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Diamondbacks at Pirates live updates. Young starters making tweaks
PITTSBURGH — After a tough turn through the rotation for the Diamondbacks ’ pair of rookie starters, lefties Mitch Bratt and Kohl Drake have areas of focus as they prepare for their upcoming starts in Cleveland this weekend.
Bratt wants to lock in on the command of his four-seam fastball after he walked five last weekend in Washington, D.C. He believes it was the most walks he has issued in a game in his life.
“The command has gotten away a little bit,” he said. “It’s kind of an identity thing a little bit. I think I have to get back to who I was in Triple-A all year, just trusting my stuff. The big leagues, I think, can get amplified a little bit.
"It’s a bigger stage, bigger everything, which is true, but as long as I play my game and throw more strikes like I always have, I think I’ll be just fine.”
In 13 starts with Triple-A Reno this season, Bratt had issued just 2.4 walks per nine innings.
As for Drake, he was experimenting on Tuesday, July 28, with pitching coach Brian Kaplan on a new grip for his slider, a pitch Kaplan thinks would give him a needed weapon against left-handed hitters.
Drake gave up four runs in four-plus innings on Sunday, July 26, serving up homers to the left-handed hitting James Wood and CJ Abrams.
“We’re going to mess around with the grip and kind of go from there,” Drake said. “It’ll be kind of a simple change, a simple feel, really.”
Series-opening loss still 'eating at' Torey Lovullo
Manager Torey Lovullo said he did not sleep well on Monday night, July 27, after his team blew a 2-0 lead to the Pittsburgh Pirates to lose, 3-2, here at PNC Park.
The biggest reason for that seemed to be his decision to let right-hander Jonathan Loaisiga pitch to the Pirates’ Bryan Reynolds in the eighth inning with the light-hitting Jared Triolo on deck. Reynolds ripped an RBI double into right-center field to bring home the tying run.
“The Reynolds at-bat in the eighth inning is still one that is eating at me,” Lovullo said. “Learn from it and next time maybe take the responsibility away from the players to execute and pass it off on the next hitter.”
Lovullo said after the game he did not want to put the go-ahead run on base, fearful that a ball down the line or into the gap would score two runs instead of just one.
At PNC Park : Pfaadt continued his strong run of starts last week in St. Louis, where he gave up two runs in six innings. … In five starts since rejoining the rotation, Pfaadt is 5-0 with a 2.33 ERA, with three walks and 14 strikeouts in 27 innings. … Pfaadt has used his curveball more than his slider this season, a stark change from earlier in his career. He used to lean heavily on the slider. … Chandler, a rookie starter with explosive stuff, was impressive in his most recent outing, giving up just two hits and one walk in 6 1/3 scoreless innings. … He failed to get through the fifth inning in his previous two starts before that, illustrating the up-and-down nature of his season. … He averages 98.6 mph with his four-seam fastball. He has a pitch mix that includes five other pitches. His slider gets the most whiffs, averaging 90.3 mph and eliciting swings and misses at a 30.2 percent clip.
Coming up
Wednesday, July 29: At Pittsburgh, 9:35 a.m., Diamondbacks LHP Eduardo Rodriguez (9-3, 2.64) vs. Pirates RHP Jared Jones (2-1, 3.72).
Thursday, July 30: Off.
Friday, July 31: At Cleveland, 4:10 p.m., Diamondbacks LHP Mitch Bratt (0-1, 6.32) vs. Guardians RHP Tanner Bibee (4-10, 3.89).
Saturday, Aug. 1: At Cleveland, 4:15 p.m., Diamondbacks LHP Kohl Drake (0-0, 5.00) vs. Guardians LHP Parker Messick (8-6, 2.59).
(This story has been updated to add information.)
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Diamondbacks at Pirates live updates. Young starters making tweaks
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