Pirates Play Dead In 7-0 Loss

Chad Kuhl spun a 1-2-3 first and ditto for Mike Montgomery. Anthony Rizzo sent the opening pitch of the second over the wall; an out later, Kyle Schwarber tried to do the same when he tucked a fly inside the LF foul pole, but Corey Dickerson sprung above the wall and brought the ball back in for a loud out. The Cubs had some spark left with back-to-back singles, but Chad worked out of that jam. It was again nada by the Pirates. The third was messy as Kuhl walked three, but again he escaped thanks to caught stealing on a bullet shorthop by Eli and a nice block & tag by S-Rod. The Bucs were silent again, although Eli banged a long out into The Notch. A single and bunt was all the havoc the Cubs created in the fourth. This is now the longest outing of  the season for Montgomery and went as well as the first three; he's perfect after four. Kuhl gave up a couple of liners and a walk in the fifth, but he's done a great job at damage control today. With an out, Corey D rolled a single up the middle to end the hitless streak. The good times lasted three pitches until Freeser bounced into a 6-4-3 DP.

Chad dodged some raindrops to toss a fine game (photo Pittsburgh Pirates)

Chad twirled a clean sixth and finished the day with a nice line - one run on four hits, four walks, and five whiffs after 93 tosses. Like Taillon yesterday, he used his slider often and to good effect. S-Rod opened with a soft infield knock, but Eli and Red Beard K'ed. Steve Cishek came on to face J-Hay to get a righty match; it was a great outing for Montgomery, pulled from the pen to spot start. Josh K'ed, too; so far the Bucco bats have been on holiday. Steven Brault got the seventh inning call and didn't help matters; he gave up a single and a two-out homer to pinch hitter Addison Russell, and 3-0 looks like Mt. Everest the way the Pirates are swinging it. Kyle Crick finished the frame, getting Kris Bryant on a long, loud fly. Ol' matey Justin Wilson toed the slab and the Pirates couldn't get a ball out of the infield. A single and dribbler thrown away by Crick put Cubs on the corners in the eighth. An intentional walk followed, and then another typical Cubbie rhubarb broke out - a grounder led to a force at home; Rizzo chopped down Eli as he was making a throw for two, with the ball airmailed into right and Diaz down after the collision, leading to two more runs.

The slide (image AT&T SportsNet)

Clint charged out and got a review; Joe Maddon joined the fray and probably raved about Eli having a sudden case of plantar fasciitis. The ruling was upheld (Rizzo went right at Diaz and took out Eli's back leg which was still in front of but well away from the plate as he stepped toward first; it was a text book take-out slide. One side will say cheap shot; the other just breaking up a DP, and the MLB rule's interpretation is seat-of-pants. Clint got ejected, but at least Eli hung in there after limping it off; Cervy is still flu-bitten and S-Rod was the nominal back-up. Maddon was still arguing after the fact; guess he can't take yes for an answer. Anyway, the rest of the inning went quietly and Pedro Strop put down the Pirates in order. Ric Rod had a rough ninth, giving up two runs on four hits and a wild pitch - actually, Eli  wasn't quite mobile enough to block it - with Rizzo getting a two-run knock, the ultimate Pirate punking. Luke Farrell came in to finish and didn't break a sweat doing so. And to boot, Joey Cora and David Freese had to be separated by Gregory Polanco in the dugout after the game, though we don't don't know what triggered that bout. The team locked the doors and had a meeting afterward about the slide.

This club is a hot mess right now; they can't hit the ball, the bullpen has gone to five alarms and they can't draw fans to PNC Park. Then a little scuffle after the game between Joey Cora and team elder Freeser? Clint better channel some of this team's frustration-fueled energy into performance or the season could go south fast. The living is easy when you're winning; not so much when you're down-and-out.

Notes:

• The Pirates have lost 8-of-10.
• This was the first time Steven Brault has appeared on consecutive days.
• Pirate pitchers have committed six errors this year; five have been by Ivan Nova and Kyle Crick.
• Freeser tied Jordy for the team lead with his fourth GIDP. Mercer has 40 AB w/runner on first, < two outs; Freese 15 AB w/runner on first, < two outs.
• Another dismal crowd - 19,382 visited PNC Park on Memorial Day. And by the sound of it, half came from Chicago.
• The park held a moment of silence at 3 PM in remembrance of those who gave their lives defending the nation. The game's first pitch was thrown by Air Force Master Sgt. Tammanica Muse.