Pittsburgh Pirates report card for week of May 8-14

Starting Pitching

The starting pitchers had their share of ups and downs in the west.

It started Monday night with an awful performance from Taillon’s replacement, Trevor Williams, who allowed six first-inning runs in a 12-1 Dodger rout. Tuesday was more encouraging, as the Bucs got a usual solid outing from Ivan Nova, who allowed two runs in 6 and 1/3. Wednesday saw more mediocrity from Chad Kuhl, who allowed four earned runs over five innings as the Dodgers completed a three-game sweep. The Pirates offense wasted another Gerrit Cole gem Thursday in a 2-1 loss to the D-Backs.

The most disconcerting outing came Friday night in Arizona. After two consecutive promising performances, it looked like Tyler Glasnow might be turning a corner. The tall righty took a step back, however, allowing seven runs in a nightmare third inning as the Bucs were pounded, 11-4.

In my mind, Saturday’s performance by Williams was the most impressive of the road trip. In five innings of work, Williams did his job, allowing one run and giving the Pirates a great chance to end their six-game losing streak, which they did. On Sunday, Nova did not have his best stuff. But he battled through six innings of three-run ball, and most importantly, gave Pittsburgh a chance to win.

This week saw some good, bad and ugly from the Pirates starting pitching. Since there was no set pattern, I think a solid C is a fair grade for the Bucco arms.

Overall Grade: C