Tellez hopeful his three-hit, four-RBI showing can spark turnaround

TORONTO -- Rowdy Tellez's offensive deficiencies have been well documented. Once viewed as a legitimate power threat with a 35-homer season under his belt, Tellez hasn't shown a propensity for the long ball and has struggled to the tune of a .177 average and a .462 OPS heading into Sunday.

Still, despite the constant woes Tellez has endured during his brief stint in a Pirates uniform, Derek Shelton has noticed the work he's put in behind the scenes in an attempt to right the ship. 

“He’s been working hard," Shelton said. "The last homestand, we gave him the three days to kind of work on his swings. I think we’re seeing his timing be a little bit more consistent.” 

Tellez's work seemed to pay some dividends Sunday afternoon at Rogers Centre, as he put together arguably his best performance of the season with a 3-for-4 effort in which he drove in all four of the Pirates' runs in a 5-4 loss to the Blue Jays. 

“Just good at-bats. He took good swings. The ball that he made the out on was the hardest ball he hit and Daulton Varsho made an unbelievable play," Shelton said. "This kid has the ability to hit. We just need to get him going. He had a couple hits earlier in the road trip and then today he had really nice, solid at-bats off some good pitching.” 

Tellez reached base four times, contributing first with a walk in the second inning. He then sent a 1-1 curveball from Blue Jays starter Chris Bassitt into right field for an RBI single that put the Pirates ahead 1-0 in the third: 

His third at-bat brought similar results against Bassitt, who Tellez had been 0 for 6 against in his career prior to this day. Bassitt left a 1-1 changeup up in the zone and Tellez sent a sharp line drive past Varsho in right-center for a two-run double that made it 3-1 for the Pirates: 

On a day where they stranded 13 runners on base and went 3 for 16 with runners in scoring position, Tellez couldn't single-handedly will the Pirates all the way back. He did his best to make it close, though, adding an RBI single against Yimi Garcia in the ninth: 

In talking with the team's hitting coaches, Tellez recalled, he focused on staying comfortable in the box and remembering the things that allowed him to have success over the years. With that came his sixth multi-hit game of the season and his highest RBI output since he drove in three runs against the Marlins in Miami on March 31. 

"I think just one of those days that kind of breaks you out of that slump, hopefully," said Tellez, who is now hitting .194 with a .505 OPS. "I've been putting in a lot of work. The little things matter. I got some good pitches to hit, put some good swings on the ball. But unfortunately, we couldn't pull that one out."

Tellez sees it as his duty to turn things around and provide positive contributions when called upon. He's had a few encouraging moments this season, including his other five multi-hit outings, that have looked promising in sparking that turnaround, but it hasn't happened where he's been able to consistently contribute at a significant level. This time around, he hopes he's finally found a springboard. 

"It's my job. It's my job to show up every day. It's my job to play. It's my job to run out there whenever they call me to play, whether I'm playing good or playing bad," Tellez said. "They brought me here for a reason, and I need to fulfill that reason ... I've got to be the best teammate I can be, day in and day out. A lot of young guys here. A lot of guys that I was in their shoes when I was younger. I can't be somebody that's selfish or negative or do anything different day to day, whether I'm playing good or bad. I've got to be an example, even when it's not going good for me."

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