There are dates that Chad Kuhl remembers and dates he can’t forget, so there is a huge difference in his memory between June 15 and June 25 on the 2018 calendar year.
But both became significant on Friday night, when Kuhl pitched five innings and registered his first victory in two seasons as the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Milwaukee Brewers, 7-2, at PNC Park.
It was Kuhl’s first win since June 15, 2018, a 3-2 win over the Cincinnati Reds that saw Kuhl give up two runs on six hits and three walks with six strikeouts over six innings. Only 10 days later, his career changed when he injured his right elbow against the New York Mets, which required Tommy John surgery that sidelined him last season.
Everything until his first victory was about the comeback. Now, it’s about getting back to normal. No wonder Kuhl didn’t get very emotional about the milestone victory. It’s as if his world is back on its axis.
“Just really cool,” Kuhl said. “It’s always cool to win a big league game. Big league wins are hard to come by. It’s really cool just to give my team a chance to win. That’s all I’ve ever wanted to do, was be out there and give our team a chance to win. The long layoff, and then everything, it’s just really cool.”
A Kuhl note: Chad picked up his first win since June 15, 2018 last night.
Congrats, @KuhlWhhip_11! pic.twitter.com/ZRXrKt7NKl
— Pirates (@Pirates) August 22, 2020
1. Words of affirmation: If Kuhl was effective in allowing only one run — a Ben Gamel homer in the second — on two hits and three walks with one strikeout, he wasn’t particularly efficient in his third start of the season.
The right-hander threw 84 pitches, 47 for strikes, and said he was “wasn’t crisp” and “starting to lose command.” So he returned to relying on his two-seamer, especially against lefties.
There was never a conversation, Kuhl said, about going back out for the sixth inning. But Pirates manager Derek Shelton has made it a point to talk with Kuhl in the dugout after each outing, offering words of support for a pitcher the Pirates are counting on.
“I think affirmation for anybody is important, especially with what we’re going through right now,” Shelton said. “Our record is not what we want it to be. We have to pick positive points and teaching points.
“Extreme affirmation for a guy who has worked his (butt) off to get back after Tommy John. Had his first start in, what, like 17 months the other day. Any time we get to these milestones there are positive things because Chad Kuhl is gonna be important to us not only this year, next month, but next year and working forward. It’s really important for myself and our group to make sure that we know he’s put in the time. He’s put in the work. We’re seeing the things that we’re talking about.”
2. Kela Mega: On the flip side of that positivity, the Pirates’ snapping a four-game losing streak ended on a sour note when closer Keone Kela was removed after just five pitches in the ninth.
Shelton said it was a precautionary move, given that Shelton said Kela experienced “some forearm tightness” and the state of the bullpen that has lost five relievers to various arm injuries.
“I was erring way on the side of safety because of where we’re at this year,” Shelton said. “I can’t say if it’s anything he’s been dealing with. He just tightened up. I mean, sometimes guys tighten up and for the overly cautious that’s probably on me just because of the fact that we’ve lost five relievers and he’s so important to us and he’s just coming back to pitch. I didn’t even really give him the option.”
Not only do the Pirates need Kela to stay healthy for the back end of their bullpen, but he’s a free agent after the season and probably their one player on an expiring contract with true trade value as the Aug. 31 deadline approaches.
So losing Kela would be killer in multiple ways.
3. Getting closer: If the Pirates were to be without Kela for any time — who missed all of summer training camp and the first 16 games after testing positive for covid-19 — they could have his potential replacement getting ready.
Kyle Crick threw live batting practice on Friday, and could be close to coming off the injured list from a shoulder injury. And Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said Blake Cederlind, who shined in spring training but also tested positive for covid-19 and missed all of summer camp, is “doing well” in Altoona.
“In Blake’s case, he missed some time. Especially given the kind of pitcher he is, the kind of stuff he has and how hard he throws, we want to make sure he’s had enough reps and enough buid-up that he’s in a safe spot,” Cherington said. “He’s on his way to that.”
Cherington might have tipped his hand at trades coming when he indicated that Cederlind and third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes, their top position prospect, could soon make their way to the majors.
“Very clear that we need to be investing in young players and young player development and that includes playing time at the major-league level,” Cherington said. “I would expect that to continue to happen, likely increasingly over the remaining time of this season and the next several weeks.”
The night of Bryan.#LetsGoBucs pic.twitter.com/YnuqBgLHPg
— Pirates (@Pirates) August 22, 2020
4. Monkey in middle: As much as Shelton has shuffled his lineup, he’s starting to settle on a middle of the order with Josh Bell batting third, Colin Moran at cleanup and Bryan Reynolds fifth.
Shelton believes they are better than their batting averages suggest, which is a good thing considering that Bell was hitting .200, Moran .208 and Reynolds .174 going into Friday’s game.
Against the Brewers, the trio combined to go 8 for 11 with four RBIs and seven runs scored. It was just the kind of breakout game all three needed to shake their slumps, especially Reynolds.
“I mean, it’s no secret we’ve struggled offensively,” Reynolds said. “But, you know, we’re working past that. Can’t change it now. We’re just going to go up there and have fun and get a good pitch to hit, and I think that showed itself … up and down the lineup, we were mashing.”
After hitting .314 as a rookie, Reynolds has looked lost at times this season. He is the first to admit that the timing on his swing has been missing because of the long layoffs with two games in eight days last week.
Shelton believes the turning point for Reynolds came on a hard hit foul ball at Cincinnati, only for the Reds to have a player test positive for covid-19 and the next two games postponed. The Pirates had three days off, and Reynolds went 1 for 8 against Cleveland before Shelton gave him a rest Thursday.
“I remember that pitch,” Reynolds said. “It was an up-and-in fastball — ball — and I got to it, pulled it foul. I was just trying to get back on the heater, and I was late and kind of tentative before that, and that’s getting me going in the right direction.”
Glovin' it.#LetsGoBucs pic.twitter.com/TcX9WopUkE
— Pirates (@Pirates) August 22, 2020
5. Double trouble: Shelton couldn’t help but crack this to start his postgame press conference: “I don’t think we’re going to see Colin Moran lay down a bunt and have a web gem on the same night ever again so I’d mark this down on your calendars.”
As much as Reynolds has struggled with the bat, he has shined in left field this season with some spectacular catches and throws to the plate. He robbed Christian Yelich of an extra-base hit in the fourth inning with a diving catch caught in the web of his glove.
“It was a low line drive and I was running in on it, and then I started my dive and thought, ‘Man, I hope I knock this down,’” Reynolds said. “Then it just kept coming, just long enough, and I was able to get my glove under it. So it’s better than rolling to the wall, inside-the-park (home run).”
Kuhl was thankful, even if he wasn’t sure what to expect.
“You never know. The ones that are hit at that trajectory, kinda right at guys, they’re always the toughest plays. You hope that it can be made. I think I saw the catch probability was like 20 percent,” Kuhl said. “Just a heck of a play. You tip your cap. He’s done a great job all year throwing guys out and making plays. Just tip your cap. Awesome play.”
Moran beating the Brewers’ defensive shift with a bunt to short was a situational decision. The Pirates were leading, 4-2, with Bell on first after a single off Alex Claudio when they shifted.
“Claudio likes to get a lot of ground balls. I feel like I beat everything into the ground off him historical. Guy on first, I figured worst-case scenario get the guy to second, try to get that extra run going into the late innings,” Moran said. “Worked out well. When I saw they shifted, it just kind of made sense. Figured I’d go for it.”
It was that kind of night for the Pirates — a web gem as Reynolds rediscovered his timing, a Moran bunt single and a Kuhl victory — and a win they needed in the worst way.
