Frazier & Reynolds Start Tonight: A Look Back At Last Two Pirate Starts
The first half of the 2021 MLB season is in the books, and now it is time to celebrate the best of the best at the 2021 MLB All-Stat Game. The best of the best from around the league will take the field, and for the Pirates, two of their own will be in the starting lineup. Second baseman Adam Frazier has been voted as the National League starting second baseman, beating out Atlanta's Ozzie Albies and LA's Gavin Lux. He is the first Pirate's second baseman to start the All-Star Game since Bill Mazeroski did it in 1967 and is the first Pirates voted in by the fans to start the game since Andrew McCutchen in 2014. Joining him will be teammate Bryan Reynolds, who will also be a starter replacing Ronald Acuna Jr. for the NL.
Since 2010, two Pirates players have gotten the opportunity to start the all-star game, the aforementioned McCutchen in 2014 and Josh Bell as the Designated Hitter in 2019. Both players got hits in their starts and in both cases, it was in a losing effort. Adam Frazier looks to duplicate those performances, and help his team reverse the narrative and have a Pirate started involved in a win for the National League. There should be a lot of offense being that they are playing at hitter-friendly Coors Field. Frazier looks to be a table-setter for the NL and help the middle of the order drive in runs early. Today, we look back at each of the last two Pirates NL All-Star starters and see how their days went on the national stage.
Josh Bell 2019 NL DH (1-2, 1 1B)
For Josh Bell, his path to becoming a starter in the All-Star game was not your typical path. Being that the game was played at Progressive Field in Cleveland, the DH was in play, and manager Dave Roberts had to pick someone for the roll. He went with one of the best power hitters in the National League in Bell, who already had 21 home runs to that point. He ended up hitting sixth in the order behind Cody Bellinger and Nolan Arenado. It was all part of an NL All-star lineup that had a lot of power throughout. However, it just wasn't enough as early AL runs led to a 4-3 loss for the National League. I'm the day, Be went 1-2 in his two at-bats and was standard on base in his only time on base.
His first at-bat of the night came in the bottom of the second against the Yankees Masahiro Tanaka. The NL had not yet had a hit and Bell came to the plate with nobody on and two outs. After falling behind initially, Bell battled back to make it a 2-2 count and then fouled off a tough two-strike pitch. He didn't make solid contact, but he grounded one to the second baseman and ended up beating it out for a single and the National Leagues first hit of the night. The Chicago Cubs Willson Contreras stepped to the plate and grounded out to the pitcher to end the inning. The AL got on the board in the bottom of the inning with an RBI double from Michael Brantley, but the AL pitching just continued rolling throughout the night.
Bell's next at-bat would come in the top of the 4th, and by that point, the NL had only mustered one extra hit courtesy of Arizona's Ketel Marte. Atlanta's Freddie Freeman walked to start the inning and was still at first when Bell stepped in with two outs. This time, he was facing the Chicago White Sox's Lucas Giolito, and he was aggressive early in the count. He swung and missed on the first pitch of the at-bat, but ended up getting rolled over on with the second pitch, grounding out to second base. He would end up being pinch-hit for by Miami's JT Realmuto, bringing his All-Star night to an end as he went 1-2 with a single in the losing effort.
Andrew McCutchen NL CF (1-3, 1 1B)
Unlike Josh Bell, Andrew McCutchen won the fan vote to be the starting centerfielder for the National League. He was coming off his first MVP award of his career in 2013 and helped bring winning back to Pittsburgh. McCutchen was at the top of his game and was not only the face of the Pirates but one of the faces of baseball. By the 2014 All-Star break, McCutchen was building off his MVP season hitting .324 with 12 home runs and 48 RBI. He joined a National League outfield that consisted of Los Angeles's Yasiel Puig and Milwaukee's Carlos Gomez. McCutchen was tagged as the All-Star game's leadoff hitter, trying to set the tone for the NL.
He would have a tough task, having to come to the plate against Seattle's Felix Hernandez, who was chosen as the AL All-Star starter. After taking the first pitch for a ball, McCutchen ended up hitting a slow ground ball to shortstop. However, he used his speed to hustle down the first baseline and beat out the leadoff single. He would move to second on a wild pitch and steal third after a strikeout by Colorado's Troy Tulowitzki to give the NL a runner at third and two outs. However, third base is as far as he would get as Arizona's Paul Goldschmidt struck out swinging to end the inning. McCutchen did all he could to spark his team, but no one could bring him home.
His next at-bat came in the bottom of the second after the National League had scored two runs. McCutchen stepped in with Milwaukee's Johnathan Lucroy in scoring position. He was facing Boston's Jon Lester, and after falling behind 0-2, he lifted a flyball to left field to end the inning. McCutchen's final at-bat can't in the top of the fifth against Detroit's Max Sherzer. McCutchen battled throughout the at-bat, working the count to an even 2-2, but he would ground the fifth pitch of the at-bat to first base for the final out. McCutchen was relieved by Colorado's Charlie Blackman, and the NL ended up losing the game 5-3. Although McCutchen couldn't lead his team to a win, he provided some excitement early showing off his speed and contact ability.
The 91st Major League Baseball All-Star Game will be played tonight at 7:30 pm on Fox as Shohei Ohtani (4-1, 3.49) goes for the American League against Max Sherzer (7-4, 2.66) for the American League. The Pittsburgh Pirates (34-56) start the second half of their season against the New York Mets (47-40) on Friday at 7:05 pm.
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