Pittsburgh Pirates: Pitching Staff Steps Up in Series Sweep of the Red Sox

The pitching staff rose to the task, Bryan Reynolds is locked in at the plate, and more takeaways from the Pittsburgh Pirates sweeping the Red Sox at Fenway Park

Following a frustrating, and flat out disappointing series loss in Cincinnati to start the 2023 season the Pittsburgh Pirates shipped on up to Boston and responded in a big way. In a series where they were mostly in control from the start, the Pirates swept the Red Sox.

With this sweep, the Pirates finish their season-opening road trip 4-2 overall and 1-1 in series played. The Red Sox plated 5 runs in the bottom of the 1st inning of game one, but the Pirates would outscore them 12-3 the rest of the series.

Keeping the Boston offense in check outside of that 1st inning, an inning in which the Pirate defense helped out the Red Sox offense, was no small task. The Red Sox socred 9 runs in each of their first three games of the series, but Oscar Marin's staff rose to the task and got the job done.

As you will see, the impressive job the Pirate pitching staff did will earn them a pair of takeaways from the series sweep. With that said, let's dive into the takeaways from the Pirates sweeping the Red Sox at Fenway Park.

Starting rotation's big horses step up

If the Pittsburgh Pirates are going to surprise people and contend this season Mitch Keller and Roansy Contreras will need to be two catalysts. The Pirates need both of them to take the next step in their development as they look to build upon strong 2023 seasons. The Pirates need these two to step up as the horses of the starting rotation, and in this series they did just that.

Contreras took the ball for his first start of the season on Tuesday night and was terrific. He pitched 5.2 innings, allowing a run on three hits, a walk, and two strikeouts. After allowing the first two batters of the game to reach base Contreras put a foot down and dominated.

There are few starting pitchers in the National League with a greater breakout potential this season than Contreras. He pairs a plus fastball with a curveball/slider combination that can be elite. Hopefully, Tuesday night's outing was the first step toward Contreras putting together that breakout campaign.

Wednesday afternoon's series finale saw Keller turn in one of the most impressive starts of his MLB career. He held the high-powered Red Sox to just 1 run on four hits, two walks, and seven strikeouts in 7 innings pitched.

With multiple relievers unavailable Shelton needed Keller to go deep into the game, Keller stepped up and did just that. He was in total control of the Red Sox throughout the start. He generated 10 swings-and-misses and limited hard contact throughout the start.

Most impressively, Keller put a foot on Boston's throat in the 7th inning. Shelton put faith in Keller allowing him the opportunity to try and finish the 7th inning despite a run being in with two runners on base. Pinch-hitter Reese McGuire hit a ball that originally was ruled a 3-run, game-tying home run. Unfortunately for McGuire, the ball jerked too far to the right of pesky pole and was a foul ball. The umpries quickly overturned the call and Keller responded by stirking out McGuire looking to end the inning.

Keller and Contreras are at two very different places in their development as MLB starting pitchers. However, both have the tools to help anchor a rotation. They could develop into one of the most underrated one-two punches in the majors. In this series they both pitched that way.

Bryan Reynolds is LOCKED in at the plate

Throughout his MLB career Bryan Reynolds has typically been a slow starter in the regular season. Well, this season, he is off to a historically fast start at the plate. This was put on display in the Red Sox series where Reynolds was absolutely locked in while in the box.

Reynolds went 3-for-5 with his 2nd and 3rd home runs of the season in game one. He had three more hits in game two including his 4th home run of the season, as well as a double that went off the Green Monster and was nearly a home run as well.

Game three saw Reynolds somewhat kept in check, as he went 1-for-3 with a walk and a RBI.

If Reynolds is going to avoid his typical slow start to the season then he will likely put up huge numbers. Hopefully, these huge numbers will come after he and the Pirates are finally able to finalize a long-term contract extension.

Hopefully Oneil Cruz will be ok

While all around it was a great series for the Pittsburgh Pirates, there was one potential negative that came out of the series. Potentially a major negative. In the 7th inning of game three Oneil Cruz was sliding into third base and took a knee to the face from Boston third baseman Rafael Devers.

The Pirate medical crew came onto the field to check on Cruz. After being examined, Cruz remained in the game to finish the half inning on the base. However, in the bototm half of the 7th he exited the game as Rodolfo Castro slid over to shorstop.

After the game the Pirates announced that Cruz was being evaluated for a potential face injury. So, hopefully, that is more promising than the potential concussion that it first appeared to be.

It goes without saying that losing Cruz for any extended period of time would be a major blow to the Pirates. While Reynolds is the better player right now, Curz has a higher ceiling and potential than anyone on the roster. Additionally, the Pirates have very little shortstop depth.

Let's hope Cruz being lifted was precautionary and that he will be in the lineup for Friday's home opener against the Chicago White Sox.