Pittsburgh Pirates Nearly No-Hit in Loss Against Rockies

The Pittsburgh Pirates were nearly on the wrong side of history in Tuesday night’s 8-0 loss against the Colorado Rockies

Ever since the ballpark has opened Coors Field in Denver has been a hitter’s paradise. There has only ever been one no-hitter thrown at Coors Field, and no Colorado Rockies pitcher has ever thrown a no-hitter at Coors Field. Well, on Tuesday night the Pittsburgh Pirates were nearly on the wrong side of history.

In the team’s 8-0 loss, the Pittsburgh Pirates were nearly the first visiting team to ever be no-hit at Coors Field. German Márquez took a no-hitter into the 9th inning before Ka’ai Tom singled to start the inning, preventing the Pirates from being on the wrong side of history.

While Márquez was on his game on Tuesday night, the Pirate offense also did him some favors. Too many times Pirate hitters chased pitches outside of the zone. Pirate hitters also failed to take advantage of multiple breaking balls that Márquez hung in the strike zone. But, ultimately, you have to tip your cap to Márquez on what was a special night for him.

Offensive woes continue

Even though Coors Field is the best hitter’s park in baseball the Pirate offense has struggled through the first two games of the series. Outside of Tom’s single leading off the 9th inning the Pirate offense did not collect a hit on Tuesday night.

This marked the second consecutive game in which the Pittsburgh Pirates were not just shutout, but they also failed to collect an extra base hit for a second consecutive game. In Monday’s loss the Pirates collected just six single while walking once. Outside of Tom, the one base runner on Tuesday night came when Phillip Evans drew a walk.

Through the first two games of the series the Pirates are 7-for-59 at the plate with a pair of walks and no extra base hits. This is not a recipe for success at any ballpark, but it’s especially not a recipe for success at Coors Field.

Chase De Jong struggles again

When Chase De Jong joined the Pirate starting rotation in late May he appeared to be an intriguing arm. This continued after he pitched 5 innings, allowing just 1 run in his first start which came against the Rockies. However, De Jong has fallen on hard time and turned in another poor start in Tuesday night’s loss.

De Jong allowed 5 runs, 4 earned, on 9 hits, 3 strikeouts and a home run allowed in 5 innings pitched. On the season De Jong now owns a 5.34 ERA and a 5.20 FIP in 28.2 innings pitched across 6 starts.

While giving De Jong an extended look was one that made sense, his clock could be ticking. With Steven Brault getting closer to returning from the injured list, Max Kranick turning heads in his first MLB start and the Pittsburgh Pirates looking to get Miguel Yajure more MLB starts once he is healthy, De Jong could be without a rotation spot if he does not begin to pitch better.

What’s next?

The Pittsburgh Pirates will look to salvage the third and final game of the series when they send Chad Kuhl (5.05 ERA, 5.59 FIP) to the mound on Wednesday afternoon. The Rockies are scheduled to send righty Jon Gray (3.97 ERA, 4.19 FIP) to the mound. First pitched is scheduled for 3:10 PM ET.