For the fourth time in five meetings so far this season, the Pirates defeated the Marlins. Friday’s game was close throughout, but not particularly well-played or exciting, to be honest.
Elieser Hernandez’s slider wasn’t useful for him on this night. He generated only one swinging strike with it on 17 swings—that’s a 5.9 Whiff% (season average with that pitch is 31.9 Whiff%).
Hernandez uncharacteristically issued back-to-back walks in the first inning, then let the Pirates get on the scoreboard via Jacob Stallings’ sharp grounder up the middle. Although it went on the record as an unearned run (Jazz Chisholm Jr.