Pittsburgh Pirates Defeat Cincinnati Reds 8-5, Split Doubleheader

The Pittsburgh Pirates picked up a victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Saturday night to split their doubleheader

Saturday afternoon was frustrating for the Pittsburgh Pirates. After failing to generate much offense against the worst pitching staff in baseball and losing Roberto Pérez to a hamstring injury, the Pirates were defeated by the lowly Reds 9-2.

In game two of the day’s doubleheader, the Pittsburgh Pirates were able to bounce back. Following an 8-5 victory over the Reds, the Pirates have improved to 11-15 on the season. This victory keeps them in third place in the NL Central.

Pittsburgh Pirates make 1st inning history

In the 130+ year history of the Pittsburgh Pirates, the team has just about done it all. One thing the team had never done though was hit three home runs in the 1st inning of a game. Well, on Saturday night this changed.

With one out in the inning, Bryan Reynolds hit a solo home run. His 3rd home run of the season made it 1-0 Pirates. Yoshi Tsutsugo then drove in Ke’Bryan Hayes, who had previously doubled, with a 2-run home run. Tsutsugo’s 1st home run of the season made the score 3-0 Pirates.

The Pirate lead would then grow to 4-0 on another home run. A solo home run by Diego Castillo, his 2nd home run of the season, followed Tsutsugo, making the score 4-0 Pirates. For a team that has struggled some much with the home run ball this season, it was great to see early home runs, in an historic bunch to boot, from the Pirates.

Mitch Keller struggles

After turning in three consecutive strong starts, Mitch Keller struggled for the Pittsburgh Pirates on Saturday night. While Keller had to deal with some shoddy umpiring behind home plate, he also missed too many spots and struggled to control his off-speed pitches.

Keller pitched 4.1 innings, allowing 5 runs on 6 hits, 3 walks, a home run and he struck out just 3. Keller did, however, generate 9 swings-and-misses in his 4.1 innings pitched.

The biggest issues for Keller in the start were his command and inability to control his off-speed pitches. Too often Keller missed his spots, including on a Brandon Drury home run, and he failed to control his off-speed pitches.

Max Kranick pitches well in 2022 debut

Max Kranick started the season on the injured list. Following multiple rehab outings with Triple-A Indianapolis, he made his 2022 debut with the Pittsburgh Pirates on Saturday night after being recalled as the 27th man for the doubleheader.

Kranick’s velocity had been up in his rehab outings and his stuff appeared to be trending upward. This continued in his 2022 Pirate debut as he allowed a hit, walked 2, and struck out 3 in 2 scoreless innings pitched.

This included Kranick working around putting the first two batters on base in the 7th inning. After the batters moved up on a strikeout, Kranick was able to put a foot down and prevent either runner from scoring.

Moving forward Kranick will likely play a larger role for the Pittsburgh Pirates later in the season. Odds are Kranick will get an opportunity as a starting pitcher at some point this season. Hopefully, he can help provide a much needed boost to the Pirate rotation.

Ben Gamel stays hot

There have been few hitters in baseball hotter this week than Ben Gamel. Gamel’s hot stretch continued on Saturday. Overall he had 5 hits and 3 RBI on the day, and this included a big performance in game two of the DH.

Gamel launched a 2-run home run in the victory. Gamel’s 2nd home run of the season made the score 7-2 Pirates in the 4th. In the game two victory Gamel went 2-for-5 with a pair of RBI. On the season Gamel now has a 149 wRC+.

Back end of the bullpen shuts the door

Chris Stratton pitched the 8th inning for the Pirates and David Bednar took the mound in the 9th inning. Stratton issued a walk, to go with a strikeout in a scoreless 8th inning pitched.

Bednar then slammed the door in the 9th inning. Bednar retired all three batters he faced, while striking out all three, to close the door on the Reds. Bednar picked up his 4th save of the season in the process.

The Pittsburgh Pirates will look to secure a series victory on Sunday afternoon. Zach Thompson (9.39 ERA, 6.37 FIP) is scheduled to start for the Pirates, while the Reds plan to send Tyler Mahle (7.01 ERA, 3.19 FIP) to the mound. The first pitch from Great American Ballpark is scheduled for 1:40 PM ET.