Bednar returns, feels good

Falter again shaky in loss to Blue Jays

BRADENTON, Fla. — For this being one of the final games of spring training — there are now just four left — the Pirates enjoyed an evening of firsts during a 3-2 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays at LECOM Park on Thursday.

The biggest storyline was this being the first Grapefruit League game of the season for two-time All-Star closer David Bednar, who had been dealing with right lat soreness. Good news: Bednar looked very much like himself.

Velocity was mostly around 97 mph, the curveball had plenty of bite, and he delivered a nasty, first-pitch splitter to Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette. Bednar did it all with the Mars High School baseball team — and his dad, Andy — watchingfrom the stands.

“It was great to get out back there again,” Bednar said.

Another first came when Michael A. Taylor made his Pirates debut, starting in center field and batting seventh. Signed last week to a one-year, $4 million deal, Taylor clearly makes the outfield better and should aid the offense as well.

It was a quiet night for Taylor. He went 0 for 2, but that didn’t diminish the excitement for his arrival.

“I think he’s gonna be great,” Bryan Reynolds said. “Obviously he’s a fantastic center fielder, so it’s gonna be nice to have that locked down in center when he’s out there.”

Ironically, the game was also decided in the first inning, when Bailey Falter struggled. Falter walked designated hitter George Springer to start the game, struck out Bichette and permitted a two-run homer to Justin Turner.

Two batters later, Kevin Kiermaier hit a pitch that was executed horribly by Falter. Changeup left middle-middle. Kiermaier crushed it 403 feet at 103.4 mph, continuing an ugly trend for Falter this spring.

“I’ve been shooting myself in the foot a little bit, falling behind in counts, not getting that first-pitch strike and setting myself up for failure early in the game,” Falter said.

That was the sixth home run Falter has allowed. No MLB pitcher has coughed up more. Falter also has a 7.88 ERA in 16 innings.

At this point, it’s tough to see how Falter breaks camp with the major league club.

At the plate

The first big hit came courtesy of Reynolds, who connected on a 1-0 sinker while swinging from the right side. Reynolds’ solo shot to left-center had an exit velocity of 109.6 mph as it cleared the left-field fence.

It hasn’t been a terribly productive spring for Reynolds, who’s hitting .190 with a .737 OPS, although he does have four home runs. Not that he’s losing much sleep over it.

“Season starts in a few days, so hopefully I’ll find a barrel lefty in the next couple of games and go from there on both sides,” Reynolds said.

On the mound

After Falter and Bednar, the Pirates got another strong performance from Ryan Borucki, who struck out all three Blue Jays he faced. Jose Hernandez and Josh Fleming also followed with scoreless frames, Hernandez slicing his ERA to 1.50.

Most intriguing among the later pitchers might’ve been Roansy Contreras, who worked just one inning … but it was actually pretty good. Contreras was around the plate, allowed one hit and struck out three in a scoreless frame. After the game, manager Derek Shelton confirmed that Contreras is indeed now a reliever.