It’s not at all easy to find the right words or analogy to describe what happened to the Pirates in the fourth inning today. One is tempted to say that things “snowballed” on them, but that’s how I’d describe what happened to Charlie Morton on Friday and he managed to escape his inning with only six runs allowed. Perhaps, then, it would be apt to call it a “snowball from hell” to properly indicate just how unlikely a 13-run inning is. Except that the Pirates have been losing so long and so thoroughly that even though giving up 13 runs in an inning ties a franchise record, they’ve given up 13 runs in an inning more recently than they’ve had a winning season.
In some cases, one word suffices. The fourth inning today was terrible. It was terrible when Ronny Cedeno muffed a double play by trying to make an unnecessary glove-toss to Akinori Iwamura. It was terrible when Dan McCutchen gave up back to back homers to Chris Young and Kelly Johnson. Hayden Penn and the Moustache of Sadness were terrible, from his first pitch wild pitch that let a run score to his allowing seven of eight batters faced to reach base. Jack Taschner allowing a home run to Edwin Jackson was the spoiled cherry on top of the terrible cake. 16 batters, 13 runs, three homers, a double, and a triple. Terrible.
And with that inning, the early positives; Andrew McCutchen breaking out of his slump with a single and a game-tying homer, Lastings Milledge’s two hits, Delwyn Young’s triple that seemed to break things open a bit (to give the Pirates a 4-2 lead), all flushed away. Allowing 15 runs is one thing. Allowing 15 runs on 12 hits is another. Allowing 13 runs in an inning is just sad.
Photoshop of the year from bwzimmerman
