Bad day for Bucs as they lose both split-squad games
Jake Odorizzi pitched effectively into the seventh inning and Steven Souza Jr. hit a two-run double to help the Tampa Bay Rays beat a Pittsburgh Pirates split squad 3-1 Saturday night in Bradenton, Fla.
Pirates left fielder Starling Marte exited in the fourth inning due to tightness in his right quadriceps. Marte stumbled out of the batter’s box in the second.
David Freese homered to left-center, his second home run in seven games since signing with the Pirates.
Francisco Liriano lasted only 4 2/3 innings even though he was scheduled to work six. The left-hander, scheduled to start on opening day for Pittsburgh, gave up three runs and seven hits while striking out four.
Christian Toribio hit a solo homer for the Rays.
Odorizzi allowed a run and five hits in 6 1/3 strong innings.
Minnesota 3, Pittsburgh 0: Trevor Plouffe had two hits and two RBIs as the Minnesota Twins beat a Pittsburgh Pirates split squad, 3-0.
Minnesota’s Kyle Gibson went six innings, allowing three hits with no walks and eight strikeouts.
Pittsburgh’s Kyle Lobstein went four innings, giving up two runs on three hits with no walks and two strikeouts.
Plouffe’s two-run single in the fourth inning scored Brian Dozier, who opened the inning with a single, and Miguel Sano, who hit a one-out double. Plouffe has a team-high 14 RBIs this spring in 14 games.
The Twins added a run in the seventh when Eddie Rosario tripled and scored on Eduardo Escobar’s double off Rob Scahill.
Pittsburgh’s Cory Luebke pitched one scoreless inning, allowing one hit. A first-round pick in 2007 by the Padres, the left-hander has not pitched in the majors since 2012 because of injuries, including two Tommy John surgeries. He is competing for a spot in the Pirates’ bullpen, a role he last held in 2011.
“I enjoy it,” Luebke said. “Starting, obviously everybody likes the routine and the schedule. But the adrenaline that comes with throwing out if the pen, hearing the phone ringing and having to get going, it’s fun. It takes you back to when you were younger and all that matters was, hey, you’re in.”
Lobstein also is competing for a spot in the Pittsburgh bullpen. This was his fifth appearance and third start this spring. The two runs he allowed are the first he’s given up in 11 total innings on seven hits, three walks and eight strikeouts.
Up next: Juan Nicasio looks to continue his stellar spring Sunday when Pittsburgh hosts the Baltimore Orioles. In five outings spanning 15 innings, Nicasio has not allowed a run. Ubaldo Jimenez is scheduled to start for Baltimore.