Pittsburgh Pirates vs. San Francisco Giants: Round 2
After winning or trying three straight series against the New York Mets and Atlanta Braves, the Pittsburgh Pirates headed into Arizona looking to sweep the worst team in baseball. However, the Diamondbacks have had the Pirates number over the last several seasons, and not only did the Pirates not sweep the Diamondbacks, but they got swept themselves. The pitching faltered and the offense just had no answers as they were outscored 21-12 in the three-game series. It took all the momentum that the Pirates had, and shot it to the ground as the Pirates now have to limp into San Francisco. However, it was a similar scenario to what happened when a hot San Francisco Giamts team came into PNC Park early in the year.
The Giants entered PNC Park for a four-game series as one of the hottest teams in baseball early in the season. However, the Pirates gave them all they could handle, and ended up splitting the four game series. The Pirates scored 13 runs in the series, and played some of their best baseball of the season. Now, the Pirates head into San Francisco once again down on their luck, and they are once again looking for a turnaround. It will be a battle of two teams that are on the opposite end of the trade deadline spectrum. The Giants will be buyers looking to add to their teams for a playoff run, while the Pirates are looking to add to their future by acquiring talent. Today, we look at what to expect as the Pirates travel to the city by the bay for a three-game series.
What Happened Last Time
When these two teams met in Pittsburgh, the Pirates were playing some of their best baseball of the year. After falling 3-1 in game one, the Pirates came back and won in a walk-off fashion in game two. Gregory Polanco came up with a runner at third and one out and lifted a walk-off sacrifice fly to secure the win for the Pirates. Game three looked like it was destined to head to extra innings as well, but Jacob Stallings would percent that. He lifted a two-run walk-off home run to left and the Pirates won 8-6. Unfortunately, they couldn't win the series as the Giants won 4-1 and the series ended in a 2-2 split. It was a big moment for the Pirates, and now they are looking to take a series from the Giants as they head out to the west coast.
They are getting ready to face a Giants team that is riding high after a four-game series with the Los Angeles Dodgers. They took three out of four in the series, including a 1-1 tie against the Dodgers in the finale last night. Leading the way for the Giants over the last seven games is the man who has been the face of the franchise Buster Posey. In his 16 at-bats over the last seven games, Posey is hitting .313 with one home run and three RBI. After sitting out during the 2020 season because of the pandemic, Posey seems refreshed and has come back better than ever. However, as a group, the biggest plus with these Giants is their ERA. They enter play Friday with the second lowest ERA in baseball at 3.26. The Pirates offense will have to find a way to crack the code against a Giants team that can hit the ball and pitch their way through lineups.
Keep it Rolling Against the Giants
Over the last couple of seasons, the Pirates have played pretty good baseball against the Giants. Over the last three seasons against the Giants, the Pirates have a combined record of 12-7, and are averaging right around 4.0 runs per game. On the other side, the Giants are averaging about 3.0-3.5 runs per game during that stretch. The Pirates haven't played in San Francisco since the 2019 season, but each of the last two times they have entered Oracle Park they have had success. In 2018 and 2019, the Pirates were a combined 5-3 and scored an average of 5.5 runs per game. However, this is a new Giants team, that is one of the best pitching teams in the league, and the offense is going to have to find a way to score runs.
One advantage for the Pirates going into Oracle Park is just how big the field is. While the corners are both short, there is a lot of room out in the outfield gaps. The famous McCovey's Cove can go as far back as 421 feet allowing teams to use their speed to get around the bases. This is a part of the park the Pirates can take advantage of to score runs in bunches. As a team, the Pirates rank 17th in baseball with 148 doubles, but two of their biggest producers are doubles machines. Adam Frazier is third in the National League with 27 doubles and Bryan Reynolds is seventh with 22. If the Pirates can get men on base, these two can pepper the big gaps of Oracle Park leading to success for the Pirates offense.
A Battle of Wits on The Mound
With the San Francisco Giants being one of the top pitching teams in the league, the offense is going to have to be in point throughout the series. However, one thing the Pirates can do to ease some of that pressure is a good showing from the pitching staff. If the Pirates pitchers aren't allowing runs, it gives the offense more time to crack the code on some of these rougher pitchers. The Pirates did get good pitching in their series against the Mets and Braves, but things took a step backward in Arizona. As a group, the Pirates starters have the third worst ERA in baseball at 5.36, and they are looking to lower that number through the rest of the season.
Starting off the series is a guy who has been on fire as of late in Chad Kuhl, who hasn't lost a game since June 28th. We all know the struggles Kuhl had at the start of the season, but since he has returned from the IL he has been on fire. Since returning he has pitched to a 4.20 ERA, and over his last five starts that ERA has dropped down to just 1.97. Kuhl came into this season expected to be the leader of this rotation when he got tabbed as the Opening Day starter. He has had his share of ups and downs, but the 28-year-old right hander is looking to get back on track here towards the the of the season. The Pirates will need good pitching in this series if they are to be successful, and Kuhl will hopefully set the tone tonight.
The Pittsburgh Pirates (36-60) open their three-game series with the San Francisco Giants (61-35) tonight at 9:45 pm. Chad Kuhl (3-5, 4.31) takes the hill having a 1.97 ERA over his last five games for the Pirates against Johnny Cueto (6-5, 4.01) for the Giants
Comments
Post a Comment