The debut of former number one draft pick Quinn Priester went perfect for the first three innings last night at PNC Park, with the exception of a rain delay. Making his major league debut, Priester retired the first nine batters in order, but the Cleveland Guardians went on to score runs in each of the final six innings in an 11-0 blow-out. Priester allowed seven earned runs on seven hits before being knocked out of the game in the sixth inning. Meanwhile, the Pirates managed just four hits and struck out 12 times in the game, in their fourth loss in a row.
The Pirates and Guardians play again tonight at 7:05pm. Pre-game on WISR begins at 6:40pm. Mitch Keller will start for the Bucs. He is 9-4 with a 3.31 ERA this season. His 129 strikeouts prior to the All-Star break is the third-most in team history.
Last night’s loss has sent the Pirates to the bottom of the National League Central Division. They are now tied with the St. Louis Cardinals at 41-53 overall.
Prior to last night’ game, the Pirates sent reliever Cody Bolton, catcher Jason Delay and outfielder Josh Palacios to Triple-A Indianapolis to make room for Priester, catcher Endy Rodriguez and infielder Liover Peguero.