PITTSBURGH — Seemingly stranded in the desert while mired in one of the longest losing stretches of the season, the Pirates found some water Saturday in the form of future pieces, young players they surely hope will be part of an eventual rebound.
Johan Oviedo’s seven sparkling and scoreless innings might’ve been the biggest component of Pittsburgh’s 6-0 victory over the Chicago Cubs at PNC Park, but what the big right-hander did wasn’t the only encouraging sign.
Ji Hwan Bae, the speedster summoned from Triple-A Indianapolis just 24 hours earlier, roped a two-run double into the right-field corner to give the Pirates a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the fifth inning.
Jack Suwinski, meanwhile, continued to make PNC Park his personal fun house, driving a three-run homer to center field later in the frame.
Combine the three, and we’re talking about three players who probably could and should influence the 2023 team in significant ways.
If Oviedo can come reasonably close to what he did against the Cubs, it’ll go a long way toward the Pirates’ bolstering their rotation. Oviedo used just 82 pitches to saw through seven, delivering 58 strikes. He didn’t walk a batter. The three hits were all singles.
Cubs hitters also appeared to have trouble picking up Oviedo, as he accumulated 18 called strikes to go along with nine whiffs, seven via his slider.
Saturday marked what was obviously Oviedo’s best outing as a Pirate, since the Jose Quintana/Chris Stratton trade and he finished a short stint with Triple-A Indianapolis.
The second-best effort from Oviedo would have been his five scoreless innings Sept. 13 at Cincinnati, but he obviously wasn’t as dominant as he was against the Cubs. The outing helped Oviedo tie his career-high in innings, and at one point he retired 16 in a row after allowing a two-out single in the second.
As for Bae, his double followed a terrific debut in which he singled, walked and stole two bases. His effort showcased his speed more than anything. On display Saturday was Bae’s bat control, the versatile player reaching out to poke a low-and-outside changeup.
Bae, by the way, is the 14th Pirate to make his MLB debut this season, up from eight last season. Only three teams in either league have enjoyed more. It’s the first time a Pirate recorded two stolen bases in his MLB debut.
As for Suwinski, well, this is starting to feel like a daily occurrence with him in this park. On Saturday he smashed a 1-1 change-up to straightaway center, 426 feet away. The left-handed slugger makes it look easy.
The home run was the 18th of the season for Suwinski. He has now gone deep in four of his last five games along the Allegheny River and in 15 of 49 overall.
Should Suwinski go truly bonkers, Brian Giles holds the season record for home runs at PNC Park with 18.
But more than anything historical, Pirates fans should feel great about the evolution of Suwinski. Entering next season, how is he not one of two regulars in the outfield along with Bryan Reynolds?
Add those two to Ke’Bryan Hayes, Oneil Cruz, Rodolfo Castro and others — potentially Bae, Cal Mitchell, Travis Swaggerty, who knows — and the Pirates are seeing the makings of an exciting core.
That was enough to snap an eight-game winning streak Saturday and could potentially be enough to produce some smiles during what has been a frustrating close to the regular season.
