3 Takeaways From Pittsburgh Pirates Two-Game Series In Detroit

Joe Musgrove is proving his worth

When the Pittsburgh Pirates traded ace starting pitcher Gerrit Cole to the Houston Astros in January of 2018 the key piece in the trade was fellow starter Joe Musgrove. While many fans were not enthusiastic about Musgrove upon his acquisition, he has quickly become a fan favorite in Pittsburgh and for good reason.

Musgrove pitches with a fiery passion for the game on the mound. He does not take BS from anyone, look at you Javier Baez and the Chicago Cubs, and is a no nonsense type of competitor. Additionally, and most importantly, he has pitched really well for the Pirates.

Every time he takes the ball, Musgrove continues to prove his worth and show why he was the key piece of the Cole trade.

After allowing his first two earned runs of the season in 7 strong innings of work in his start on Tuesday night, Musgrove now owns a 0.81 ERA and a 1.93 FIP in 22 1/3 innings pitched this season. His ERA is currently the lowest among qualified starters in the National League.

This hot start builds off of what was a strong 2018 season for Musgrove. As a member of the Pirates Musgrove, owns a 3.53 ERA and a 3.32 FIP. This comes in 137 2/3 innings pitched across 23 games (22 starts) the past two seasons.

Big Joe continues to show why Neal Huntington and the Pirate brass thought so highly of him when discussing Cole with the Astros. He also continues to prove his worth with each start he makes.

The Pirates miss Corey Dickerson at the plate and in the field

Injuries have plagued the Pirates early on this season. While high leverage reliever Kyle Crick returned from the injured list on Tuesday, the team still has four key players on the IL. One of these players is starting left fielder Corey Dickerson.

During his absence, the Pirate offense has missed Dickerson. He is one of the team’s best hitters and the offense has been inconsistent without him. However, maybe even more than his bat, the team misses his glove.

The primary players filling in for Dickerson in left field have been Jason Martin and Pablo Reyes. Both Martin and Reyes own a negative defensive runs saved this season. To be honest, had Dickerson been in left field on Wednesday night there is a good chance the Tigers would have been shutout.

The Pirates do not miss Dickerson’s glove just due to the defensive struggles of Martin and Reyes, but also because he is one of the best in the NL. In 2018 Dickerson led all NL left fielders in DRS, outfield assists, and fielding percentage on his way to capturing the NL Gold Glove Award.

Hopefully, Dickerson will return soon from his right shoulder soreness. Right now, the Pirates miss both his bat and glove dearly.

Jung Ho Kang is getting back on track

Third baseman Jung Ho Kang entered this series on an 0 for 18 stretch. This included Hurdle ‘unplugging’ him and giving him three consecutive days off. So far, it appears this move is paying off.

In Tuesday night’s victory, Kang was 2-for-4 with a hard hit single to left field and a two-run home run. This was the start of Kang stinging the ball in Detroit.

While Kang went 0-for-4 in the second game of the series, an argument can be made he hit the ball even better. In his first three at bats Kang was robbed on a base hit because he lined the ball that was ticketed for center field off of Detroit starter Spencer Turnbull that ricocheted right to second baseman Josh Harrison. His second at bat saw him reach on a run-scoring error on a ball that was smoked at shortstop and easily could have been ruled a base hit. In his third at bat, Kang was robbed of extra bases due to the Tigers playing no doubles and hugging the third base line.

These three balls had an exit velocity of 106 MPH, 106 MPH, and 101 MPH. That’s good, folks.

Kang’s first at bat of the night on Tuesday may have been the best sign of all. He timed up a slider down and away and line it up the middle. If he was not pulling out of his slump, this would not have happened.

Getting Kang going would be a huge boost to the Pirate lineup. This week’s series in Detroit points toward Kang getting back on track offensively.