Pirates cap road trip with win
Musgrove mostly effective after delay
SAN DIEGO — There have been two consistent elements for the Pirates 44 games into the season.
One: If it can go wrong, no matter how improbable, it will. Two: The Pirates will more often than not overcome it.
“We never start worrying. Worry isn’t what we do here,” Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said. “What kind of plan do you have when you plug in worry? You adapt, improvise, and you fight and you battle. We don’t take anything for granted. We know we have to earn it when we walk in the door. I think that’s what kind of keeps it simple for us.”
There was evidence of both elements in a 6-4 win Sunday against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park. The Pirates (24-20) won three consecutive games after losing Thursday in the series opener and finished an 11-game road trip through St. Louis, Phoenix and San Diego with a 7-4 mark.
Petco Park is one of the most implausible ballparks without a dome or retractable roof in baseball for a rain delay. The stadium in the famed Gaslamp Quarter had only six rain delays in its 15year history. The most recent one was in September 2016. By comparison, there have been four rain delays this season at PNC Park for a total of 4 hours and 45 minutes.
If you’re a team on the final day of an 11-day, 11-game road trip, the last thing you want or expect is a rain delay. Ideally, the getaway day would be smooth and easy as you board a crosscountry flight with the first off day in 13 days approaching Monday.
Of course, only the 2019 Pirates could find rain in Southern California. The seventh rain delay in
Petco’s history held up the start of the game for 26 minutes.
The 6½ innings that followed appeared to a beautiful, leisurely day for the Pirates after the sun came out.
“[Padres manager Andy] Green came over to talk us before the game, and I joked we have a home-field advantage since we play in this a lot back in Pittsburgh.” Pirates starting pitcher Joe Musgrove said. “I was used to it. I felt comfortable and locked in today. I felt good even with the rain delay.”
San Diego native Musgrove didn’t allow a baserunner until the third when he walked Wil Myers. Ty France hit a fly ball that Bryan Reynolds caught in center field for the first out, and then Musgrove picked off Myers at first and ended the inning by getting a ground out from Padres starting pitcher Cal Quantrill.
Musgrove pitched a clean fourth that was punctuated by striking out Manny Machado, but Erik Hosmer got the first hit for the Padres in the fifth. Musgrove ended the inning by inducing Austin Allen into a double play.
The Pirates offense broke loose in the first for four runs, with Colin Moran delivering the big blow, a three-run homer to center field with Josh Bell and Reynolds aboard. Bell drove in the first run, his 44th RBI of the season, with a single, scoring Adam Frazier, who led off with a single and advanced to second on Melky Cabrera’s sacrifice bunt.
The Pirates scored their fifth run in the fifth. Frazier started the inning with a double and scored on a Cabrera single, which was the 1,900 hit of his career. Cabrera stole his second base of the season after the single.
Hurdle is an avid baseball historian and appreciated the feat. Cabrera has the sixth-most hits of any active player.
“Nineteen-hundred is a whole bunch more than I got,” said Hurdle, who had 360 hits in his 10-year playing career. “It’s a whole bunch more than a lot of people got. He’s so respected in this industry. Everywhere we go somebody is seeking him out to thank him for helping them along the way. He’s been a welcome addition to our club. It’s been a great sign for us.”
Musgrove had a fiverun lead headed into the seventh and appeared to be rolling. But then the wheels came off as he gave up a double and a single for the Padres first run. Machado fouled out for the first out, and Musgrove had a chance to get out of the inning when Hosmer tapped weakly to the firstbase side of the mound. Musgrove, though, threw wide to second and everyone was safe.
“It’s kind of unfortunate that I let things away from me there in that last inning,” Musgrove said. “Maybe I should’ve gone to first on the Hosmer ball.” Hurdle agreed.
“He had a play in front of him to make. Maybe if you get the out at first that changes the complexion of the inning,” Hurdle said. “He’s so athletic. Sometimes what makes you laugh makes you cry.”
Three pitches later, Hunter Renfroe hit a threerun homer on a cutter and Musgrove exited the game.
“Up until my last pitch of the day being the homer I felt really good out there today,” Musgrove said.
Geoff Hartlieb, in just second big-league outing, finished the inning by getting two ground outs between a walk. Francisco Liriano and Felipe Vazquez pitched shutout innings to close out the win.