Matt Gorski and Darick Hall; Lone Bright Spots in 15-3 Rout by Twins
Jared Jones and the Pittsburgh Pirates took on the Minnesota Twins at Lee Sports Complex in a 15-3 ballgame that provided disappointing insights into the bullpen’s struggle as the Bucs sorely miss Aroldis Chapman. While Spring Training is rarely an indicator of what the regular season will look like, it is clear that the little change made in assessing the weak points of a Pirates bullpen has been felt. Through four and a third innings, Jones let up one earned run and tossed four strikeouts. Twins starter Bailey Ober was stellar, producing five scoreless innings, and bringing his Spring Training ERA down to 2.25.
Pittsburgh’s bats struggled to come alive against Minnesota’s pitching, with Bailey Ober and Griffin Jax leaving the Pirates scoreless through eight innings. Leading the order at one, two, and three, Jack Suwinski, Bryan Reynolds, and Tommy Pham were left hitless with the Pirates hitting a putrid .176 AVG. Concerningly, a key turning point was the third, when the Pirates left the bases loaded, with nothing to show for it. Bryan Reynolds’ slump continued and from the fifth to the seventh inning, a scoreless ballgame became 15-0. In the ninth, however, spring breakout performer Matt Gorski, alongside first baseman Darick Hall, mashed home runs to chip away at the deficit, but it was far too late to make a difference. Gorski’s home run put him in a firm position as the team leader for home runs this spring.
The meltdown started when Jones let up a go-ahead double in the fifth, resulting in the Twins’ first run and Jones exiting the start. Things, however, would only get worse from there with four more runs in the fifth and a disastrous sixth inning which saw a whopping nine runs given up by the bullpen. Game-by-game, the Pirates look inconsistent, which isn’t too uncommon for Spring Training. However, a 9-1 beatdown of the New York Yankees followed up by a 15-3 shellacking from the Minnesota Twins is the definition of any given day.
The Pirates will see the Twins again on Monday, March 17th, but will not see them in the 2025 regular season. While it’s easy to dismiss Spring Training, the Pirates’ inconsistency raises questions about their ability to compete over a full season, despite playoff aspirations. The bullpen’s implosion highlights a lingering issue that Pittsburgh failed to address in the offseason, along with a relatively similar batting order which produced the second-worst team batting average in the NL last season at .234 AVG. With only a few weeks left before Opening Day, the Pirates look to find stability in their relief efforts if they hope to avoid a repeat of last year’s collapse. Friday’s matchup with the Tigers and Monday’s rematch against the Twins offer a chance to swing the fleeting momentum, but only time will tell what transpires over the coming 14 days leading up to the season opener vs the Marlins.
