Looks like the good Grimace vibes are wearing off for the New York Mets. After an improbable surge back into the NL Wild Card picture, New York’s perpetual little-brother MLB franchise is regressing to the mean with three straight losses, including an ugly 14-2 defeat at the hands of the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Paul Skenes and by proxy Livvy Dunne have pretty much been the only sources of hope Pirates fans can bank on this season. Every time the rookie flamethrower Skenes is on the mound, Pittsburgh has a shot to win. However, in Skenes’ four prior starts, the Buccos had given him a combined eight runs in support of his quality outings.
The lid popped off on Friday night. Skenes did his typically stellar work, yielding four hits and two runs with eight Ks across seven innings. Pittsburgh’s lineup has a .231 collective batting average in 2024, but at least for one night, it was on to the tune of seven home runs. The last was a sick grand slam that literally rendered PNC Park unable to celebrate in proper, apropos Fourth of July fashion.
Rowdy Tellez's second homer of the night is a grand slam that gives the Pirates SEVEN home runs for the game pic.twitter.com/W0sFxB6i8L
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) July 6, 2024
We hit so many home runs that we ran out of fireworks.
We're being serious.
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) July 6, 2024
It was great to hear the broadcast team discuss the surreal situation. Perhaps the Pirates had a surplus stockpile of fireworks that they dished out for the Independence Day festivities, not anticipating that their team would pop off for seven dingers and 14 runs any time soon. As fate would have it, that’s precisely what happened.
The Pirates hit so many home runs tonight they ran out of fireworks pic.twitter.com/hboeVaeGYs
— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) July 6, 2024
Gary Cohen: There is a note on the scoreboard that the Pirates, with their 7 HRs…have run out of the fireworks that they use.
Keith Hernandez: You got hawk eyes, Gare.
Cohen: Just trying to figure out what we're supposed to talk about now. If not fireworks, then what? pic.twitter.com/dn4QLy5j5v
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) July 6, 2024
We’re talking a once in nearly three quarters of a century type of eruption from the Buccos.
Two stories from last night, the first on the Pirates tying a franchise record for home runs, hitting seven at home for the first time in 67 years. So man homers that they actually ran out of fireworks.
“I think we can build off it and keep it rolling.”https://t.co/VxNbeHtUNZ
— Alex Stumpf (@AlexJStumpf) July 6, 2024
Skenes must be pretty hyped since he got such awful run support in his more recent appearances. The pressing questions are, can the Pirates find a way to either acquire more bats for the stretch run to the playoffs, or can their current platoon of batsmen figure out how to hit better than .231? If the answer is “yes” to either of those, perhaps Pittsburgh can make a push for a Wild Card berth.
Alas, as Colin Cowherd observed, it doesn’t feel like the Pirates have enough talent to reverse what’s becoming a self-evident poor hitting trend across Major League Baseball.
I counted only 12 players in MLB hitting above .300. The league BA is .232. Brutal. I guess the good news — at least the games end quickly now.
— Colin Cowherd (@colincowherd) July 5, 2024
What’s happening? Didn’t they just get rid of the defensive shift to make it easier on hitters?
Feed me every advanced stat and sabermetric you want. If MLB’s league-wide batting average is even in earshot of the Mendoza Line, I’m less inclined to tune in. You know, unless Paul Skenes is pitching.
Paul Skenes through first 10 career MLB starts:
5-0 W/L
2.12 ERA
59.1 IP
78 Ks
1.01 WHIP pic.twitter.com/saNylC6A3h— MLB (@MLB) July 6, 2024
Paul Skenes has recorded 7+ strikeouts in 9 of his 10 career outings, setting the Major League record for most within a player’s first 10 career games. pic.twitter.com/gjIRH4OlC2
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) July 6, 2024
This, from @kileymcd, sums up Paul Skenes really well. He's already a top 5 pitcher. The rest of the story, in which Kiley does a pitch-by-pitch breakdown and scouting report at ESPN+, is well worth your time to understand why Skenes is so good already: https://t.co/AsWcVP4V7C pic.twitter.com/gl0YCINaI5
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) July 6, 2024
