Losing streak reaches 7 in row
Musgrove’s solid start not enough
ST LOUIS — A look at the sixth inning of the Pirates’ 31 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals Saturday night at Busch Stadium is all one needs if they want to understand why the Pirates are on a seven-game losing streak.
The inning started with a bit of good fortune. Dexter Fowler belted a ball that landed in front of Bryan Reynolds in left field with no outs. Fowler rounded first but Reynolds made a throw to Adam Frazier at second that beat speedy Fowler to the bag. Second-base umpire Adam Hamari called Fowler out.
On the replay, it appeared that Frazier’s tag was late. But the umpires upheld the play when the Cardinals made the challenge. As things go when a team is 4-23 since being 2½ games out of first place at the All-Star break the Pirates gave the gift right back.
Tommy Edman hit a double off starting pitcher Joe Musgrove with one out. Marte fielded the ball and threw to Kevin Newman. What followed was a this is who the Pirates are right now moment. Newman threw the ball to third when he didn’t have to. Edman slowed into second and didn’t appear to be a threat to run.
“There were probably three disconnects on the play,” Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said. “The throw
needs more conviction. The ball needs to get there and not be a short hop. Moran got caught in between. At the end of the day if you’re a third baseman, you have to do everything you can to try to keep the ball in front of you. We didn’t do that. The third part is Musgrove has to back up the play, and he wasn’t in a position to back up. We had three disconnects.”
Newman threw it low toward Colin Moran who didn’t catch it.
“I didn’t block it enough,” Moran said. “It’s an isolated play that happens. I need to get in front of it. I tried to and it didn’t happen.”
Frazier tried to get Newman not to make the throw but the raucous 45,026 fans at Busch Stadium were too loud for Newman to hear him.
“Once the ball got to the wall I thought there was going to be a play at third,” Newman said. “Frazier said ‘no, no, no’ but I didn’t hear him and I threw it. I needed to make a better throw. If I make a better throw he stays at second base.”
Musgrove didn’t back up third and the ball rolled into the dugout.
“I saw the ball go to wall and thought he might try to take three,” Musgrove said. “I headed over there and I stopped around the foul line when I saw Edman pull up. I thought we were going to hold onto the ball and not even make a throw to third. If the throw goes to third that’s the last thing I expect there.”
“I need to be back there backing up the base. I have nowhere else to be but backing up the base that is my job. Once I saw I saw Edman pull up I pulled up. I saw the short hop throw and as soon as it got away I made my best effort to cut it off. But it was a little too late. There’s no excuse. My job is to be behind them.”
Edman was allowed to advance two bases on the bad throw and scored on the play to give the Cardinals a 2-1 advantage.
That’s a lot of words about one play but when you’re 20 games below .500, moments like this stick out even more.
Paul Goldschmidt followed with a single. Marcell Ozuna ended Musgrove’s outing with a double and put runners on second and third with one out. Paul DeJong hit a ball in the gap against Fransisco Liriano that Newman got to and mishandled.
DeJong got credited with a single and RBI as Goldschmidt scored. If Newman fields the ball properly, he has a chance at throwing out Goldschmidt with a good throw. Alas, it wouldn’t happen and the Cardinals went up, 3-1.
Frazier staked the Pirates a 1-0 lead with a home run off Adam Wainwright’s first pitch. Frazier hit an 85-mph slider that caught too much of the plate into the Cardinals bullpen in right.