Pittsburgh Pirates Cap Off May With A Victory Over The Brewers

The Pittsburgh Pirates capped the month of May off with a victory over the Milwaukee Brewers

Friday night at PNC Park, a pair of struggling veteran starting pitchers locked horns. Chris Archer led the Pittsburgh Pirates into battle against Jhoulys Chacin and the Milwaukee Brewers. While both pitchers hit rough patches, Archer, unlike Chacin, was able to settle in and turn in a strong start.

Led by Archer, the Pirates picked up a 9-4 victory over the Brewers. With the victory, the team finishes the month of May with a record of 28-28. Considering the amount of injuries and ineffectiveness that has plagued pitching staff, the team being at .500 two months into the season is quite the accomplishment.

Early on in the game the Pirates set the tone.

Archer fired a 5 pitch 1-2-3 top of the 1st inning. Then in the bottom half of the inning, Starling Marte singled with two outs and stole second base. This was followed by a run-scoring single by Josh Bell, to give the Pirates a 1-0 lead.

Bell’s single was a historic one. The hit gave him 93 total bases in the month of May. This broke Ralph Kiner‘s franchise record for the most total bases by a hitter in a single month in franchise history.

In the bottom of the 3rd inning, the wheels fell off for Chacin.

Kevin Newman, Gregory Polanco, and Marte hit three consecutive singles to start the inning. Then with one out, Bryan Reynolds and Colin Moran drew back-to-back walks. Moran’s came with the bases loaded and extended the Pirate lead to 4-1.

Then with two outs, Adam Frazier and Archer also drew consecutive walks. This made the score 5-1, and brought Chacin’s night to an end. Freddy Peralta replaced Chacin and was greeted by a Newman single. This hit made the score 7-1 Pirates.

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The top of the 4th inning was the lone inning in which Archer struggled. After retiring the first two batters he faced, he allowed a double to Mike Moustakas. After issuing a walk, he allowed a home run to Keston Hiura that cut the Pirate lead to 7-4. After allowing the next two batters to reach, he picked up a strikeout to end the inning.

In 7 innings of work Archer allowed the 4 runs on five hits, two walks, and he struck out seven. His fastball was sitting in the mid to upper 90s, which was the firmest it has been all season. Archer’s slider looked like the wipe out pitch it was when he was with Tampa Bay, and he mixed in a good looking change up as well. Outside of the 4th inning, Archer allowed just two base runners in his start.

If the Pirates can get this version of Archer once every five days, the team will gladly take it. This game appeared to be the first step toward Archer getting back on track. Hopefully, we will look back on this game as a turning point for Archer’s season.

When his night ended, he received a well deserved standing ovation from the large crowd at PNC Park.

A RBI single by Moran and Jacob Stallings reaching on an error by Hiura in the bottom of the 6th inning pushed two more Pirate runs across the plate. This made the score 9-4 Bucs, and gave them some breathing room.

Francisco Liriano replaced Archer in the 8th inning. Liriano continued his strong start to the season by retiring the Brewers in order in the 8th inning. He now owns a 1.03 ERA and a 2.73 FIP in 26 1/3 innings pitched this season.

In need of work, closer Felipe Vazquez took the hill in the 9th inning. Pitching on his tee shirt night, Vazquez did not look like a pitcher who has not been used much lately. He retired three of the four batters he faced, recorded a pair of strikeouts, and threw multiple pitches over 100 MPH to slam the door on the Brewers in a 9-4 victory.

Friday’s victory was a methodical effort from the Pirate offense. To go along with drawing five walks, the team racked up 13 hits in the victory. All 13 hits were singles, and the team’s 9 runs scored were the most in a game without recording an extra base hit since 2003.

The third game of this series is scheduled for 4:05 on Saturday afternoon and will be broadcast nationally on FS1. Nick Kingham (8.28 ERA, 4.54 FIP) will start for the Pirates while the Brewers will counter with Brandon Woodruff (3.22 ERA, 3.16 FIP). Ready the alcohol now, it could be a long day for Pirate fans.