Braxton Ashcraft made history vs. Tigers but Pirates denied him a chance at more

Braxton Ashcraft was three outs away from doing something no major-league pitcher had done in nearly a decade but never got the chance. Still, he had already made history by the time he walked off the mound Tuesday night.

After needing just 80 pitches to hold the Detroit Tigers to one run over eight innings, Ashcraft became the first pitcher since Greg Maddux in September 2000 to throw consecutive outings of at least eight innings while averaging 10 or fewer pitches per inning, according to OPTASports.

Ashcraft, coming off an 85-pitch gem against the Miami Marlins last week, was in position to become the first pitcher since Corey Kluber in 2017 to throw back-to-back complete games. Instead, Pittsburgh Pirates manager Don Kelly turned the ninth inning over to Mason Montgomery. It denied Ashcraft a shot at an even bigger piece of history, but considering the situation Pittsburgh faced, it was also the right call.

Detroit had two left-handed hitters due up along with the heart of its order, and Montgomery has quickly emerged as one of Pittsburgh’s most trusted late-inning arms. At 80 pitches, Ashcraft certainly had enough left in the tank to try. But there was little reason for Kelly to force him through another inning simply for the sake of a milestone when the Pirates had a three-run lead and their preferred matchup waiting in the bullpen.

Braxton Ashcraft continues generational run for Pirates with spectacular outing vs. Tigers

Montgomery validated Kelly's decision to send him out for the ninth. He worked around a leadoff error and struck out two in a scoreless ninth to seal the win. Still, it's difficult not to wonder what Ashcraft could have done with three more outs.

He needed only 80 pitches to record 24 of them. Five days earlier, he needed just 85 to get all 27. In an era when starting pitchers regularly struggle to reach the seventh inning, Ashcraft has suddenly turned efficiency into his defining trait.

Even though he didn't come back out for the ninth inning against Detroit, Ashcraft still became the first Pirates pitcher to follow a complete game with another eight-plus-inning outing since A.J. Burnett in 2012.

The Pirates have spent much of this season searching for stability in their starting rotation. Ashcraft has provided much more than that lately. Kelly may have denied him an opportunity at an even rarer piece of history Tuesday, but Ashcraft had already done enough to put himself alongside Maddux and Burnett in the record books.

And considering how effortlessly Ashcraft has worked through the past two starts, another chance at nine innings might not be far away.

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