Pirates Lose Fourth Straight: Rays Jump on Harrington; Baz Revenge Game

Thomas Harrington made his Major-League debut in a pitching matchup that also featured Pittsburgh Pirates’ 2017 first-round draft pick Shane Baz for the Tampa Bay Rays.

Harrington ended up getting bested by Baz and the Rays as the Pirates were blanked 7-0 on Tuesday night at George M. Steinbrenner Field.

How We Got There

The Rays (4-1) greeted Harrington (0-1) by scoring three runs in the top of the first inning. Jake Mangum drove in a pair with a double to left and scored on a Kameron Misner base hit.

Harrington put up a zero in the second inning but the Rays extended their lead to 4-0 in the third on a Misner sacrifice fly. The following inning, Brandon Lowe connected on a two-run home run to right field.

Baz, meanwhile, shutout the Pirates (1-5) across 6.0 innings pitched and set a career-high with 10 strikeouts. He scattered seven hits – all singles – and didn’t walk a batter. Baz, Mason Englert and Mason Montgomery combined for 15 strikeouts and no walks. 

The score didn’t change again until the bottom of the eighth inning when Lowe singled home another run off Dennis Santana, pushing the Rays’ lead to 7-0.

Key Moment

Mangum, who went 4 for 4 on Monday, had three more hits on Tuesday night. His two-run double in the first provided more than enough run support for Baz and the Rays.

Star of the Game

Baz was in complete control against his former team. He’s won three-straight decisions and five of his last six dating back to last season.

Shane Baz's 8th, 9th and 10th Ks. pic.twitter.com/dmUFmYjgcs

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) April 2, 2025

Notable Pirates’ Performances

• Thomas Harrington: 4.0 inning, seven hits, six runs, four walks, two strikeouts, 90 pitches/54 strikes
• Bryan Reynolds: 2 for 4
• Ke’Bryan Hayes: 2 for 4
• Andrew McCutchen: 1 for 1

Stat to Know

Opposing starting pitchers have a 2.05 ERA against the Pirates so far this season. Baz and Monday’s starter Drew Rasmussen have combined for 11.0 shutout innings against Pittsburgh to open up this series.

Noteworthy

• The Pirates have scored one run in their last 22 innings.
• This was the first game this season in which the Pirates did not record a stolen base. Their 17 steals on the season still lead baseball by a wide margin.
• The Pirates optioned RHP David Bednar to Triple-A Indianapolis and DFA’d catcher Jason Delay to make room on the roster for Harrington.

Up Next

RHP Paul Skenes (0-0, 3.38 ERA) will make his second start of the season as the Pirates wrap up their seven-game road trip on Wednesday afternoon. He’ll be opposed by RHP Ryan Pepiot (0-0, 1.50 ERA). First pitch: 1:10 p.m. ET.