CHICAGO -- Michael Chavis stayed in the batter's box a few more seconds after whiffing before walking back to the dugout as "Go Cubs Go" started to blare through Wrigley Field's speakers.
It was a momentary pause, perhaps oddly appropriate given the history that was just made. The Pirates had just suffered the most lopsided loss in their franchise's 136-year history, 21-0, a near perfect inverse of the infamous Rennie Stennett game that was played on this very same field 47 years earlier.
It was about the only way you could use "perfect" as a way to describe this game. Where the Pirates had done well in the early part of the season defensively, with their bullpen and getting enough timely hitting, no facet of their game was executed properly.
"We just didn't play well. There's no way around it," Derek Shelton said.
After surrendering a run in the first, Zach Thompson watched eight Cubs score in the bottom of the second. Twice he appeared to set up potential inning-ending double-plays to the normally reliable Kevin Newman, but he fumbled both, allowing the inning to continue:
Kevin Newman commits two errors and the Cubs score eight runs in the inning pic.twitter.com/IhxYhSeUrp
— MLB Errors (@mlberrors) April 23, 2022
"The first ball I think he just got too quick on," Shelton said. "Tried to get a double-play, and he moved too fast. The second ball, it looked like it took a good hop on him."
With those extra chances, the Cubs kept piling on against Thompson, before Alfonso Rivas put the game out of reach early with a three-run shot.
"It kind of is what it is," Thompson said. "When you have a bounce like that, there’s really nothing you can do."
Following Thompson was Miguel Yajure, who continued his early season slump out of the bullpen by allowing seven runs while getting just seven outs, inflating his ERA to 14.04 on the year. Aaron Fletcher was able to give the Pirates 2 2/3 innings of work to save the bullpen before the Cubs piled on four record-setting runs against Diego Castillo in the eighth.
That was one of the few ways a position player contributed Saturday, with the Pirates mustering just three hits in the effort: A line drive double down the left field line by Daniel Vogelbach, a bloop single by Cole Tucker and a ninth inning infield single by Anthony Alford. Besides that, Kyle Hendricks was spotless in his seven innings.
"I don't know if I've seen the two-seamer as sharp from him as it was [today]," Shelton said. "Just looking at a couple replays on the board, he threw a couple fastballs that started middle of the plate and ended up in, off the plate, and our guys took swings at them and ended up jamming them."
After grinding out a pair of wins on Thursday and Friday with their bullpen, a loss like this is a setback for a team that had an opportunity to get their head above .500 early in the season. Instead, they drop to 7-8 and will once again not have an opportunity for a series sweep, something they have not accomplished since 2020.
"We just didn't play a good ball game," Shelton said. "They played a good ball game. Flush it and try to win the series tomorrow."
And now, the historical perspective:
• The previous most lopsided loss was April 22, 2010 against the Brewers, 20-0, almost exactly 12 years to the day of Saturday's loss.
• The second-most lopsided loss since at least 1901 was a 20-1 defeat last season on the road against the Braves.
• The previous most lopsided road shutout loss was 16-0, most recently done against the Braves on Sept. 12, 1952. Those were the Boston Braves, of course.
• The Pirates hadn't allowed 21 runs in a game since May 25, 1954 against the Giants. Those were the New York Giants, of course.
• It's the third time since 1901 where the Pirates allowed at least 21 runs. The other games were both against the Dodgers on June 24, 1950 and July 10, 1943 (23 runs). Those were the Brooklyn Dodgers, of course.
THE ESSENTIALS
• Boxscore
• Live file
• Standings
• Statistics
• Schedule
• Scoreboard
THE LOWLIGHTS
THE INJURIES
• 10-day injured list: LHP Sam Howard (back), RHP Duane Underwood (hamstring), RHP Max Kranick (forearm)
• 60-day injured list: OF Greg Allen (hamstring), RHP Blake Cederlind (UCL), RHP Nick Mears (elbow surgery)
THE LINEUPS
Shelton's card:
1. Daniel Vogelbach, DH
2. Bryan Reynolds, CF
3. Michael Chavis, 3B
4. Yoshi Tsutsugo, 1B
5. Diego Castillo, RF
6. Ben Gamel, LF
7. Kevin Newman, SS
8. Cole Tucker, 2B
9. Andrew Knapp, C
And for David Ross' Cubs:
1. Rafael Ortega, DH
2. Seiya Suzuki, RF
3. Wilson Contreras, C
4. Ian Happ,LF
5. Patrick Wisdom, 3B
6. Jonathan Villar, 2B
7. Jason Heyward, CF
8. Alfonso Rivas, 1B
9. Nico Hoerner, SS
THE SCHEDULE
The Pirates still have a chance at the series win Sunday. JT Brubaker (0-2, 7.30) will take on Justin Steele (1-1, 4.50) at 2:20 p.m. Eastern. I've got you covered for the final game of the road trip.
THE CONTENT
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