Pirates' Derek Shelton repeats lineup for 1st time this season

Derek Shelton snapped a streak, sort of, when the Pittsburgh Pirates manager filled out the starting lineup for Friday’s game against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park.

For the first time this season, the Pirates used the same lineup.

“No, it’s not!” Shelton quickly corrected, noting that Jarrod Dyson had started in center field on Thursday. “(Cole) Tucker’s playing center tonight.”

Well, it’s not the same lineup in back-to-back games.

But the Pirates did repeat a lineup for the first time this season.

Shelton had second baseman Adam Frazier batting leadoff, followed by shortstop Kevin Newman, first baseman Josh Bell, designated hitter Colin Moran, left fielder Bryan Reynolds, right fielder Gregory Polanco, third baseman Erik Gonzalez, center fielder Tucker and catcher Jacob Stallings — the same as the Aug. 5 game against the Minnesota Twins, a 5-2 loss at PNC Park.

“Really? I was not aware of that. I was not aware of that,” Shelton said, with a laugh. “I’ve actually wrote these nine guys — no, that can’t be true, because yesterday we played the same lineup we played, right?”

It was only slightly different than Thursday night, when Bell was the DH and Moran played first base while Dyson was in center for the 9-6 win.

It was the closest Shelton has come to having the same exact lineup, which has become something of a running joke as he mixes and matches to find the right fit amid injuries and illness. The only difference between the games was at pitcher, where Trevor Williams started against the Twins and Chad Kuhl was scheduled to start against the Reds.

“Well,” Shelton said, “then it’s not the same.”

So, the streak continues.