Derek Shelton goes off on reporter after Pirates get no-hit by Cubs

Rowdy Tellez made his third relief appearance of the season for the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday, giving up one run on three hits in a 12-0 loss to the Chicago Cubs.

Rowdy Tellez is a first baseman.

Starter Domingo Germán had allowed seven runs (six earned) over just three innings and Jalen Beeks, Kyle Nicolas and Ryan Borucki were tabbed to cover the following four, so Tellez was manager Derek Shelton's choice to take the mound in the eighth in an 11-run game in which the Pirates didn't have a single hit.

Quite frankly, Tellez allowing one run on three hits in his latest relief appearance might have been better than what any of the available Pirates relievers could have done in his place, but that's a whole other problem. And hey, Tellez has pitched to an ERA of 6.75 this season, so maybe he's ready for a full-time job in the Pirates bullpen. After all, the barrier to entry is practically nonexistent.

Pirates getting no-hit by Cubs is yet another low point in a season full of them

Everyone knows that it's never a good sign when a position player comes in to pitch, and that's probably why Shelton wasn't too happy when a reporter asked him about it during his postgame media availability.

"It's 11 to nothing," Shelton snapped. "It's 11 to nothing. [David] Bednar and [Colin] Holderman both pitched yesterday. [Dennis] Santana's been our best reliever. [Aroldis] Chapman I'm not going to pitch in that situation. Come on. You've watched enough baseball to know that. It's 11 to nothing. Seriously. No. No, you don't have to ask. There's a better question than that. Seriously. I mean, it's 11 to nothing."

What would the better question be, then? Why the score was 11-0 in the first place might be a good place to start. Or, why the Pirates were sending their first baseman in to pitch for the third time in two weeks? Why a team that was once considered a playoff contender in late July is now dead last in the National League Central standings? Or, perhaps, why Shelton still has a job when the Pirates are 283-402 during his five yers as manager and haven't finished .500 or better since 2018?

Something tells us Shelton wouldn't be too thrilled about answering those questions, either.

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