Going Deep: 'Aggressive' mentality leads to late error
JUSTIN K. ALLER / GETTY
The Reds' Elly De La Cruz scores on a first-inning double Monday night at PNC Park.
With two outs in the sixth inning of a tied game, Mitch Keller got Austin Hays to hit a ground ball up the middle that seemed like it would end the inning.
Until this happened:
Isiah Kiner-Falefa's throw sailed into the Reds' dugout and granted Hays second base, who then scored the go-ahead run on this Tommy Pham mistake:
A downward spiral ensued as the Pirates lost to the Reds tonight at PNC Park, 7-1, suffering their fourth straight loss. They've fallen to 3-14 in May and 15-33 overall.
"I wasn’t able to finish it," Kiner-Falefa said of his throwing error. "It sucked that that was the turning point for Mitch to get the loss. But, at the same time, if I finish that play, I know he’d be very appreciative of it. So that was one of the ones where I like going for it, it just didn’t work out."
Kiner-Falefa's aggressiveness, on a ball that was hit with a 100.1 mph exit velocity with an expected batting average of .210, stems from what Don Kelly has preached as the infield coordinator in the past. He wants them to be aggressive, rather than playing uptight and afraid to make a mistake.
Kelly had no problem with Kiner-Falefa making the throw. He liked it in that situation because it would've ended the inning and preserved the 1-1 tie.
"I want these guys to make plays. If we're going out there to play defense to not make mistakes, we're not in the frame of mind to be playing baseball. That's the challenge," Kelly said. "Being in charge of the infield prior to this, that's what I want the guys to do. There's a lot of times with our infielders, some guys might not even get to that ball, on other teams. (Kiner-Falefa)'s got so much range that he gets there, he's trying to make a play to win the game and I think the same thing -- if you ask him, he expects himself to make a good throw on that play. The way that I view it is, going out there to play defense, we're not going out there to not make mistakes. We're going out there to play aggressively."
The Pirates had committed the eighth-most errors (28) in Major League Baseball coming into tonight but have played cleaner since Kelly took over on May 8. They've been charged with two errors in 10 games, though Kiner-Falefa's error against the Mets on May 12 was changed to a single and Pham's drops in the past two games weren't charged as errors.
Kiner-Falefa said Kelly's aggressive mindset has allowed the infielders to play more free. It's showed at times as he made a gold glove-caliber play earlier in the game:
However, that aggressiveness can still be detrimental. Two defensive mistakes, ahead of another bullpen implosion, put the Pirates in a late hole. They aren't equipped to dig themselves out of with one of the worst offenses in baseball and Kiner-Falefa said that is putting pressure on the entire team.
"Pitchers are definitely feeling it, offensively, we are definitely feeling it," Kiner-Falefa said. "When we get in those opportunities, it feels like it’s a lot of pressure. Defensively, we also feel like if we don’t play a perfect game, it’s not going to end well. So I think it’s all around But I do think defensively, we aren’t afraid to mess up."
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THE ASYLUM
Greg Macafee
4:17 am - 05.20.2025NORTH SHOREGoing Deep: 'Aggressive' mentality leads to late error
JUSTIN K. ALLER / GETTY
The Reds' Elly De La Cruz scores on a first-inning double Monday night at PNC Park.
With two outs in the sixth inning of a tied game, Mitch Keller got Austin Hays to hit a ground ball up the middle that seemed like it would end the inning.
Until this happened:
Isiah Kiner-Falefa's throw sailed into the Reds' dugout and granted Hays second base, who then scored the go-ahead run on this Tommy Pham mistake:
A downward spiral ensued as the Pirates lost to the Reds tonight at PNC Park, 7-1, suffering their fourth straight loss. They've fallen to 3-14 in May and 15-33 overall.
"I wasn’t able to finish it," Kiner-Falefa said of his throwing error. "It sucked that that was the turning point for Mitch to get the loss. But, at the same time, if I finish that play, I know he’d be very appreciative of it. So that was one of the ones where I like going for it, it just didn’t work out."
Kiner-Falefa's aggressiveness, on a ball that was hit with a 100.1 mph exit velocity with an expected batting average of .210, stems from what Don Kelly has preached as the infield coordinator in the past. He wants them to be aggressive, rather than playing uptight and afraid to make a mistake.
Kelly had no problem with Kiner-Falefa making the throw. He liked it in that situation because it would've ended the inning and preserved the 1-1 tie.
"I want these guys to make plays. If we're going out there to play defense to not make mistakes, we're not in the frame of mind to be playing baseball. That's the challenge," Kelly said. "Being in charge of the infield prior to this, that's what I want the guys to do. There's a lot of times with our infielders, some guys might not even get to that ball, on other teams. (Kiner-Falefa)'s got so much range that he gets there, he's trying to make a play to win the game and I think the same thing -- if you ask him, he expects himself to make a good throw on that play. The way that I view it is, going out there to play defense, we're not going out there to not make mistakes. We're going out there to play aggressively."
The Pirates had committed the eighth-most errors (28) in Major League Baseball coming into tonight but have played cleaner since Kelly took over on May 8. They've been charged with two errors in 10 games, though Kiner-Falefa's error against the Mets on May 12 was changed to a single and Pham's drops in the past two games weren't charged as errors.
Kiner-Falefa said Kelly's aggressive mindset has allowed the infielders to play more free. It's showed at times as he made a gold glove-caliber play earlier in the game:
However, that aggressiveness can still be detrimental. Two defensive mistakes, ahead of another bullpen implosion, put the Pirates in a late hole. They aren't equipped to dig themselves out of with one of the worst offenses in baseball and Kiner-Falefa said that is putting pressure on the entire team.
"Pitchers are definitely feeling it, offensively, we are definitely feeling it," Kiner-Falefa said. "When we get in those opportunities, it feels like it’s a lot of pressure. Defensively, we also feel like if we don’t play a perfect game, it’s not going to end well. So I think it’s all around But I do think defensively, we aren’t afraid to mess up."
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Become a member, and enjoy premium benefits! Make your voice heard on the Steelers, Penguins and Pirates, and hear right back from tens of thousands of fellow Pittsburgh sports fans worldwide! Plus, access all our premium content, including Dejan Kovacevic columns, Friday Insider, daily Live Qs with the staff, more! And yeah, that's right, no ads at all!
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