Pittsburgh Pirates A Step Closer To Playoffs After Another Shutout Win
By Matt Gajtka
Sep 22, 2014; Atlanta, GA, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates center fielder
Andrew McCutchen(22) celebrates a solo home run in the sixth inning against the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Shirey-USA TODAY Sports
The team that slugged its way through most of September has suddenly stopped doing so, but they keep on winning.
Riding a second consecutive shutout performance by their pitching staff and a sixth-inning solo home run by Andrew McCutchen, the Pittsburgh Pirates posted a 1-0 victory over the Atlanta Braves on Monday night.
The tight win, Pittsburgh’s 14th in its past 17 games, opened both a four-game series at Turner Field and the final week of the regular season. Francisco Liriano got the evening started with six shutout innings, continuing a spectacular second half that has seen him post an earned-run average of two. He has allowed exactly one run in four September starts.
Liriano departed after 101 pitches, striking out seven to neutralize seven Braves baserunners (three singles, four walks). Jared Hughes, John Holdzkom and Mark Melancon did the job in relief with a scoreless inning apiece, sending Atlanta (76-80) to its fourth consecutive loss. The Braves have plummeted out of the playoff race with a 4-15 record this month.
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The Pirates (85-71) have gone in the opposite direction, surging from out of the postseason field to the National League’s top wild-card position in a matter of three weeks. The Bucs’ magic number for clinching a playoff berth fell to two with the victory, which guaranteed that they’d at least stay tied with likely playoff opponent San Francisco by Tuesday morning.
Interestingly, Monday marked the first time since 1917 that Pittsburgh had played three 1-0 games in a row; the Pirates fell by that score to Milwaukee on Saturday before rebounding for a 1-0 win Sunday that likely doomed the Brewers’ October aspirations. Overall, they have allowed just six runs in their past seven games, six of which were wins.
Dating back to Friday’s comeback win, the Pirates have scored in exactly three of their past 34 innings. That’s quite the departure from the new Lumber Company that was averaging six runs per game over a recent two-week stretch.
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They managed four hits Monday, although several lineouts indicated they deserved better, especially against Braves starter Aaron Harang. Only McCutchen could dent the hefty right-hander, driving a waist-high fastball over the fence in left-center field for his team-leading 24th homer of the season.
Considering the way the Pirates have been pitching, McCutchen could’ve been excused for thinking he won the game with one swing. As it turned out, he did.
Game 2 of the series arrives Tuesday night at 7. Gerrit Cole opposes Alex Wood, hoping to boost the Pirates further toward the postseason.
Notes: Russell Martin, coming off a huge weekend against the Brewers, extended his hitting streak to 13 games with a fourth-inning single…Josh Harrison fell slightly back in his pursuit of the NL batting title, going 1 for 4 to drop his season average to .318. He is tied with Colorado’s Justin Morneau for the league’s top spot. McCutchen is third at .310.