Offense Goes Cold As Pirates Fall to Reds

The Pittsburgh Pirates suffered their first loss of the 2016 season falling to the Cincinnati Reds by a score of 5-1. The offense collected a lot of hits but just couldn't come trough with the big hit when they needed it.

The Pittsburgh Pirates couldn't come through in the clutch this afternoon as they fell to the Cincinnati Reds 5-1. The Pirates had many opportunities offensively, but just couldn't get The big hit when needed

There were a lot of mistakes on the base paths including one very costly one in the seventh inning. With the Pirates down 3-1 John Jaso got thrown out on a groundball trying to retreat to second base. He took off thinking that Matt Joyce would break for the plate, but he stayed put and Jaso was a dead duck.

This missed opportunity, along with some others, was the reason Pittsburgh loss this afternoon. Rasiel Iglesias pitched a good game for the Reds going 5.2 innings giving up one run on eight hits while walking two and striking out five.

Gerrit Cole, on the other hand, struggled in his season debut. He went 4.2 innings giving up three runs on five hits while walking three and striking out four. He dealt with soreness in his side and he has been fighting that all spring.

His command just wasn't there today and he suffered on the mound. There is no reason to worry about Cole though. He will bounce back and be the dominant pitcher he was last season. Cole collected 19 wins last season and was named to his first ever all-star game selection.

The Reds offense got going early as RBI singles by Eugenia Suarez and Jay Bruce gave the Reds an early 2-0 lead. The Pirates were down but, like last night they tried to crawl back into the game little by little.

They had an opportunity with two on and no out in the second, but Josh Harrison lined out and Jordy Mercer grounded into an inning ending double play to end the threat. The Pirates collected a plethora of hits with 10 on the day, but missed opportunities like these was ultimately the deciding factor.

The Reds added another run in the bottom of the fifth when Brandon Phillips hit an RBI single that scored Suarez. Phillips has been a Pirate killer over the first two games of this series going a combined 3 for 6 with RBI and two runs scored. He has driven the Cincinnati offense and helped them get the better of the Pirates.

The Pirates scored their one and only run in the game in the top of the sixth. After a Cervelli single and a Gregory Polanco walk, Josh Harrison stepped to the plate with two outs. He was able to capitalize as he hit a 1-0 pitch into center field to score Cervelli and make the score 3-1 in favor of the Reds.

Iglesias got taken out of the game afterwards and reliever Blake Wood ended the threat getting Mercer to pop out in foul territory to end the inning. The Pirates posed another threat in the seventh inning with the same result.

It all started with a Matt Joyce walk follows by a Jon Jaso double to put runners at second and third with nobody out. Then Andrew McCutchen hit a soft ground ball to First base. Jaso took off for third in contact but realized that Joyce had stayed put at third. As Jaso tried to scramble back to second, he was thrown out and the double play was complete. The inning ended the very next batter as David Freese struck out to end the inning.

Archimedes Caminero pitched great out of the bullpen this afternoon throwing 1.1 innings giving up no runs and only allowing one hit on the day. In his first three outings, he has been very good out of the bullpen not giving up a run in 4.0 innings of work while striking out four and only walking one batter.

Kyle Lobstein followed him coming off of his win on Tuesday night in extra innings against the Cardinals. He threw 2.0 innings giving up two runs on two hits while walking one and striking out one.

The big blow to Lobstein came in inning number eight when Eugenio Suarez hit a two run home run that gave the Reds a 5-1 lead and ultimately put the game out of reach for the Pirates. It was a mistake pitch as Lobstein left the fastball right down the middle and Suarez took advantage of the mistake.

The five six and seven hitters in the Pirates order went a combined 7 for 10 on the day, but the struggles of the beginning of the lineup did not help the Pirates cause today. You can't win them all and today just wasn't the Pirates day.

The Bucs conclude their series with the Reds at Great American Ball Park tomorrow at 1:35 p.m. It will be Tim Melville for the Reds versus Jeff Locke for the Pirates as both pitchers will be making their season debuts.

Marte's Slam Caps Pirates Comeback

Starling Marte smacked a grand slam in the top of the eighth to cap off a Pirates comeback as they defeated the Cincinnati Reds by a score of 6-5 yesterday.

On a cold Friday night, the Pittsburgh Pirates bats could not get going. Through the first 7 innings of the game the Pirates only had six hits and could not get a run across the plate.

Things started out the same in the eighth as the first two batters were retired fairly quickly. Then after Jon Jaso was hit by a pitch, Andrew McCutchen walked, and David Freese singled the bases were loaded for Starling Marte with the Bugs trailing 5-2.

Marte was hitting .187 coming into the game but was 2 for 3 on the night. He takes the first pitch for a ball and then quickly deposits the next pitch over the left field wall for a grand slam to give the Pirates a 6-5 lead.

It was the first home run of the year for the Pirates and it couldn't have come at a better time. The offense has been finding ways to win ball games early on in the season. Whether it's via the home run or small ball they find ways to pull out the victory.

Francisco Liriano struggled on the night throwing 5.0 innings giving up three runs on five hits while walking four and striking out three. Liriano has never done well against the Reds throughout his career.

Coming into the night he was 1-5 career against the Reds. The cold night air didn't help either As rain and snow fell all night long. He wasn't getting any swings and misses on the night like he had been on opening day against the Cardinals.

The Reds struck quickly against Liriano as Brandon Phillips hit a first inning two-run home run to give the Cardinals a 2-0 lead. Phillips had a great offensive day going 2 for 2 with two RBI and a walk on the day. He was involved in four out of the five Reds runs on the night.

The Pirates responded in the top of the second when Francisco Liriano hit an RBI double that drove in Jordy Mercer to pull the Pirates within one making the score 2-1. Liriano is currently hitting .750 on the season, 3 out of 4, with two RBI. His early success at the plate comes as a little bit of surprise as last season he was one of the worst hitting pitchers on the team with a .169 average.

The Reds got another run back in the bottom of the third when Phillips hit a sacrifice fly that scored Zack Cozart and gave the Reds a 3-1 lead. Liriano got into a couple jams on the night but was able to weasel his way out only allowing three runs on the night.

The Pirates had a big opportunity in the top of the fifth as they loaded the bases with only one out. Francisco Cervelli stepped up with one out. He hit into a force play that scored McCutchen and trimmed the lead to 3-2. The Pirates didn't score another run and The deficit stayed 3-2.

Ryan Vogelsong made his Pirates debut next pitching 2.0 innings giving up two runs, one earned, on one hit while walking two batters. Vogelsong struggled early on but settled down and did well out of the bullpen.

The Reds added runs in both the sixth and seventh innings on an RBI single by Billy Hamilton and a wild pitch that scored Phillips giving the Reds a 5-2 lead.

The Pirates loaded the bases in the seventh inning without getting a hit. Jon Jaso was hit by a pitch, Andrew McCutchen walked, and David Freese reached on a fielding error. Then Marte stepped up and hit the first Pirates home run of the year, a grand slam, that gave the Pirates a 6-5 lead.

Then Neftali Feliz and Mark Melancon came in to finish the game. Each throwing a perfect inning of work. Feliz struck out two in The eighth inning to hold the Reds at bay. Then Andrew McCutchen made a spectacular catch in the ninth robbing Eugenia Suarez of a hit.

Melancon collected his second save of the young season in the Pirates 6-5 victory. The win puts the Pirates at 4-0 on the season and they have scored four or more runs in each contest.

The Pirates are back in action today against the Reds. On the mound for the Reds is Rasiel Iglesias (0-0 3.00). Last time out he faced the Philadelphia Phillies and three 6.0 innings giving up two runs on six hits while striking out seven. The Pirates will counter with Gerrit Cole who will make his season debut for the Bucs. First pitch at Great American Ball Park is scheduled for 1:10 p.m.

Andrew McCutchen Highlights

Andrew McCutchen has been the face of the Pittsburgh Pirates franchise since his call-up in 2009. The four time Silver Slugger and five time All-Star looks to continue his success in a Pirates uniform in 2016 and looks to lead this team to the playoffs and beyond

In this graphic, I am looking to show the highlights of Andrew McCutchen's career and how he has become the leader of the Pittsburgh Pirates. I hope you guys enjoy it and let me know what you think.