ST. LOUIS — Joe Musgrove was already plotting his between-starts routine a few hours after he walked off the mound at Busch Stadium Tuesday night. The Pirates' early arrival for a day game the following morning would disrupt his lower-body workout, an essential part of how he's remained strong in the second half.
Though Musgrove's final line included four earned runs in an 11-5 loss to the Cardinals, he struck out eight with only two walks in his 18th start of the season, a career high for the 25-year-old. Much has happened for Musgrove over the past 12 months. He was in the bullpen for the Astros' World Series run last October, got traded to the Pirates in January and moved back to the rotation upon returning from a shoulder injury in May.
The on-the-mound intensity that's beloved by his teammates hasn't changed. Neither has that routine. But it's the latter that's helped him emerge as a a pillar of a flourishing rotation.
"He’s a gamer," Ivan Nova told DKPittsburghSports.com. "That guy is really mentally strong. The guy likes to compete. It’s fun to watch him take the mound. I would say he’s one of the best I’ve ever seen. You see how he jumps out on that mound to get to that bunt and dive for that ball. Make the easy, quick throw. It’s amazing to watch that guy pitch."
Clint Hurdle raised a few eyebrows back in July when he called Musgrove one of, if not the best athlete on his roster after the 6-foot-5 starter made an incredible play to field a bunt on wet grass in Cleveland. Yet, almost every start since, including his third against the Cardinals, has included some remarkable display of athleticism. This time, he made another slide to field a ball that ricocheted off his glove in the first inning, firing a quick throw over to first for the out.
It's his exhaustive workouts between starts that make those plays possible. The day after every start is dedicated to an intense 40-minute run on the field, heavy lower-body workouts and a shoulder massage followed by contrast bath therapy. The following day is heavy upper-body lifting, as well as shoulder exercises. Day three includes his bullpen and more shoulder strengthening, and the day before he starts is reserved for stretching, relaxation and final preparation. There's also studying the scouting reports and watching film.
Some pitchers opt to not lift during the season. Justin Verlander, a teammate of Musgrove in Houston, doesn't. Charlie Morton, on the other hand, became close with Musgrove because the two had similar routines.
"Maintaining my strength throughout the year is a big thing for me," Musgrove said. "I’m not someone who maintains muscle very well. It’s all about kind of learning as you go along. I tried going a couple starts without lifting, and I don’t feel as strong. Fine-tuning it and how I can make myself feel best on day five. You have to tinker stuff here and there based on how your body is feeling or the timing of starts."
That's when Musgrove explained his predicament. An early report for the series finale Wednesday meant there would be little time for his typical workout, so he planned to spend most of the Pirates' off-day at the gym in Milwaukee on Thursday. And that routine has been the talk of the clubhouse for much of the season.
"He’s probably stronger than anybody," Nova said with a laugh. "He does a lot of different things I can’t do. No way I can do it. Maybe in the past, but no way."
Hurdle added: "It’s one of the things I appreciate the most about Joe is he has very high expectations for himself, a very high level of drive. He’s going to push himself harder than I think a lot of other people would push him. ... The work he sets up to do between starts, whether it’s studying, whether it’s cerebral, whether it’s endurance training. Because he does it all. If you ever watch him in the weight room, it’s impressive."
That's what Musgrove was missing early this season. He made four rehab appearances across three levels in the minors, delaying his Pirates debut until May 25. A return-to-pitch program offers little time for strength training, which Musgrove said has allowed him to match his workload from last season — 109.1 innings — with possibly three more starts remaining.
More important, that work has helped him take better advantage of his time throwing between starts. That's when Musgrove's refined his arsenal, working with Ray Searage on how he should attack hitters. Musgrove is a strike-thrower. He always has been, even when he struggled as a starter in Houston. He's thrown first-pitch strikes 80 percent of the time this season, the eighth-highest mark among National League starters, by establishing his fastball early.
Opponents have caught on, though. The Cardinals tagged him for five runs at Busch Stadium on Aug. 30. So, Musgrove used his between-start routine over the past four days to figure out how to keep them off his fastball.
This time, he threw his changeup more than his fastball, with 11 of 24 producing swinging strikes, including this changeup to strike out Marcell Ozuna in the fourth:
He retired 14 straight after allowing two runs in the first, but he gave up two more in the sixth. Musgrove's posted a 3.67 ERA with 46 strikeouts to seven walks in nine starts since the All-Star break for a rotation that has the sixth-lowest ERA in the majors during that span. The Pirates, now 71-73, are 9 1/2 games back in the wild-card race after four relievers who hadn't pitched since being recalled Sept. 1 allowed a combined seven runs Tuesday night.
The final 18 games don't mean much to the team. In the interim, however, each start and workout matters for Musgrove.
"It’s a lot different feeling when you’re not competing for a playoff spot or you’re not in the hunt, but as a starter it’s a good chance for us to go out, learn and grow," he said. "Try to work on some things we want to work on. Sometimes you can suffer because you’re not getting your best lineup or your best defense out there every night. But all the guys we’ve brought up have showed a lot of fight and a lot of desire. They’ve produced when they’ve gotten out there. As starters, we’re comfortable with the guys we’re rolling out there every day."
1. Dickerson's still searching.
Corey Dickerson's had trouble regaining his timing since returning from the disabled list Aug. 4. He's batting .211 with 28 strikeouts to two walks and five doubles in 31 games since. Pitchers are taking advantage of his tendency to swing at pitches outside the zone, and he seems to be trying to hit for power the way he did in July.
That said, any sign of tangible progress is significant. He now has at least one RBI in back-to-back games, driving in two more Tuesday night. He lined a hanging slider to left to score Josh Bell in the fourth inning and doubled to right to drive in Ryan Lavarnway in the ninth. But Dickerson also struck out swinging and grounded into an inning-ending double play in the sixth.
Health isn't the issue. He simply hasn't regained the feeling at the plate he had when he was at his best. Though they'll need to monitor his workload since he's already played in a career-high 111 games in the outfield — that surpassed his previous high of 98 — the Pirates will play Dickerson as much as possible so he can try to finish strong. After all, they'll rely on him to help rejuvenate this offense in 2019.
2. A bad look for pitching depth.
Nick Burdi's only in the major leagues because he needs to accrue 90 consecutive days of service time or he must be returned to the Phillies, from whom the Pirates acquired him at the Rule 5 draft. The 25-year-old reliever underwent Tommy John surgery last May and hadn't pitched above Double-A before this season.
He showed no signs of being ready for the big leagues, yet Hurdle turned to him with the Pirates trailing by four runs in the eighth. It didn't go well. He allowed four runs, three earned, on a walk and two hits, including a three-run homer by Tyler O'Neill:
Then it was Clay Holmes' turn, and that went as well as you'd expect. He gave up two more runs on three hits to push the Cardinals' lead to 11-1. Tanner Anderson, another minor-leaguer called up on Sept. 1, uncorked a wild pitch on his first throw one inning earlier. The foundation of this bullpen is set for next season and offers at least some hope.
But this showed there's no depth behind them. Michael Feliz was charged with another earned run. Steven Brault walked two more batters. Hurdle, though, wanted to get Feliz, Holmes, Anderson and Burdi on the mound with the Pirates trailing since there's no telling how long they'd have to wait to pitch.
"Once there was some separation in this game, four guys needed to touch the ball," Hurdle said. "I don’t know what’s going to happen tomorrow and then it’s another off-day. It could be three more days for these guys. Running into two weeks since you’ve pitched, that’s not healthy for anybody. The opportunity presented itself."
3. The Seinfeld infield.
Shortstop Kevin Kramer and second baseman Kevin Newman, drafted in the first and second round in 2015, respectively, started together for the first time in the major leagues Tuesday night.
Neither fared well offensively until the Pirates' four-run ninth inning, when they had back-to-back RBI hits to cut the deficit to seven, capped by Newman's RBI double:
Otherwise, they went a combined 0 for 6 with three strikeouts. They'll get at least one game a series moving forward. Hurdle mentioned possibly using Josh Harrison and Jordy Mercer together at the start of the series before using the two rookies.
"They've done it before, so they're pretty comfortable with it. ... I had a lot of thoughts going in how we wanted to play it out," Hurdle said. "There still could be some adjustments along the way, but if it works with Jordy and Josh setting the tone for the first game of the series and these guys follow suit. Go from there. I think it's really good experience against the level of team we're playing. The fact for them to play together, I think is important, as well. It's all part of their growth."
