Pirates Lose in Historic Fashion Against Cubs in 21-0 Trouncing

Zach Thompson surrendered four straight singles from Nico Hoerner, Rafael Ortega, Seiya Suzuki, and Wilson Contreras, giving the Cubs a 4-0 lead. Kevin Newman added to the painful second inning with two errors that should’ve been inning-ending double plays which increased the Cubs’ lead 6-0.

The second inning didn’t stop there for the Cubs as Alfonso Rivas drove in Jonathan Villar and Patrick Wisdom with his first home run of the year, giving the Cubs an insurmountable 9-0 lead over the Pirates.

Thompson finally got out of the second inning but not after the Cubs batted around and drove in a total of eight runs on six hits. The Pirates fell back to below .500 after a historic 21-0 loss to the Cubs.

The Pirates’ offense was lifeless against the veteran Kyle Hendricks. The Bucco bats were held hitless through the first three innings, and only three balls left the infield. Daniel Vogelbach broke up yet another no-hitter, this time in the fourth inning with an awkward-looking ground-rule double. The offense added just two more hits thanks to Cole Tucker and Anthony Alford.

Miguel Yajure had to come in the third inning to replace Thompson. Thompson’s line read two innings, nine hits, nine runs (four earned), two walks, and a strikeout.

Yajure had an equally bad outing this afternoon, giving up at one point four straight doubles in the fifth inning. The Cubs increased their lead to 16-0 under Yajure’s watch.

Yajure’s final line looked brutal with 2.1 innings pitched, seven hits, seven earned runs, one walk, and no strikeouts. Yajure’s ERA was boosted to 14.04 on the year.

You deserve a high-five if you had Diego Castillo pitching in today’s game on your bingo cards. The Cubs got some “insurance runs” against Castillo, making it a 21-0 game.

Takeaways

It’s Just One Game- Despite the embarrassing loss, the Pirates still have a chance to take the four-game series from the Cubs and escape Chicago with a .500 record. Think back to when Clint Hurdle said, “our take good showers,” referencing the Pirates don’t think about the previous day. Maybe these Pirates’ players have the same philosophy. 

Yajure May Be The Next Option- Yajure looked lost, again on the mound. With a bloated ERA over 14, the Pirates may want to option Yajure down to Triple-A to figure out the kinks in his game.