Chris Stratton embraces the challenge of closer role for Pirates, shining in save situations

Chris Stratton has kept the same mentality and the same routine — with one exception — whether he is a starting pitcher, multi-inning reliever or in his newest role as the closer for the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Stratton is learning to find the catcher — either Jacob Stallings or Michael Perez — after the ninth inning to celebrate a victory.

“You’ve got to keep it the same,” Stratton said in a post-game interview on AT&T SportsNet. “I’m used to walking off the field and going in, instead of staying there. The first time I was like, ‘Oh, I’ve got to shake hands with Stalls and Perez when the game’s over.’”

After giving up a leadoff triple in the ninth inning, the Pirates entrusted the 31-year-old right-hander to put the winning run on base with an intentional walk Friday night at the Miami Marlins. Stratton got Payton Henry to strike out swinging at a curveball in the dirt for the final out of a 2-1 win to earn his sixth save.

Stratton is embracing the adrenaline rush in the ninth-inning role, as he has four saves and a win in his last five appearances. He has allowed one run on three hits with 10 strikeouts in that span.

“It’s a lot more fun,” Stratton said. “The game’s on the line, the ball is handed to you and you’re going to get the final out. It’s a ton of fun. It’s definitely keeping me young — or making me old, I don’t know. But it’s a lot of fun.”

Stratton (6-1, 3.68 ERA) is thriving in the high-leverage role, which was prompted after the Pirates blew up their bullpen at the trade deadline in late July by sending Clay Holmes to the New York Yankees, Austin Davis to the Boston Red Sox and closer Richard Rodriguez to the Atlanta Braves. Stratton was splitting high-leverage duties with David Bednar before a right oblique strain sidelined the Mars alum, ultimately forcing him to go on the 10-day injured list.

That’s when Pirates manager Derek Shelton entrusted the closer role to Stratton, who started 36 of 48 games in three seasons with the San Francisco Giants and five of seven games in one season with the Los Angeles Angels before becoming a full-time member of the bullpen with the Pirates in 2019.

Stratton made 13 multi-inning appearances this season, but his longest outing led to his first save. He entered in the sixth inning with a 4-2 lead and a runner on second base against the Marlins on June 4 at PNC Park, and tossed 3 2/3 perfect innings.

What makes Stratton so effective is a four-pitch repertoire that leans most heavily on the elite spin rates of his four-seam fastball and curveball, Stratton has a complementary changeup and a slider that Shelton said is “really starting to play up as a well-above average pitch.”

“What I think it says about him is he has the ability to execute pitches,” Shelton said. “Sometimes, you talk about a guy that’s a starter and then you move him to the bullpen and they find their niche. I think he’s done a nice job finding his niche out there.”

That’s certainly been the case over the past two weeks. Stratton pitched a scoreless eighth, setting up Bednar for the save in a 6-3 win over the Detroit Tigers on Sept. 6. The following night, he gave up a hit but struck out two batters to earn the save in a 3-2 win. Stratton pitched a 1-2-3 ninth in a 10-7 win over the Washington Nationals for his fourth save on Sept. 11.

Against the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday, Stratton gave up a solo home run to Nick Castellanos that cut the Pirates’ lead to one but followed by getting Joey Votto swinging on back-to-back sliders for his fifth save in a 6-5 win. The next night, Stratton struck out two batters in the ninth and got a groundout the victory in a 5-4 win over the Reds.

The save against the Marlins Friday was Stratton’s biggest test. He gave up a leadoff triple to Bryan De La Cruz before striking out Jesus Sanchez on a 94-mph fastball and Lewis Brinson on an 80-mph curve. With lefty Lewin Diaz up next, Shelton visited the mound and offered Stratton a calculated risk: Put the winning run on base by intentionally walking Diaz to face the rookie right-hander Henry.

“I just basically asked Stalls, ‘What have you got?’” Stratton told AT&T SportsNet. “We communicated back and forth and said, ‘Let’s go get the next guy.’ Luckily, it worked out.”

With runners on first and third, Stratton got Henry swinging at the curveball in the dirt that Stallings blocked for the final out. It was an impressive ending for the bullpen, which didn’t allow a run and gave up only two hits while striking out seven over the final four innings.

“It’s a testament to who he is, the way he works and the way he goes about his business,” Pirates starter Wil Crowe said. “Whatever situation he’s in, he’s a guy for us that he’s dominant, and he knows what he’s trying to do. He’s got his plan in place, and he executes with the best of them. What he did (Friday night), that shows a lot of who he is and the kind of person he is and the kind of characters he has. That was big for Strat there. That was awesome to see.”

Cole Tucker, whose sacrifice fly in the sixth inning drove in the game-winning run, said the Pirates were anxiously waiting for Stratton in the visiting clubhouse to celebrate his latest save.

“It’s fun, man. We’re all huge Chris Stratton fans in here, in the clubhouse,” Tucker said. “We believe in him. Whether he’s throwing the ninth or starting, we believe in him. He’s such a good dude, and he’s so fun to root for. When Chris Stratton has a bad night, we all have a bad night. We’re all pulling for him. It’s really fun to see him have success, especially in that situation.”

Whatever the situation, Stratton isn’t changing his routine or mentality.

“To be honest, I just love playing baseball. I love being able to get the manager to trust me in any situation, whether it be early or late,” Stratton said. “I enjoy throwing in the back half. I enjoyed starting. That’s probably off the table now. Whenever the ball is given to me, that’s what I’m trying to do: Go out there and get outs. That’s it.”