The scene on the North Shore on Thursday afternoon had to have surpassed even the wildest expectations. It was 80 degrees at first pitch — in Pittsburgh, in April. Fans entered the ballpark for the first time since September 2019. A tangible buzz permeated PNC Park.
If only the baseball part of the proceedings would’ve cooperated.
Although they did a couple things well and 7,749 enjoyed some live baseball along the Allegheny River for the first time in a (way too long) time, the Pirates ultimately suffered a 4-2 loss to the visiting Cubs.
It was the sixth loss in a row for the Pirates, who arrived at the ballpark Thursday on the heels of a wretched road trip that manager Derek Shelton wanted to “flush” as quickly as possible.
We’ll see if Thursday ultimately did that, but the Pirates did have several chances. Their last/best one came in the eighth inning, with the bases loaded via three consecutive walks. However, Dustin Fowler and Wilmer Difo both struck out swinging.
The biggest positive was a productive start from Tyler Anderson. Through their first six games of the season, Pirates starters had a 7.43 ERA and struggled plenty with walks. Because he was around the plate, Anderson fared markedly better.
The left-hander went 5 1/3 innings and allowed three earned runs on 10 hits. He struck out five and walked none. The Cubs scored those three runs on home runs, and both came on pitches down in the zone from Anderson.
Offense has been hard to find for the Pirates, though they got two-hit games out of Adam Frazier and Gregory Polanco.
It was a mix of good and bad for the Pirates bullpen, as well. Mars native David Bednar entered to “Renegade” and did his job, getting a lineout to left to end the eighth. Terrific diving catch there by Bryan Reynolds, too.
Clay Holmes picked up Anderson and got two key outs in the sixth with a man on base, while Sam Howard gave up a home run to first baseman Anthony Rizzo in the eighth to make it 4-2.
After Kyle Crick got four consecutive outs in relief of Anderson, Pirates manager Derek Shelton wanted the left-on-left matchup and summoned Howard. Rizzo waited on a four-seam fastball and got it, driving it into the seats in right.
Trailing 1-0, the Pirates scored twice and grabbed the lead during an interesting fourth inning, one that showcased the blazing speed of Jacob Stallings.
Polanco led off with a single. Stallings followed by properly executing a hit-and-run, getting his bat on a low fastball for a single.
Polanco reached third and scored on a Fowler sacrifice fly to tie the game at 1. Most impressive, Stallings — who actually isn’t fast at all — advanced 90 feet on the play, into scoring position, and scored when Frazier punched a single into right field.
The Cubs used another home run — this one a two-run golf shot from shortstop Javier Baez — to snatch the lead back from the Pirates in the sixth. Anderson got ahead with a first-pitch changeup, then threw another one at the bottom of the zone.
Baez somehow drove it over the fence in left. According to MLB.com’s Sarah Langs, the pitch was just 0.86 feet off the ground. It’s the lowest pitch Baez has ever hit over the fence and the sixth-lowest for any MLB hitter since 2008.
Anderson got plenty of swinging strikes in his first start of the season and had some of that same stuff early on Thursday. Cubs catcher Willson Contreras swung through a fastball to start the game before Anderson punched him out on a changeup.
But the second batter of the game, third baseman Kris Bryant, went down and got a 1-2 fastball from Anderson and drove it 419 feet into the shrubbery in center field for a 1-0 Cubs lead.
Anderson got some help from his defense the next inning. After allowing back-to-back singles to start, Phillip Evans thought better against trying to get the out at third base and instead ignited a 5-4-3 double play.
One bit of good news for the Pirates came in the second inning. Through five games, Gregory Polanco was hitting just .059. Some swings have been ugly, too. But facing Jake Arrieta, Polanco had an at-bat to savor.
Full count. Polanco got a low-and-outside sinker and drove it the other way. That’s important because of Polanco’s spring training, when he worked to keep his bat in the hitting zone for longer to try and make more consistent contact.
Polanco doesn’t get that pitch if he’s in and out of the zone. Unfortunately for the Pirates, Anderson struck out swinging after Arrieta loaded the bases with back-to-back two-out walks.
The Pirates had another opportunity in the fifth after Colin Moran stroked a one-out double. But Polanco came up just a little short, Cubs center fielder Jake Marisnick squeezing the fly ball on the warning track.
