The Toronto Blue Jays scored four runs in the first inning on their way to a convincing and comfortable 8-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park on Saturday night.
The loss was the sixth straight for a Pirates team that has been reeling for the past week. The lack of quality starting pitching performances, questionable baserunning and defense, and the inability to score runs have all contributed to this slide suffered by a team which was seen as one of the biggest surprises of Major League Baseball thus far.
Johan Oviedo took the loss today, and was hit hard early and often. He gave up seven runs (six earned) on ten hits in five innings, falling to 2-3 on the season. Jose Berrios won this third game of the season (3-3), giving up two runs on five hits in 6.1 innings of work.
Giving up four runs in the first inning put the Bucs in a huge hole early. A single by Daulton Varsho scored the game’s first run, and was followed by a two-run double from Brandon Belt and a RBI double by Alejandro Kirk. The Blue Jays extended their lead in the third inning when Cavan Biggio singled home a run to make it 5-0, and was followed later in the inning by a two-run single from Kevin Kiermaier.
Connor Joe’s RBI single scored Bryan Reynolds to get the Pirates on the board in the sixth inning. Toronto added another run in the seventh, and Jack Suwinski’s solo homerun, his seventh of the season, capped off the scoring for Pittsburgh.
This was another game in which the Pirates looked like the inferior team. The baseball season is a marathon with a lot of ups and downs along the way. This team has already seen a lot of highs and now they are experiencing a very low point. They need some things to go their way, and the frankly need to play more fundamentally sound baseball if they want to end this losing streak.
The Pirates will look to avoid their seventh straight loss and second consecutive series sweep when they face off against the Blue Jays on Sunday afternoon. Roansy Contreras will be on the mound for Pittsburgh against Yusei Kikuchi for Toronto.
Record vs. Blue Jays: 0-2
Record vs. American League: 6-8
Record at Home: 9-6
Overall Record: 20-14
And…
As Always…
Let’s Go Bucs!
