Pirates Discussion: Saturday Slip

Making his fourth and likely final start of the season for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Luis Ortiz failed to make it out of the first inning.

Ortiz’s control wasn’t sharp from the beginning, walking two of the first batters he faced for the St. Louis Cardinals. He gave up three hits and three walks in the inning, which was capped off by a former Bucco Corey Dickerson grand slam. Ortiz would only finish two thirds of an inning with six earned runs.

Zach Thompson took over from there and did most of the leg work. Thompson ended up pitching 5.1 innings with four earned runs against that all came in the second inning.

The game was out of hand by the second, with the Pirates managing only two runs in…