The Pirates’ defense and pitching let them down again on Sunday, committing three errors and five wild pitches. Joe Block has the story.
Manager Derek Shelton says teams don’t win games when they play the way the Pirates played.
Shelton says it was a tough day behind the plate for catcher Jason Delay and for the entire Pirates team.
The Bucs hope to rebound tonight as they open a series against the AL West-leading Texas Rangers. Luis Ortiz [0-2, 5.36 ERA] pitches for the Pirates against the Rangers’ Dane Dunning [4-0, 1.69 ERA]. It’s a 6:10 airtime, 6:35 first pitch on WCCS.
Pirates right-hander Vince Velasquez threw 4-and-two-thirds scoreless innings in a rehab start with Triple-A Indianapolis on Saturday. He threw 63 pitches in his first outing since suffering elbow pain against Tampa Bay on May 4th.
Right-hander Duane Underwood Jr. has forearm tightness and did not pitch after a poor outing on Friday against the Diamondbacks. He has not been placed on the injured list at this point.
If the Bucs need him, former first round draft choice Quinn Priester looks ready to go. The right-hander threw five shutout innings yesterday for Indianapolis in another quality start.
ALTOONA CURVE
The Curve lost to Bowie, 5-3 yesterday to split their series. Jared Jones allowed only two runs in four innings but took the loss. Mason Martin, hitting just .190, hit his seventh home run. The Curve return home to open a six-game series tomorrow night against Hartford.
