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Pittsburgh Pirates: Josh Bell Struggling vs Milwaukee & Other Takeaways From Series Loss
For the first time in over two weeks, the Pittsburgh Pirates have suffered a series loss
When the Pittsburgh Pirates arrived in Milwaukee for their three-game weekend series the team was on a roll. After losing seven games in a row, which included being swept in Milwaukee, the Pirates reeled off an 8-3 stretch. This stretch included kicking off their six-game road trip by becoming the first visiting team to win a series against the Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park this season.
For the past decade Miller Park has been a house of horrors for the Pirates. This continued over the weekend. After going 3-0-1 in their previous four series played, the Pirates suffered their first series loss in over two weeks by dropping two of three against the Brewers over the weekend.
The Pirates are now 12-11-4 in the 27 series they have played this season. This puts the club at 39-43 overall on the season. The Brewers continue to be a pain in the side for the Pirates as they are now 1-5 at Miller Park this season, and their overall record against the Brewers has fallen to 2-8.
Next up for the Pirates is a vital four-game series back home at PNC Park against the National League Central leading Chicago Cubs. Before we turn our attention to the Cubbies, let’s take a look back at the three key takeaways from the team’s series loss at Miller Park.
Josh Bell can’t solve Brewer pitching
It goes without saying that Josh Bell is having a fantastic season for the Pirates. After all, on Sunday he was named a National League All-Star for the first time in his career. He will also participate in the Home Run Derby for the first time.
On the season Bell is slashing .301/.376/.625 with a 152 wRC+. He has hit 22 home runs, and his 29 doubles, 55 extra base hits, and 70 RBI all lead the NL. Despite the terrific season is having, he has struggled mightily against the Brewers this season.
Bell was 0-for-10 with a pair of walks over the weekend. In 10 games against the Brewers this season Bell is 4-for-39 with four walks, two doubles, zero home runs, and just 3 RBI.
A major reason the Pirates are a paltry 2-10 against the Brewers, and 37-33 against the rest of baseball, this season is due to the Milwaukee pitching staff effectively shutting down Bell at the plate. This is something no other team has accomplished so far this season.
If the Pirates are going to improve their record against the Brewers this season then Bell must start hitting against Milwaukee the way he does everyone else. The ball is now the court of Bell and hitting coaches Rick Eckstein and Jacob Cruz to find what the Brewers have been doing to be so successful against him and adjust.
The offense struggled
Entering the season people were worried about the Pirate offense. To the surprise of most, the offense has become the team’s strength this season. Since early May, the Pirate offense has been as potent as any in the National League.
Over the weekend, however, Milwaukee pitching stifled the Pirate offense. Prior to the start of the series the Pirates had scored double digits runs in three of their previous four games. In their series victory over Houston, the team plated 25 runs.
The Pirates scored just 5 runs in the series. This included plating just 1 run each on both Saturday night and Sunday afternoon, both of these games were losses. You’re not going to win many games when you score just 1 run.
In both of these losses things started promisingly for the offense.
Saturday night Colin Moran hit a two-out double that scored Bryan Reynolds to give the Pirates a 1-0 lead. On the play, Bell was thrown out at the plate to end the inning and the scoring for the Pirates. Sunday afternoon, Melky Cabrera doubled in a run in the 1st inning. Moran then lined what appeared to be a two-run double into the left center field gap. Lorenzo Cain, however, made an excellent running grab to rob Moran.
Over the weekend the team was just 3-for-16 with runners in scoring position. This led to the Bucs leaving 16 runners on base. They also hit into five double plays.
Against the high powered Cub offense this week the Pirate lineup will need to get back to its normal output. If not, it could be a long series for the Pirates.
The bullpen keeps chugging along
For much of the season the Pirate bullpen has been a mess. The past 17 games this has not been the case. Dating back to the team’s June 11th game against the Atlanta Braves, the Pirate bullpen has been strong.
During this 18 game stretch the Pirate bullpen has allowed 16 earned runs in 62 innings pitched. This is good for a 2.32 ERA. Also, of the 16 earned runs allowed by the bullpen during this stretch 4 of them were surrendered by Geoff Hartlieb who has since been optioned back to Triple-A Indianapolis.
This weekend the bullpen had to do a lot of work. Chris Archer lasted just 4 innings Friday due to hip soreness, and Steven Brault exited after 4 2/3 innings on Sunday. In 10 1/3 innings of work this weekend the bullpen allowed just 1 run. Unfortunately, this run was a crucial one when Kyle Crick served up a lead off home run to Eric Thames in the 8th inning of a tie game on Sunday.
Since June 11th the Pirate bullpen of 2.32 is the second lowest in the National League. Their 2.94 FIP, 25.7% strikeout rate, and 0.15 HR/9 both lead the NL during this stretch.
Next. Pirates Must Finish Strong Before The All-Star Break. dark
Since June 11th the Pirate bullpen has been very good. Getting the bullpen back on track is a necessity if the Pirates are going to get back over .500. As the calendar flips from June to July, the Pirate bullpen is as hot as any in the NL. Hopefully, it is a sign of the ‘pen turning the corner.