PITTSBURGH — What Luis Ortiz did Sunday during his first PNC Park start was outstanding. His velocity overpowered Cubs hitters. That snappy slider produced some goofy swings, too. In the second inning, Ortiz came a foul ball short of an Immaculate Inning.
For anyone sketching out how Pittsburgh’s rotation might look in 2023, the utensil used may have shifted from pencil to permanent marker. The problem, of course, was everything else.
Pittsburgh suffered an 8-3 loss to the Cubs on Sunday because the offense couldn’t score enough runs and the bullpen once again faltered when trying to prevent them. It’s become an all-too-familiar theme of late.
Consider, the Pirates entered Sunday’s game with the third-best ERA by a starting rotation over the past 26 games dating back to Aug. 28. Only the Dodgers (3.17) and Cubs (3.36) had fared better among National League clubs.
As for the bullpen, that group had pitched to a 6.10 ERA during that time, last in MLB. By more than half a run. After what happened Sunday, the bullpen’s ERA over the past 27 games sits at 6.28.
On Sunday, the turning point point came in the fifth inning, when Ortiz appeared to arrive at a predetermined pitch limit. The young righty walked Cubs shortstop Zach McKinstry with two outs, and manager Derek Shelton brought in Manny Banuelos.
Another free pass later, Banuelos served up a three-run homer to Cubs third baseman Patrick Wisdom, who clobbered his 25th of the season 445 feet to center. Predictably, it was a poorly located sinker from Banuelos that did him in.
But what happened Sunday should be less about Banuelos — a hugely replaceable arm — and more about the exciting Ortiz, who gave the Pirates 4 2/3 innings of one-run ball, walking two and striking out seven.
Of the 80 pitches he delivered on what turned out to be a gorgeous afternoon, a quarter of them popped the mitt at 98.2 mph or more. Fifteen resulted in whiffs, 15 more in called strikes, and that same number represented the number of foul balls by Cubs hitters.
It was terrific. It was also enticing, a taste of what this rotation could look like in 2023. Add Ortiz to a group that includes Mitch Keller, Roansy Contreras, JT Brubaker and a couple more, with Quinn Priester and Mike Burrows on the way, and there’s some level of promise.
The next thing on the to-do list becomes the bullpen.
And after that, the offense.
Bryan Reynolds can’t be blamed for the latter, not with his terrific work of late. Prior to Sunday, Reynolds ranked tied for 10th in the NL this month in on-base percentage (.385), 11th in batting (.314) and tied for third in hits (27).
The home run for Reynolds came on a similar pitch to the one he crushed on Friday: a heater at the top of the zone, which he promptly drove to the notch in right-center field, the ball sailing over the 375-foot sign as Reynolds began his home-run trot.
The problem, again, was everything else.
After David Bednar stranded two singles and struck out two during a scoreless sixth, Duane Underwood Jr. gave up three runs (two earned) in the seventh.
Tempers flared when Underwood Jr. hit Wisdom. Fans groaned after left fielder Ian Happ (Mt. Lebanon) singled to left, and the frustration continued when Oneil Cruz committed his second error of the game, allowing two more Cubs to touch home plate.
The 6-foot-7 shortstop — who flew out to the warning track, made a terrific lunging catch and had two singles, including one at 113.7 mph — committed two of Pittsburgh’s four errors for the game. His season total now sits at 15 through 73 games.
The first of those, on a ball hit by right fielder Franmil Reyes in the fourth inning, appeared to kick off Cruz’s glove.
On the ball that led to a pair of runs, Nelson Velazquez hit a chopper to short, and it looked like Cruz — with the infield in — was thinking about making a play before actually fielding the ball.
To avoid either being shut out or held to one run for what would’ve been the 40th time this season, the Pirates scored twice via sacrifice fly in the ninth.
