Pittsburgh Pirates: Grading Series Loss Against the Indians in 2020 Finale
By Marty Leap
The Bucco Bats
It was a weird weekend for the Pirate offense.
In Friday night’s loss, the Pirate offense only scored 3 runs with 2 of those 3 runs coming on a Gregory Polanco home run. Despite the poor offensive output, they were position to win the game until Stratton ran into trouble in the 9th inning. However, going 1-for-5 with runners in scoring position is not a recipe for success for any offense.
Saturday and Sunday were good days for the Pirate offense. They plated 8 runs on Saturday night and then 6 more runs on Sunday afternoon. This included an incredible stretch from Ke’Bryan Hayes in which he went 5-for-5 on Saturday, and then had a single, home run and a walk in his first three trips to the plate on Sunday afternoon. The offensive output also included home runs from Jose Osuna on Saturday and Sunday, and a home run from Colin Moran on Saturday night.
Despite scoring 14 runs acorss these two games, the Pirate offense still found a way to waste scoring opportunities. They went just 5-for-16 with RISP in these two games and left 13 men on base.
The Verdict
It was not a bad series for the Pirate offense. That said, they also wasted some scoring opportunities. With more efficient offense the Pittsburgh Pirates may have walked away with a series victory this weekend.
Grade: B