Chris Archer lived up to his promise and he didn't sound the least bit surprised by it.
After he lost his fifth consecutive start last Sunday, one in which he was booed by fans at PNC Park, he vowed he would be better his next time out. And those jeers turned to cheers Friday night as Archer pitched seven solid innings to help the Pirates beat the Brewers, 9-4, and get back to .500 at 28-28.
“I’ll be real,” Archer said when I asked if he needed an outing like this from a mental standpoint. “I don’t need it because my confidence has never been wavering. I’m coming up on 200 starts in the big leagues. Nobody is going to be perfect. I’ve done it long enough. I’ve thrown thousands and thousands of pitches. Sometimes the game doesn’t go your way. If you allow it to overwhelm you, it will. But since I’ve done this for a long time, I’m not going to be overwhelmed. I’m going to stay relentless. I've been doing this a long time. I'm not going to let (a slump) define me."
Archer didn’t exactly overwhelm the Brewers, but he pitched well enough, allowing four runs, six hits and two walks while striking out seven in seven innings. Perhaps the most impressive part of the outing was that Archer got those seven innings on just 92 pitches. Pitch efficiency has often been a problem for him since being acquired from the Rays last July 31 in a trade.
Freddy Peralta was one of Archer's strikeout victims:
It was Archer's first win since April 7.
“It was a lot of good things that happened tonight,” Clint Hurdle said. “There wasn’t one thing. He came out and the body was fresh and live. There was some energy, some edge. The fastball played extremely well, and he kept throwing it. He challenged them with the fastball and when he got them looking for the fastball, he threw the changeup.
“We’ve seen this from him before. The game can be hard and sometimes you can get caught in some vacuums that take a little while to get out of. He just got a fresh start tonight, went back to the basics and threw his fastball.”
Archer wound up throwing 50 fastballs, which accounted for more than half his pitches. Going back to the basic tenet of pitching off your fastball – an art dying in today’s breaking ball-oriented game – was by design.
Archer threw two bullpen sessions between starts — one more than usual — while looking to get back on track. Backup Jacob Stallings, who got the start at catcher Friday night, caught both bullpens and suggested Archer rely more on the heater.
“He had very good command of the fastball and that set up all his other pitches,” Stallings said. “He was throwing all five of his pitches well and when he’s pitching like that, he’s going to be tough to beat.”
Staked to a 7-1 lead after the Pirates scored six runs in the third inning, Archer gave half the advantage back in the fourth when tagged for a three-run home run by rookie Keston Hiura with two outs.
It was easy to wonder if Archer would be able to hold the big lead, considering how poorly he has pitched in recent weeks. The concern grew when he followed the homer by walking Jesus Aguilar -- who hit a solo homer in the third -- and giving up a single to Orlando Arcia.
Archer escaped the jam, though, and retired 10 of his last 11 hitters.
“I felt really strong, very comfortable,” Archer said. “I felt like I was throwing the ball well. I never reached a point where I was concerned.”
Archer was quite carefree when the game was over, winking at me following his post-game scrum with the media and saying, “Believe me, I’m going to sleep well tonight.”
THE ESSENTIALS
• Boxscore
THE GOOD
The Pirates scored nine runs. But it was more like death by paper cuts for the Brewers’ pitching staff.
All 13 of the Pirates’ hits were singles. They also drew three bases-loaded walks from Jhoulys Chacin in the span of four batters during the big third inning.
“We’ll take 13 hits any way we can get them,” Josh Bell said with a smile.
Kevin Newman had two hits in the third. He led off with a single then capped the outburst with a two-run single that pushed the Pirates’ lead to 7-1.
“It’s a great inning when you’re hitting around like that and guys are having good at-bats and we’re getting some free passes and capitalizing on them,” Newman said. “It was fun.”
Starling Marte drove in the first run of the inning, snapping a 1-1 tie with a single.
THE BAD
Stallings was the only player in the lineup who didn't have a hit as he was 0 for 5 with two strikeouts. However, it's difficult to be very critical of Stallings considering how in concert he was with Archer.
THE OTHER SIDE
Chacin won 15 games last season, leading the Brewers in wins as they captured the National League Central title. However, the right-hander has lost four straight starts and is 1-7 in his last 10 outings.
The bases-loaded walks hastened his early exit.
"I just lost my focus in that inning," Chacin said. "That never happened to me before, walking guys with the bases loaded like that. I need to start to do a better job if I want to keep pitching."
Manager Craig Counsell admitted after the game that the Brewers could consider moving Chacin to the bullpen.
THE DATA
• Bell went 2 for 5 but came up short in his bid to break the franchise record for most extra-base hits in a month. He finished with 24 -- 12 doubles and 12 home runs --- tying the mark set by Paul Waner in June 1927 then equaled by the Hall of Famer in August 1928.
• Newman extended his hitting streak to 10 games by going 2 for 5.
• Bryan Reynolds also ran his hitting streak to 10 games with a 2-for-4 performance.
• The Pirates won for just the seventh time in 24 games this season when allowing four runs or more. They are 21-11 when they give up three runs or less.
• The Pirates are 12-9 inside the National League Central this season and have won five of their last six games against divisional opponents at PNC Park.
THE INJURIES
• Jordan Lyles, right-hander, has been cleared to start Sunday against the Brewers after leaving his previous start Tuesday against the Reds at Cincinnati because of left hamstring discomfort.
• 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 third game of their four-game series at 4:05 p.m. Saturday with Nick Kingham (1-1, 8.28) starting against Brandon Woodruff (7-1, 3.22), who is 6-0 with a 2.47 ERA in his last eight starts. Matt Sunday and I will be on the coverage.
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.
