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Pirates Preview: Big Chance to Take Series From Cards; Can Ortiz Come Through?

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Pittsburgh Pirates- Luis Ortiz

The Pittsburgh Pirates (29-27) pulled off the improbable Friday night and completed their comeback victory over the St. Louis Cardinals (25-33).

The Pirates looked dead in the water for most of the game until the seventh inning, where Ke’Bryan Hayes belted a go-ahead three-run homer, and then Josh Palacios followed Hayes with a monster solo shot.

At one point, the Pirates were down 5-0 and pulled off the comeback and won by a score of 7-5.

The first pitch in Pittsburgh is scheduled for 4:05 p.m. You can watch all of the action on AT&T Sportsnet or listen to the game on the Pirates radio station, 93.7 The Fan.

Weather

It will be a mostly cloudy day in Pittsburgh, with temperatures ranging from 79-86 degrees throughout the contest. 8-9 mph winds are to be expected and will blow northeast.

The Pirates will send out RHP Luis Ortiz (1-2, 4.35 ERA)

The young righty struggled a little bit with giving up homers in his last start on May 28 against the Seattle Mariners.

Other than the gopher balls, Ortiz kept his team in the game with a final line of five innings, five hits, three earned runs, four walks, and six strikeouts.

Ortiz induced a season-high 14 whiffs in that contest, with eight of them coming from his slider. In addition, Ortiz had a 47% CSW rate with his slider.

More encouraging than his slider was Ortiz getting a few swings and misses on his four-seam with four, but when they made contact with it, it was hard and loud.

On four balls put into play, Ortiz’s four-seam allowed an average exit velocity of 94.8 mph.

Ortiz has faced the Cardinals once (one start) and lasted just 0.2 innings while giving up six earned runs in a losing effort.

The Cardinals will send out LHP Jordan Montgomery (2-6, 4.48 ERA)

Montgomery, in his last start against Pittsburgh (April 13), suffered the loss while giving up two earned runs in 6.1 innings pitched.

That loss on April 13 spurned three consecutive losses for Montgomery. In addition, Montgomery has lost five out of his last eight starts since his loss against the Pirates.

Montgomery offers a four-pitch mix with a sinker (41.3%), curveball (22.7%), changeup (21.7%), and a four-seam (13.2%). In addition, Montgomery has thrown a cutter (1.1%) on occasion.

Montgomery has faced the Pirates three times (three starts) and holds a 1-2 record with an ERA of 2.95 in 18.1 innings pitched.

Carinals Hitters

  • Brendan Donovan: 1-1 with a double

Pirates Hitters

  • Carlos Santana: 4-7 with three doubles and a homer
  • Andrew McCutchen: 5-14 with two doubles and a homer
  • Ke’Bryan Hayes: 0-6
  • Rodolfo Castro: 0-5 with a walk

Tidbits

  • Hayes’ three-run homer in the seventh is the second time he’s hit a go-ahead homer in the seventh inning or later. The other time was against San Diego on May 28, 2022, when he hit a three-run bomb at San Diego
  • In addition, Josh Palacios’ homer after Hayes was his first in the major leagues and marked the fifth set of back-to-back homers this year for the Pirates.
  • Per Elias Sports Bureau, the last time the Pirates won a game when they trailed by 4+ runs entering the seventh inning occurred on Aug. 26, 2021, against the Cardinals. The Pirates trailed 7-3 and won 11-7.

Links

Potanko: Matt Eckelman Embodies Definition of an Underdog

Altoona Manager Explains Pittsburgh Pirates Pitcher Tahnaj Thomas’ Development Plan (+)

Potanko: Henry Davis Putting in Plenty of Work as Catcher

Potanko: Drew Maggi Enjoying His Role in Altoona and with Pittsburgh Pirates

 

Pittsburgh Pirates Trade Robert Stephenson to Rays For Minor League Shortstop

Climbing the Ranks: Personnel Decisions in the Pittsburgh Pirates System

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