The Pittsburgh Pirates offense was shut out today as they lost to the Detroit Tigers by a final score of 3-0 as their record falls to 3-8 on the Grapefruit League season.
The Pirates pitchers performed pretty well on the mound today, but the Pirates offense was held in check as the Pirates fell 3-0 to the Detroit Tigers. Some key contributors to the Pirates offense strated to heat up but it was not enough to defeat Mike Pelfrey and the Tigers.
The long battle for the fifth starter spot continued as Jeff Locke took the hill for the Pirates. In his last spring outing Locke performed well pitching 3 innings of scoreless baseball while only allowing two hits on the day. The outing before that was a nightmare as he went 2 innings giving up four runs against the Tigers.
This time out, he continued his hot streak as he had an overall solid outing. He pitched 4.0 innings giving up two runs on two hits while striking out five and walking one. The strike out numbers were a good thing to see for Locke in today's outing. If Locke can improve upon his 2015 strikeout numbers it could go a long way to making him the solid back-end of the rotation pitcher that the Pirates desperately need.
Locke had a slow start to the fifth starter spot race but recently has turned it on. He is in a battle with Kyle Lobstein and Juan Nicasio to see who will round out the starting rotation. Locke came into spring training the likely candidate for the job. However, with the performances of Lobstein and Nicasio so far, Locke is going to have to have a couple of great outings if he wants to remain the fifth starter for the Pirates.
After Locke, a pair of candidates for the 2016 Pirates bullpen entered the game in John Holdzkum and Eric O'Flaherty. Each performed well today and helped their case to be a part of the 2016 shark tank for Pittsburgh.
Holdzkum threw one inning of perfect baseball retiring the side 1-2-3. Ever since his shaky outing in the beginning of spring against Toronto where he gave up three runs in just 0.2 innings pitched, Holdzkum has been solid for the Pirates. Fighting his way back from injury, Holdzkum looks to be a solid option for the Pirates in the middle of their bullpen.
O'Flaherty also had a strong outing giving up no runs on one hit while walking one in his 1.0 inning of work. So far this spring, O'Flaherty has been performing well for the Pirates only giving up one earned run in his four outings. His only real rough spot came in his first outing when he gave up 5 runs, only one earned, and walked one batter. O'Flaherty is looking to revitalize his career with Pittsburgh after a down 2015 season. So far in spring training, he is making a strong case for a spot in the 2016 Pirates bullpen.
Two non-roster invitees finished out the game as Jorge Rondon threw a scoreless inning only giving up one hit and Curtis Partch gave up one run on two hits while walking two and striking out one in his 1.0 inning of work. For the most part the Pirates pitching did very well this afternoon, however the offense could not do anything as the Pirates suffered the loss.
While the offense was not able to score any runs today, there were some positives on the day. Some of the key offensive players for the Pirates performed well at the plate and are starting to get hot over the course of spring training. These minor victories will be key to the Pirates moving forward.
Michael Morse has been working a lot in right field recently and performed well in today's game going 1 for 2 with a walk on the day. With the log jam of first baseman the Pirates currently posses, it will be key for a guy like Morse to learn multiple positions so that he can be useful for the Pirates. Morse does have the ability to play the corner outfield positions and can be used there on his off days from playing first base.
The addition of David Freese also makes it vital for for Morse to be able to play multiple positions. Freese provides a veteran infielder to back up the corner positions. If Freese has success it could mean that Morse gets moved to the outfield to help with depth at that position. Either way, he will be a key platoon piece for the Pirates to use throughout the season.
Another player who performed well today was Chris Stewart. Stewart went 2 for 3 today with two singles increasing his spring average to .300. Stewart will be used to back-up Francisco Cervelli this season and could see some time catching Gerrit Cole. Last season, Cole collected 14 of his 19 wins with Stewart behind the plate. That match will continue in 2016 and could see the Pirates all the way to the 2016 playoffs.
Pedro Florimon continued his spring training success as he went 1 for 2 today increasing his average to .313. With the addition of Freese, it is looking less likely that Florimon could make the roster. However, if he keeps performing well he could find his way with the big league club at some point during the 2016 season. Josh Bell also had a good day at the plate getting one hit in his only at bat of the night.
Don't let the current spring training record fool you, there have been a lot of positives for the Pirates over the course of spring training. we have seen guys like Florimon and Lobstein perform well while doing what they can for the team. There is still a lot of work to be done, but with opening day still 22 days away, the Pirates have some time to work out the cincks that are present in their 2016 roster.
The Pirates are back in action tomorrow as they once again take on the Detroit Tigers. The Tigers will send lefty Matt Boyd to the mound. He comes into the game with a 1-0 record so far in spring training with a 1.80 ERA. For Pittsburgh, it will be the spring training debut of ace Gerritt Cole. First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. at McKechnie Field in Bradenton, Florida.
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