ANAHEIM, Calif. -- The play was reminiscent of what the Pirates did so well in April, and it was done by a player who was in Class AA Altoona in April.
Trailing 7-2 at Angel Stadium in the top of the seventh, Angels catcher Matt Thaiss threw short on his toss back to his pitcher, Jacob Webb, and the ball squirted behind the mound. Nobody called time or went after the ball, so Liover Peguero, who was on third, made a break towards home and scored:
“I was watching that the whole way," Peguero said. "I didn’t know how to react at the moment, because I didn’t know if it was called a timeout or not, but nobody said anything, so I was like, ‘I’m going.’ "
The run would end up being non-consequential. Peguero would have come in to score on a Carlos Santana double shortly after even if he stayed at third, and the Pirates still went on to drop the series' rubber match against the Angels Sunday, 7-5. In the end, the three home runs Mitch Keller allowed were too much to overcome.
But as the team trudges through this 23-48 stretch (a .324 winning percentage) since that often-mentioned 20-8 start, it was at least a spark of what the team did so well in April: Being aggressive on the bases and taking advantage of those opportunities. Leading up to the All-Star break, creating those opportunities was something that Derek Shelton had identified that he wanted to see more from his team in the second half of the season. By and large, it hasn't happened thus far.
Maybe a play like that is a glimmer of hope that the aggressive base running Pirates did so well in April could be jumpstarted again.
“Very head’s up," Shelton said of Peguero's play. "That was important.”
If there was someone in the minors who could jumpstart the running game, it would be Peguero, who swiped 21 bags on 24 attempts in the minors before his promotion.
"I feel like if we keep being aggressive, we’re going to get in a real good rhythm together,” Peguero said.
Peguero also got the Pirates' seventh inning rally going against Tyler Anderson Sunday. The former Pirate lefty was tough to square up, or even make contact against for most of the afternoon, but Peguero lined a fastball to right field for an RBI double to plate Nick Gonzales, giving him his first big-league hit of the season:
He stayed back on the pitch and went with it to the opposite field. That type of swing was why Peguero only made a pit stop in Class AAA Indianapolis earlier this month after being promoted from AA Altoona. Early in the year, he pressed, but focused into his damage zones with a more consistent approach and saw the results as the year progressed.
His first handful of games in the majors have had more than a couple of ugly swings, either by chasing breaking stuff or being ahead of offspeed pitches. But there's offensive potential, and sometimes all it takes is that first hit to get things going.
"I’ve been trying to do some things at the plate," Peguero said. "It’s been real hard, but I feel like I’m going to find my rhythm and just go from there.”
What are those things? “Just be chillin’ at the plate, be confident and all that," he answered. Peguero is a lot of things, and "chill" and "confident" would be near the top of the list. That was evident a year ago whenever he was called up unexpectedly because of a COVID-19 scare. The shortstop held his own and picked up his first big-league hit before going back down to the minors.
It was just a cup of coffee, but it did give him a taste of what was to come, and what he wanted.
“It did help me a lot to have a better understanding of what I really wanted," Peguero said during his call up Monday. "I feel like that really pushed me forward. So, I feel like, like I said before, my main thing right now is just trying to stay.”
There's energy and potential with Peguero, especially in areas where the Pirates need help. Oneil Cruz almost surely isn't going to be ready by mid-August like initially hoped, and the team needs a steady hand up the middle.
If he can provide that and some excitement on the bases, perhaps he can show where he fits into those 2024 and beyond Pirates teams.
THE ESSENTIALS
• Boxscore
• Live file
• Team feed
• Standings
• Statistics
• Schedule
• Scoreboard
THE HIGHLIGHTS
THE INJURIES
• 10-day injured list: 2B Ji Hwan Bae (ankle), 3B Ke'Bryan Hayes (lower back)
• 60-day injured list: SS Oneil Cruz (ankle), RHP JT Brubaker (elbow), LHP Jarlin Garcia (elbow), RHP Max Kranick (elbow), RHP Vince Velasquez (elbow)
THE LINEUPS
Shelton's card:
1. Connor Joe, LF
2. Bryan Reynolds, CF
3. Andrew McCutchen, DH
4. Carlos Santana, 1B
5. Henry Davis, RF
6. Jared Triolo, 3B
7. Nick Gonzales, 2B
8. Liover Peguero, SS
9. Austin Hedges, C
And for Phil Nevin's Angels:
1. Luis Rengifo, 2B
2. Shohei Ohtani, DH
3. Mickey Moniak, CF
4. Taylor Ward, LF
5. Mike Moustakas, 3B
6. Matt Thaiss, C
7. Eduardo Escobar, 1B
8. Trey Cabbage, RF
9. Andrew Velasquez, SS
THE SCHEDULE
The Pirates will hop on I-5 South for the second half of this road trip against the Padres. Quinn Priester (0-1, 12.35) will make his second big-league start opposite Yu Darvish (7-6, 4.36). First pitch is set for 9:40 p.m. Eastern. I'llhave you covered.
THE ODDS
Anyone interested in the gambling perspective on this weekend's series, be sure to check out the following betting apps that've partnered with us.
THE MULTIMEDIA
THE CONTENT
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