is, it is. I don't think guys came in here thinking, 'Oh if we lose, that's a 100-loss season.' "
Even though they were able to stave off No. 100 the previous two games, the miscues they made were just too much to overcome Tuesday. Whether it was something overt, like Cruz airmailing a two-out ground ball to first to allow the tying run to score:
Or a more subtle moment, like catcher Tyler Heineman chasing Paul Goldschmidt's dribbler in front of the plate, meaning he couldn't cover home for a potential force at the plate. The catcher and his pitcher JT Brubaker appeared to talk that one through as soon as the play was over.
Had either of those two runs been taken off the board, the 7-3 lead the Pirates built up through six innings would have likely help up and there would be no 100th loss. Not that 99 losses is any better, but baseball is a sport that loves nothing more than round numbers, and that many losses is a big one..
So, where can they go from here?
“Up," was Newman's response. "I mean, that's the direction we want to go. [100] is just a number. It's unfortunate, obviously. Nobody wants to come out and lose 100 games. We have to focus on coming back and working to get that number down and get as many wins as we can (next year).”
One can point to young players on the team who could be building blocks for that next competitive team -- Hayes, Bryan Reynolds, Cruz, David Bednar, Roansy Contreras, Mitch Keller and so on -- many of whom have vocalized their belief that the worst of this rebuild is behind them.
But even for someone like Hayes, who is so confident in the rebuild that he signed an eight-year extension opening day, this amount of losing stings, even if he thinks they are heading in the right direction.
"It's tough," Hayes said. "You want to win. You want to win every day. We were super, super young. We had a lot of changes on the pitching side, on the position player side, having a bunch of guys at first, different catchers, really everywhere. It's tough. We play this game to win each and every night."
JUSTIN K. ALLER / GETTY
Ke'Bryan Hayes and Oneil Cruz man their positions.
• The rally of the year was wasted. The Pirates posted six runs and eight hits in the bottom of the third, both season highs for a single inning this season, but it was a play by Cardinals shortstop Paul De Jong to keep a Cruz bouncer in the infield that made the difference because it prevented another run from scoring.
"If we have an extra run there we win the game," Shelton said.
• Brubaker was activated off the injured list so he could make a final abbreviated start, coasting through two innings before allowing three in the third and being pulled.
Bryse Wilson followed, where he got into a groove before being charged with three runs in the seventh inning. The splitter once again continued to keep hitters off balance, and it could be a tool for him going into 2023.
"I think the splitter's going to be a pitch that can really change my career," Wilson said. "I think it's a pitch that I can lean to in any count, and I think it's also a pitch that's movement-wise is so good that it doesn't have to be perfectly executed every time. I think it's going to be very huge for me going forward."
To make room on the roster for Brubaker, Roansy Contreras was optioned to the minors. Additionally, the Pirates optioned José Godoy and recalled utility man Tucipita Marcano.
• Reynolds got his first start away from center, sliding over to left field so Ji Hwan Bae could get another look in center field. Reynolds grades out as one of the worst defensive outfielders this year, being worth -7 Outs Above Average according to Baseball Savant, but don't read too much into this change. Shelton talked with Reynolds, who said he was fine with the move to give Bae a look.
“We view him as a center fielder going forward," Shelton said. "We view him next year, depending on our personnel, being our center fielder. But today is just one of those days we wanted to get that combination together.”
• The 100-loss tracker is retired. The Pirates trail the Reds by one game to get out of the National League Central basement.
THE ESSENTIALS
• Boxscore
• Live file
• Standings
• Statistics
• Schedule
• Scoreboard
THE HIGHLIGHTS
THE INJURIES
• 10-day injured list: 1B Zack Collins (non-COVID illness)
• 15-day injured list: RHP Wil Crowe (right forearm inflammation) LHP Eric Stout (low back discomfort)
• 60-day injured list: Yerry De Los Santos (lat), OF Canaan Smith-Njigba (wrist), RHP Colin Holderman (right shoulder), RHP Blake Cederlind (elbow), RHP Max Kranick (elbow), C Roberto Pérez (hamstring)
THE LINEUPS
Shelton's card:
1. Oneil Cruz, SS
2. Bryan Reynolds, LF
3. Rodolfo Castro, 2B
4. Miguel Andújar, DH
5. Jack Suwinski, RF
6. Ke'Bryan Hayes, 3B
7. Ben Gamel, 1B
8. Tyler Heineman, C
9. Ji Hwan Bae, CF
And for Oliver Marmol's Cardinals:
1. Brendan Donovan, 2B
2. Lars Nootbaar, RF
3. Paul Goldschmidt, DH
4. Albert Pujols, 1B
5. Alec Burleson, LF
6. Juan Yepez, 3B
7. Dylan Carlson, CF
8. Andrew Kinzer, C
9. Paul DeJong, SS
THE SCHEDULE
One ballgame left on the docket. Johan Oviedo (4-3, 3.12) will be the answer to the future trivia night question "which Pirate started the final game of the 2022 season?" First pitch is at 4:05 p.m. See you at the ballpark.
THE CONTENT
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