The Phillies' Bryson Stott slides safely past Endy Rodríguez in the eighth inning Tuesday night in Philadelphia.
The Phillies rolled into PNC Park just over a month ago and shut out the Pirates on back-to-back nights behind Cristopher Sánchez and Zack Wheeler.
That was the last time the Pirates' offense was held to no runs, but history is bound to repeat itself at times.
Sánchez took the mound Tuesday night in front of 41,710 fans at Citizens Bank Park and delivered another shutout outing. This time, he threw seven innings and struck out nine while scattering three hits and two walks before the bullpen took over to hand the Pirates their seventh shutout loss of the season, 8-0.
"He just commands really well," said Konnor Griffin, who went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts. "He keeps you off balance with the changeup. He'll go in with the slider. His sinker looks like it's 100 (mph). He's just a veteran guy. It was his night when we played them at home, and he had another good one today ... He was tough tonight."
Sánchez struck out five of the first six batters he faced and didn't allow a base hit until Nick Gonzales' single through the right side in the fourth. Jared Triolo and Esmerlyn Valdez, who had two of the Pirates' five hits, led off the third and fourth, respectively, with walks. Billy Cook also tallied the Pirates' only extra-base hit with a double in the fifth. Outside of that, the offense struggled.
Griffin, Bryan Reynolds, Marcell Ozuna, and Endy Rodriguez each struck out two or more times, and the offense as a whole left eight runners on and went 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position.
"He's a good pitcher, and I felt like we got out of our approach early, trying to do too much," Don Kelly said. "(Gonzales) went the other way. I thought Valdez had good at-bats. But you have to get the ball up on him and the beginning of the game, I don't think we did a very good job of doing that."
The offense's struggles on this night were a microcosm of a year-long battle against left-handed pitchers. The Pirates have recorded the third-most strikeouts (246) against left-handers and have the eighth-worst OPS (.677), while mustering a .239 batting average.
Of the seven times the Pirates have been shut out this year, four have come with a left-hander starting for the opponent.
"I think we have some really good hitters and I think we just have to have one good game, and we'll get rolling," Griffin said of what needs to change against left-handed pitchers. "Just try not to overthink it too much and make it a big deal when there's a lefty on the mound. Just keep doing what we do and try to get some runs out of it."
That's what the Pirates have done for most of the season. They rank in the top 10 of multiple offensive categories while leading MLB in hits, ranking third in runs scored, and second in OPS. But their struggles have been apparent, and Kelly is still searching for answers.
"We switched the lineup up today, but we gotta keep going and find something because we have to be better against lefties," Kelly said.
THE ASYLUM
Offense's lefty struggles continue
GETTY
The Phillies' Bryson Stott slides safely past Endy Rodríguez in the eighth inning Tuesday night in Philadelphia.
The Phillies rolled into PNC Park just over a month ago and shut out the Pirates on back-to-back nights behind Cristopher Sánchez and Zack Wheeler.
That was the last time the Pirates' offense was held to no runs, but history is bound to repeat itself at times.
Sánchez took the mound Tuesday night in front of 41,710 fans at Citizens Bank Park and delivered another shutout outing. This time, he threw seven innings and struck out nine while scattering three hits and two walks before the bullpen took over to hand the Pirates their seventh shutout loss of the season, 8-0.
"He just commands really well," said Konnor Griffin, who went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts. "He keeps you off balance with the changeup. He'll go in with the slider. His sinker looks like it's 100 (mph). He's just a veteran guy. It was his night when we played them at home, and he had another good one today ... He was tough tonight."
Sánchez struck out five of the first six batters he faced and didn't allow a base hit until Nick Gonzales' single through the right side in the fourth. Jared Triolo and Esmerlyn Valdez, who had two of the Pirates' five hits, led off the third and fourth, respectively, with walks. Billy Cook also tallied the Pirates' only extra-base hit with a double in the fifth. Outside of that, the offense struggled.
Griffin, Bryan Reynolds, Marcell Ozuna, and Endy Rodriguez each struck out two or more times, and the offense as a whole left eight runners on and went 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position.
"He's a good pitcher, and I felt like we got out of our approach early, trying to do too much," Don Kelly said. "(Gonzales) went the other way. I thought Valdez had good at-bats. But you have to get the ball up on him and the beginning of the game, I don't think we did a very good job of doing that."
The offense's struggles on this night were a microcosm of a year-long battle against left-handed pitchers. The Pirates have recorded the third-most strikeouts (246) against left-handers and have the eighth-worst OPS (.677), while mustering a .239 batting average.
Of the seven times the Pirates have been shut out this year, four have come with a left-hander starting for the opponent.
"I think we have some really good hitters and I think we just have to have one good game, and we'll get rolling," Griffin said of what needs to change against left-handed pitchers. "Just try not to overthink it too much and make it a big deal when there's a lefty on the mound. Just keep doing what we do and try to get some runs out of it."
That's what the Pirates have done for most of the season. They rank in the top 10 of multiple offensive categories while leading MLB in hits, ranking third in runs scored, and second in OPS. But their struggles have been apparent, and Kelly is still searching for answers.
"We switched the lineup up today, but we gotta keep going and find something because we have to be better against lefties," Kelly said.
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