Difficult season drags on for Williams
Right- hander’s next start for the Pirates could be his last
In normal times, Trevor Williams said he’s usually pretty good about turning things off when he exits the baseball world, quickly shifting into dad mode and soaking up the quality time with his wife and three kids.
The 2020 season, obviously, is nowhere near normal, and the timing of that has been especially bad for Williams. The Pirates starter has endured a rough stretch resultswise while his family has stayed at home in Arizona, his best escape plan safely avoiding the possible transmission of COVID- 19.
It might be too strong or premature to suggest that Williams’ days in a Pirates uniform are numbered, but it’s certainly a possibility after another rough start and loss — this time 6- 5 to the St. Louis Cardinals in Game 1 of a doubleheader at PNC Park.
Williams, 28, has made 10 starts this season, and he has lost eight of them. The Pirates have won just once when he has taken the mound, while Williams has allowed 14 home runs, tied for the MLB lead. After allowing five more earned runs over 4⅓ innings Friday, Williams’ ERA stands at 6.70.
“I learned in college to compartmentalize my emotions,” Williams said. “I’ve learned I’ve got to be a dad at home, a baseball player on the field.
“This has been a different season for me because usually I’m distracted at home, and usually it’s something that takes my mind off the game. But it starts with eliminating net- negatives. It starts with eliminating distractions and focusing more on my own mental health. It’s something I will continue into next year.
“We’re going to treat this season as a mental grind and a mental health grind. I think we’ve made strides as far as my mental health goes.”
Williams said he expects to get one more start before the season is over, and he’s looking forward to making the best of that, finding some positive momentum heading into the offseason.
Despite Williams’ struggles, the Pirates actually had a couple of chances to win this one, including in the bottom of the seventh inning. Although the Cardinals are in the middle of a playoff chase, they played a sloppy game that included four errors and eight Pirates walks.
The Pirates had the tying run in scoring position in each of the final three innings, though they weren’t able to get the key hit when they needed it.
In the seventh, Kevin Newman walked and went to second when shortstop Paul DeJong threw wildly to first. Josh Bell pinch- hit for Jose Osuna and walked, loading the bases. With a 2- 0 count, John Ryan Murphy finally made the last out of the game, a fly ball to left field.
Osuna came to bat with runners on the corners with two outs in the fifth but flew out to right field to end the inning, dropping his season average to .140. Colin Moran struck out with Adam Frazier on second in the sixth, as the Pirates wound up going 1 for 9 with runners in scoring position, stranding 10.
“We didn’t get it done in the end with the few chances that we had, but we gave ourselves chances,” Murphy said. “The more you give yourselves chances, the more chance you’re going to have to succeed.”
Williams allowed a home run in each of the first two innings — a solo shot to second baseman Kolten Wong in the first, then a two- run homer for left fielder Tyler O’Neill in the second.
He’s now tied with Toronto’s Tanner Roark for the MLB lead. Eleven of those 14 have come over Williams’ past five starts, too.
The home runs came in familiar counts and on a familiar pitch; both Wong ( 0- 2 count) and O’Neill ( 3- 2) jumped on two- strike fastballs. Six of Williams’ 14 home runs have come in that situation, the result of him failing to finish off at- bats.
Wong yanked his down the right- field line, barely inside the foul pole. O’Neill’s came on an elevated four- seamer that leaked out over the plate.
As far as Williams’ future, it should be interesting to see what happens. He’ll be eligible for arbitration for the second time and should command at least $ 4 million, maybe a little more.
Meanwhile, the Pirates should be shifting toward more of a youth movement, with a rotation that’s expected to rely more on Mitch Keller, JT Brubaker and Chad Kuhl to support Jameson Taillon. Joe Musgrove and Steven Brault are also a part of the conversation.
Is Williams? At the start of this season, the answer would have been an easy “yes.” But what has transpired in 2020 certainly begs the question whether that’s money worth spending for the Pirates.
“I trust in these guys,” Williams said. “I felt like they’ve trusted me as well. It’s something that’s out of my control. Just take it when the offseason comes.”
Game 2
A couple of walks and another avalanche of errors doomed the Pirates in the sixth inning later Friday as the Cardinals won, 7- 2, for a doubleheader sweep.
It looked as if Bryan Reynolds’ first home run into the Allegheny River and a once- promising start from Chad Kuhl would become the big stories here. But that was before things got sloppy.
The inning started with Kuhl walking two of the first three hitters he faced. The one he didn’t — designated hitter Paul Goldschmidt — reached via catcher’s interference.
With the bases loaded, manager Derek Shelton turned to Chris Stratton to protect a 2- 1 lead, though the Pirates ( 15- 36) soon imploded.
Shortstop Paul DeJong tied the score with a sacrifice fly before Ke’Bryan Hayes, normally the Pirates’ best and smoothest defender, threw wide of home to allow another run to score.
Then Josh Bell tried to start a double play by throwing to second but threw wide and slipped.
The frustration culminated with a three- run home run by Cardinals rookie Dylan Carlson.