Colin Moran Gets Bucs Off To Quick Start As Pittsburgh Holds Off San Diego, 6-4, To Take Series

Fraze opened with a rap; Melky, for some reason, bunted. Gregory K'ed but J-Bell, the Man of Steel, singled and the Bucs drew first blood against Cal Quantrill. Then came a Bryan Reynolds rap and Redbeard bomb; holy first-inning outburst! Eli singled before it ended with young Cal tossing 39 pitches and down 4-0. Big Joe served three grounders for an easy opener. The Padre youngster calmed down in the second and twirled a clean, seven-pitch frame. Joe punched out a couple of Friars in another quiet inning. Gregory walked to start the third and J-Bell took a two-strike slider to the track; close but no cigar. After another fly, Polanco got picked off, tumbling to first in another of his Mack Sennett slides. Wil Myers opened with a walk for SD. An out later he was picked off for Musgrove's third three-up, three-down frame; lotta daydreaming goin' on this inning. Redbeard hit a laser to right (106 MPH off the bat) to start the fourth, but Hunter Renfroe was there for the grab. Eli then singled, but the pot wasn't stirred any further. Joe kept cruising. Fraze doubled to open the fifth and Melky singled him home. He even stole a base, and J-Bell walked, but no more damage was wrought.

Eli's on an 8-of-16 tear (image via Pittsburgh Pirates)

Eric Hosmer singled to get the first Friar knock; an out later, a DP kept Big Joe's workload at the minimum. Robbie Erlin came on and tossed a flawless sixth frame; ditto for Musgrove. No peeps out of the Bucs in the seventh; Greg Garcia led off with a two-bagger for San Diego, and the wheels came off. A single scored a run, Joe mishandled a tapper after a pop out by rushing a throw to second rather than taking the sure out at first, and Hunter Renfroe went yard off a 2-0 hung hook, making it a 5-4 game in a hurry. Geoff Hartlieb was called in and got the final two outs, sandwiched around a walk. The Bucs had an eighth-inning answer. Bryan Reynolds doubled with an out and Redbeard's rap brought him home. Eli singled and Craig Stammen was waved in to plug the dike. Frankie Liriano was beckoned, and a walk with an out was erased on a 4-3 DP. Brad Wieck got the ninth and worked a quiet frame. The Nightmare took his spot on the rubber, and after a pair of K was touched for a knock. Three pitches later, he had his trifecta and you can raise the Roger.

The Nightmare struck out the side in the ninth (photo Dave Arrigo/Pirates)

Odd trip; at 7-4, it's an unqualified success, especially considering the Pirates lost the opener of all three series. The Bucs are 24-20 and holding up OK as a MASH unit. It was also nice to see someone who isn't one of the usual suspects step up today and row the boat; Colin Moran's big day came right on time as Melky, Gregory and J-Bell managed just two singles. Hope the guys enjoy their day off, as they get ready to rumble with the Rox, Dodgers, Reds and Brew Crew before they get another day of rest.

Notes:

• Redbeard had two hits and four RBI; Eli stayed hot with three raps, and Fraze & Bryan Reynolds added a pair of hits/runs scored each.
• Melky collected career hit #1,900 today.
• Petco Park hadn't had a rain delay since 2015, and only six in its history. (In fact, there have only been three rainouts ever at PP) But today, the tarp didn't come up until 4:00 as the Mother Nature fooled around enough to cause the seventh delay. It was just for 25 minutes, with the game starting at 4:35.
• LHP Buddy Boshers, who spent last August with Indy, started this season in Mexico. He just turned that into a minor-league deal with the Blue Jays.