Why is Richard Rodriguez giving up so many home runs this season?
It is a question the Pirates have yet to answer. And it was a question Rodriguez apparently did not want to face Thursday night.
The Pirates sent Rodriguez, a right-handed reliever, to Triple-A Indianapolis on May 17 in hopes that he could cut down on the gopher balls. He returned to the majors Monday and then surrendered another long ball three days later.
The Brewers’ Eric Thames led off the ninth Thursday with a blast to right field, sparking a four-run inning that effectively ended the Pirates’ comeback bid as Milwaukee notched an 11-5 victory in the opener of a four-game series at PNC Park. It was the fifth loss for the Pirates (27-28) in their past seven games.
Rodriguez has now given up nine home runs in just 26 games and 22 1/3 innings this season, an average of 3.57 per nine innings.
It’s hard to know what Rodriguez thinks about his problems with the long ball. He told team translator Mike Gonzalez that he did not wish to speak with the media following the game but would be available Friday.
The optimistic might say Rodriguez did not want to let emotions get the best of him while dealing with the media after a rough outing. The realist would say Rodriguez did not want to hold himself accountable for another bad outing that raised his ERA to 6.45.
Rodriguez had his head buried in his cellphone while sitting at his locker before the media made a request to speak to him. Perhaps he was asking Siri how to avoid homers.
Last season, Rodriguez was an unlikely success story after spending eight seasons in the minor leagues. He had a 2.47 ERA in 63 1/3 innings and gave up just five home runs in 69 1/3.
This season, he resembles the pitcher who looked overmatched in 2017 in a September call-up with the Orioles, allowing four homers in 5 2/3 innings. It was certainly a small sample size, but perhaps was a red flag of things to come.
The relentlessly positive Clint Hurdle keeps saying Rodriguez isn’t getting away with many mistakes. But even the manager admitted the multiple-run innings are beginning to wear on the Pirates, saying, “we’ve given up way too many of them.”
Thames’ home run came off a slider that didn’t do much sliding and pushed the Brewers’ lead to 8-5.
“What hurt us with Thames is he’s a good hitter, he has some hot zones and we probably should have done something else, but we put a breaking ball in the middle of the plate,” Hurdle said. “When (Rodriguez) misses his location, he’s continually paid for it.”
An even bigger blow came later in the inning when Lorenzo Cain hit a three-run double off Rodriguez to put it away.
The discouraging part was Rodriguez couldn’t keep it close after the Pirates scored three runs in the eighth to draw within 7-5 and force Brewers manager Craig Counsell to bring in closer Josh Hader to get the final out of the inning. The game was so far out of reach an inning later that Counsell didn’t send Hader back out for the ninth and instead used Matt Albers to finish.
The opposite of Rodriguez, Albers had a 1-2-3 inning.
"The game seemed like we were so far away, but we weren't," Hurdle said. "We were knocking on the door until late."
THE ESSENTIALS
• Boxscore
THE GOOD
Melky Cabrera helped the Pirates get back into the game when he hit a two-run double in the eighth as a pinch-hitter that cut the deficit to 7-4. He then scored on Cole Tucker's single.
Cabrera continues to be a great bargain for a team that loves bargains. While making just $1.15 million on a minor-league contract he signed the day before spring training began, the 34-year-old outfielder is hitting .327/.364/.449 with three home runs in 52 games.
“He has been a good get, as I’ve been saying all year,” Hurdle said. “In the clubhouse. In the dugout. And on the field.”
THE BAD
The bad Joe Musgrove showed up for the second start in a row as he allowed five runs and 11 hits in six innings to lose his second straight start.
Musgrove (3-6) made six starts in May and went 2-4 with an 8.10 ERA. He was tagged for 24 earned runs in 16 1/3 innings in the losses for a 13.22 ERA but allowed just three runs in 13 1/3 innings for a 2.02 ERA in the wins.
“The in-zone spin probably hurt him more than anything,” Hurdle said of Musgrove, using language a pitching coach would love. “Whether it was the slider, the backdoor cutter. The left-handed attack presented some big challenges.”
The Brewers tagged Musgrove for three home runs. He had given up just two all season in 11 games and 59 starts.
"I had a good game plan," Musgrove said. "You saw when I executed the pitches, I got the results that we needed. I think it just comes down to execution."
Mike Moustakas hit a two-run shot in first inning then went back-to-back with Yasmani Grandal to start open the third and extend the Brewers' lead to 5-1.
This was Moustakas' first homer.
On the bright side, Musgrove got through six innings. That meant the Pirates needed their beleaguered bullpen to cover just three innings.
THE OTHER SIDE
It was the 10th two-home run game of Moustakas' nine-year career. He also had an RBI single in the eighth inning and went 4 for 5.
Moustakas has 15 home runs in 51 games this season after re-signing with the Brewers (32-25) over the winter as a free agent for two years and $20 million. Last year, he homered eight times in 54 games after being acquired from the Royals in a July trade.
Even though Colin Moran hit a solo home run off Chase Anderson (3-0) in the fourth inning, Pirates third basemen have combined to go deep just seven times in 55 games.
"I've honestly just been getting good pitches to hit and not missing them," Moustakas said. "I'm just trying to not do too much. Take the same approach, same swing. Just get a good pitch to hit, get a good swing on it and see what happens."
THE DATA
• Josh Bell went 1 for 4 with a double. His 24th extra-base hit of May tied the franchise record for a single month that was set by Paul Waner in June 1927 and matched by the Hall of Famer in August 1928.
• Bryan Reynolds was 2 for 4 to extend his hitting streak to nine games. The rookie is 13 for 32 (.406) with eight RBIs during the streak.
• Adam Frazier batted eighth and went 0 for 3. It was the first time he did not bat leadoff this season.
• Elias Diaz started at catcher for the 12th time in the past 15 games, going 2 for 4, and he is 18 for 46 (.391) with seven RBIs in that span.
• The Pirates have lost seven of their past eight home games and are 10-15 at PNC Park this season. They have a 17-13 road record.
THE INJURIES
• Corey Dickerson, left fielder, is on the 60-day IL with a right posterior shoulder strain and is on a rehab assignment with Class AAA Indianapolis.
• Francisco Cervelli, catcher, is on the seven-day concussion IL.
• Jung Ho Kang, third baseman, is on the 10-day IL with a left side strain and is on a rehab assignment with Indianapolis.
• Jameson Taillon, right-hander, is on the 60-day IL with a right elbow flexor tendon strain.
• Trevor Williams, right-hander, is on the 10-day IL with a right side strain.
• Keone Kela, right-hander, is on the 10-day IL with right shoulder inflammation and has had his rehab assignment with Indianapolis stopped.
• Chris Stratton, right-hander, is on the 10-day IL with right side discomfort.
• Erik Gonzalez, shortstop, is on the 60-day IL with a left clavicle fracture.
• Lonnie Chisenhall, outfielder, is on the 60-day IL with a right finger fracture and left calf strain and recurring calf tightness and his rehabilitation assignment with Indianapolis has been stopped.
• Nick Burdi, relief pitcher, is on the 60-day IL with right elbow/biceps pain caused by a nerve problem and is rehabbing at the Pirates' spring training facility in Bradenton, Fla.
THE SCHEDULE
The Pirates and Brewers play the second game of their four-game series Friday night with Chris Archer (1-5, 5.75) facing Jhoulys Chacin (3-6, 4.88). Archer has lost his past five starts and Chacin has dropped his past three. I will be covering the game.
THE COVERAGE
All our expanded baseball coverage, including Indy Watch by Matt Welch, Altoona Watch by Jarrod Prugar, and Mound Visit by Jason Rollison, can be found on our team page.
MATT SUNDAY GALLER
Pirates vs. Brewers, PNC Park, May 30, 2019 - MATT SUNDAY / DKPS
