Pittsburgh Pirates SP Gerrit Cole first to suppress Tigers bats
Starting pitcher Gerrit Cole of the Pittsburgh Pirates carries with him the promise of being the clubs ace of the future. He was first selected in the first round of the 2008 MLB amateur draft by the New York Yankees but decided not to sign and pursued baseball at the collegiate level for the University of California, Los Angeles.
All went well with the UCLA Bruins and in 2011 the Pirates took Cole first overall in the June draft. He excelled through his Single-A and Double-A innings and was with the Bucs by June of 2013.
On Monday afternoon in front of PNC Park’s first home crowd of the 2015 season that totaled 39,933 fans, Cole did more that just give his team a win in their home opener — he quashed the ferociously hot bats of the Detroit Tigers.
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Entering the game, Detroit was leading MLB in team batting average and runs scored. Their relentless pace to begin the season plating runs was akin to Stallone as Rambo running in the jungle. But on Monday, the Tigers were no apex predator. Cole’s right arm did most of the hunting, punching out eight Tigers hitters over six innings, allowing only three hits and one earned run.
Cole will likely call it a team effort like most other young up and coming playing in MLB practicing the virtue of humility, but he should be proud of his work on the diamond yesterday. Holding this years Detroit Tigers in check has been no small feat thus far.
It came as the Tigers first defeat of the season, moving the AL Central club to 6-1. Detroit managed to get the better of quality pitchers like Phil Hughes and 2014 Cy Young winner Corey Kluber in two of their previous victories. Cole being able to walk away with the win should show Pirates fans that the 24-year-old looks ready to put together his finest season yet and build towards being Pittsburgh’s Opening Day starter for the first time ever in 2016.
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Closer Mark Melancon came in to work the ball game in the ninth inning as he’s been short of opportunities to pitch so far this year. The Pirates have not provided the bullpen with any save opportunities, so perhaps the four-run cushion Melancon was afforded to him was like a wolf in sheeps clothing of sorts. He must have forgotten he was pitching to baseball’s best lineup.
The Tigers jumped on him early with back-t0-back doubles by Ian Kinsler and Miguel Cabrera before J.D. Martinez hit a two run shot with none out. After a single, Melancon managed to get a double play ball and closed the door by striking out Victor Martinez.
It was a fair warning to any future closer that will face the Tigers to never tread lightly. With their dangerous bats, Detroit is capable of cycling through the batting order in any inning.
For the Pittsburgh Pirates, who move to 3-4 in the early go, the difference for them in the ball game ultimately ended up being Corey Hart‘s two-run pinch hit home run in the bottom of the seventh inning.
Game two of the series goes tonight with two ex-Yankees slated to get the ball for each club. Shane Greene (1-0, 0.00) will be pitted against A.J. Burnett (0-0, 3.58). First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 PM EST.