Pirates Pitching Dominates Dbacks In Series Victory
- Jim Santora
- 2 days ago
- 2 min read
The Pittsburgh Pirates travel to Arizona to take on the Dbacks and this is a series that could really propel one of these teams towards the top of the division.
Game 1
Dbacks 1
Pirates 0
(10 Innings)
If you were looking for a solid pitching outing for both teams, this was the game. Zac Gallen was solid in the first start this season for Arizona, going 8 strong innings, striking out 5 and scattering 3 hits. Meanwhile, Luis Castillo was as good, going 6 innings of shutout ball. The bullpens kept things scoreless and we would go to extras. In the bottom of the 10th, the Dbacks would get a Brendan Donovan walk with 2 outs, followed by a Miguel Andujar single. Kyle Higashoka would come up and hit a clutch single for the Dbacks win. The fans celebrate; the team is jumping around after winning their 5th extra inning game this season.
Then….
Game 2
Pirates 5
Dbacks 0
Pirates pitching continued to dominate, led by Spencer Schwellenbach. He would allow 1-hit in 6 1/3 innings. The pen would continue the dominance for the 1 hit shutout. Mookie Betts would have a 3-hit, 2 RBI day for the Pirates.
Now at this point, this would be considered a bump in the road for Arizona.
But….
Game 3
Pirates 5
Dbacks 0
Is this Groundhog Day? Same score as Game 2 and another 1-hitter for the Pirates. This time it is Hunter Green throwing darts at Dbacks batters and they can’t touch him. Green would go 6 and strike out 6 in the process. Bullpen again comes in and shuts the Arizona bats down. Sean Murphy would launch a 2-run home run to lead the Pirates hitting on the day. But to this point, it is the pitching that is outstanding for the Pirates. Back-to-back 1-hitters. Let’s hope Arizona figures out what is going on for Game 4.
Game 4
Pirates 7
Dbacks 2
The scoreless streak would end at 21 for the Dbacks, but they would only manage 2 runs off Freddy Peralta and the Pirates pen. Peralta would go 5+ and allow a run on his day. Mookie Betts would launch a 3-run bomb off Ranger Suarez to make it 5-0 before Arizona would finally put up a run in the bottom of the 4th. Pirates completely dominate this series and the Dbacks left the field to a round of boos and jeers from the crowd. Some started to break out the paper bags for their heads again.
With the series win, the Pirates have put them on a pace with the Cardinals, Dodgers and Rockies at the top of the standings. The Dbacks are a .500 team, and that is even better than what the pre-season analysts wrote about.
Thanks Steve for playing. It was a night where we used our phones and I controlled the Strat Roller because the internet went down at the lake house. So basically, I rolled Steve to victory. I am now 1-7 in virtual games and considering driving to York and the Lake House to play those series in the 2nd half.
