With 90% of the season to be played, bullpen lifts Pirates to .500 record

The Pittsburgh Pirates concluded the first 16 games of their season with as many victories as defeats (eight) and Bryan Reynolds batting .190.

If you had listened to the preseason chatter, both facts might be difficult to believe.

It doesn’t matter five weeks before Memorial Day and with 90% of the season to play, but the Pirates are only two games out of first place in the National League Central.

Their reward Monday is their first day off since April 8 in advance of a six-game homestand starting Tuesday at PNC Park. They are scheduled to play three each against the Milwaukee Brewers and San Diego Padres.

The chief storyline so far revolves around the bullpen, now numbering 10 men, that has recorded all eight victories with Wil Crowe, Dillon Peters and David Bednar sporting ERAs of 0.00.

• Bednar and Chris Stratton each have two saves.

• Peters has faced 33 batters and allowed only one hit, a single.

• Crowe has found a comfort zone in middle relief after starting 123 of the 126 games he appeared in prior to 2022, including college at South Carolina, four seasons in the minors and two with the Washington Nationals and Pirates. He also has one save.

“Hats off to our catchers,” Peters said on AT&T SportsNet. “They’re the ones putting the signs down and Shelty and Oscar (manager Derek Shelton and pitching coach Oscar Marin) are putting us in the game in the right situations to set us up for success.

“Credit goes to those guys, not us.”

Added Bednar: “You know the matchup favors you and you’re in a good spot to win.”

With the bases loaded Sunday, Bednar saved the 4-3 victory against the Chicago Cubs by striking out Willson Contreras and Frank Schwindel with fastballs clocked at just a tick below 98 mph.

“I don’t think he lets the moment get too big,” Shelton said. “He was just able to execute pitches.

“This is a guy who has multiple weapons. Everybody thinks it’s just the fastball, but the curveball and splitter are good pitches, too.”

Largely because the starters have a collective ERA of 6.50, the Pirates have needed at least four runs in all of their victories. Winning hasn’t been easy for a team that has hit 11 home runs in 16 games. Only the Cincinnati Reds (3-13) have fewer in the National League.

Reynolds could offer a significant boost if he snaps out of his season-opening slump that has produced only three extra-base hits and three RBIs in 63 plate appearances.

Shelton took him off his feet for the most part Sunday, making him the designated hitter. He walked and scored a run, but was 0 for 3. No one expects Reynolds to struggle for long periods. He has hit .314 and .302 in his two full major-league seasons.

The defense has been solid, with Ke’Bryan Hayes catching almost everything at third base. Shortstop Kevin Newman has one more error (four) than he had all of last season, but he saved pitcher JT Brubaker from embarrassment Sunday when he picked a throw out of the dirt and turned a double play.

Ben Gamel and Jake Marisnick have had spectacular moments in the outfield, doing the basics of the game — catching and throwing. Marisnick’s rocket arm saved the game Sunday by holding the Cubs’ Rafael Ortega to second and third base on consecutive doubles in the ninth inning.

“We’re a team that’s going to have to do the little things if we want to win the game,” Gamel said.