Another dismal performance by the Pirates pitching staff last night in a rain-shortened 7-5 loss to Atlanta. The Braves homered five times off Chris Archer, including four solo shots in five at-bats in the second inning of their 7-5 win. Archer fell to 3-6 on the season. The umpires called the game in the 8th inning after a 1-hour, 48-minute rain delay, denying the Pirates a last chance at the plate. Manager Clint Hurdle questioned the decision, the second conflict with the umpires in two days (after Monday’s ejection of pitcher Joe Musgrove).
Here’s a recap of the game by Joe Block.
Josh Donaldson, who started Monday’s fuss by barking at Musgrove after his jersey was nicked by a pitch, is appealing his one-game suspension. He hit the first homer off Archer last night.
With their five-game losing streak, the Pirates have fallen to 30-36 and are just a half-game out of last place in the NL Central. They’re 7½ behind the first-place Brewers.
The Pirates will try to break the losing streak tonight as they take on the Braves in the third game of their four-game set. The Bucs’ number one prospect, Mitch Keller, has been recalled from Triple-A Indianapolis to make the start. Keller lost his major league debut to the Reds, giving up six runs on seven hits in four innings. Since being returned to Indianapolis, he’s pitched well in two starts, including a 13-strikeout performance last Friday against Toledo. Keller will face Braves righty Mike Soroka, who is 7-and-1 with a 1.38 ERA.
The Pirates’ Josh Bell leads in National League All Star voting at first base. The top three voter-getters at each position by June 21st will advance to the Starters Election, which begins June 26th.
Meanwhile, MLB Network’s Ken Rosenthal reports that the Bucs’ Melky Cabrera is being pursued by several teams in a possible trade. Rosenthal says the Pirates would rather trade Corey Dickerson to break up their five-man logjam in the outfield.
