Mitch Keller's strong start, Phillip Evans' big defensive play lift Pirates past Tigers

Mitch Keller had a feel for his four-seam fastball, so the Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander couldn’t figure out why he was giving up so many walks and even more hits with his signature pitch.

What he discovered was it lacked command and movement in the strike zone, something Keller set out to change Thursday afternoon against the Detroit Tigers. The improvement was evident, as he allowed five hits without a walk while striking out five in five innings.

“He’s a different cat when he’s in the zone,” Pirates manager Derek Shelton said of Keller. “We’re continuing to work on that. I think today was a really solid step. He gave us a chance to win the game because he went out and threw the ball in the strike zone.”

Even better was how the Pirates finished the job, breaking a tie with back-to-back RBI singles by Colin Moran and Erik Gonzalez in the eighth inning for a 4-2 victory at Comerica Park.

The Pirates (9-10) won the three-game interleague series, their second consecutive series win after taking two of three from Milwaukee and splitting four with San Diego. The Pirates conclude their 10-day road trip with a visit to the Minnesota Twins for a three-game weekend series.

They can thank two players who stepped into starting roles. Erik Gonzalez went 2 for 4 with two RBIs while playing third base with Ke’Bryan Hayes out with a wrist injury that was reaggravated Wednesday night. And, with Bryan Reynolds switching to center field after the Pirates designated Anthony Alford and Dustin Fowler for assignment, Phillip Evans started in left and made a run-saving play.

The Pirates also continued to count on the hot bats of Adam Frazier and Moran. Frazier went 3 for 5 with a double and two runs to improve his batting average to .329, and Moran came through with the clutch hit in the eighth, with a opposite-field grounder off reliever Gregory Soto to score Frazier for the go-ahead run.

“That’s a good piece of hitting right there,” Frazier said of Moran. “He’s just hitting the ball where it’s pitched.”

That was the problem for Keller, who was giving opponents too many opportunities to do the same when he found the strike zone. Fastball command has been an issue for Keller since spring training, so throwing 57 of his 80 pitches for strikes was a promising sign.

Keller threw his four-seamer 47 times, inducing 27 swings, while mixing his curveball and slider. The difference, he said, was he recognized opponents were game-planning for his fastball up in the zone.

“Being confident and knowing stuff was gonna play — whether it’s down or up, in or out — (and) being able to throw the ball where I want is huge,” Keller said.

The Pirates spotted Keller a two-run lead in the first, when Frazier hit Jose Urena’s first pitch for a double to right and scored when he got a great jump on a single to center by Reynolds. Gonzalez singled to center to score Reynolds to give the Pirates a 2-0 lead. Urena didn’t give up another run for the next six innings.

All six of the Tigers’ hits through the first six innings came with two outs. They cut it to 2-1 when Niko Goodrum doubled in the second and scored on Akil Baddoo’s triple to center, which bounced under the outstretched glove of Reynolds and rolled to the wall.

Keller was an out from completing the fifth when JaCoby Jones sent a 1-0 fastball into the right-field seats to tie the score, 2-2. Robbie Grossman followed with a single, but Keller got Willi Castro to ground into a forceout at second base to end the inning.

The Tigers nearly took the lead against Duane Underwood Jr. in the seventh. Phillip Evans robbed Baddoo of a home run when he reached over the left field fence to snare the ball but it bounced out of his glove for a double.

Baddoo went to third on a Jones single to center before Sam Howard (2-1) came on in relief to get Robbie Grossman to fly out to right and Willi Castro to left to strand the runners at second and third and earn the win.

Afterward, the Pirates raved about Evans’ defensive effort.

“Maybe the play of the game,” Shelton said. “He got back to the ball and almost made a heck of a catch. As Reynolds said to me, ‘That has to be a Defensive Run Saved.’ I don’t know how they calculate that, but that’s definitely a Defensive Run Saved. He brought back a homer, and it changes the whole complexion of the game. I don’t metrically know how they figure that out, but I’ll vote for Defensive Run Saved there.”