SPRING REPORT
PIRATES 9 RED SOX 4
FORT MYERS, Fla. — Can Adam Frazier and Bryan Reynolds bounce back from rough 2020 seasons? Will Ke’Bryan Hayes keep it going after his tremendous MLB debut?
Those questions seem pretty silly right now, as those three — the top three hitters in the order Sunday — powered the Pirates to a victory over the Red Sox at JetBlue Park.
Frazier delivered a pair of doubles, drove in three and is now hitting .577 (15 for 26) this spring. Hayes went 2 for 4 with a triple and two RBIs. His nine extra-base hits are tied for the MLB lead. He’s also tied with Gregory Polanco for the team lead in RBIs with eight.
Reynolds, meanwhile, clobbered his third home run of the spring in seventh inning, a two-run shot to left-center. Reynolds is hitting .290 with a .984 OPS and seven RBIs this spring.
The Pirates improved to 9-10-1 this spring
On the mound
It’s unlikely that Wil Crowe will begin the 2020 season with the major league club. However, with what he has done this spring, he has put himself in position to be one of the first callups should something happen.
The 26-year-old right-hander had another solid outing, working 32⁄ innings and allowing
3 an earned run on four hits with a walk and two strikeouts.
“I’m just coming in every day and working my tail off and trying to earn a spot,” Crowe said. “My job is to get guys out, and however I may do that, that’s all I’m worried about. Whatever they tell me to do is what I’m going to do.”
At the plate
Hayes has hit the ball hard, to all fields, and has accumulated 28 total bases in 37 plate appearances. It just looks so natural for him.
Frazier has also shown a solid amount of power, producing six extra-base hits in eight games after returning from a minor groin issue that kept him out early.
In the field
The Pirates entered the game with 18 double plays through 19 spring games, a top-five total in Major League Baseball. They added three more Sunday.
Hayes started No. 19 in the third. Cole Tucker got No. 20 going in the fifth before Will Craig snagged a ball from Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers up the first-base line in the sixth, then fired a strike to second to nail left fielder J.D. Martinez.
Up next
Monday’s game: Pirates vs. Orioles, 1:05 p.m., LECOM Park, Bradenton, Fla.
Pitchers: RHP Mitch Keller vs. LHP John Means. Also for Pirates: RHP Trevor Cahill, RHP Duane Underwood Jr., RHP Chris Stratton, RHP Luis Oviedo and RHP Quinn Priester.
Watch, listen: AT&T SportsNet, KDKA-AM (1020), KDKAFM (100.1).