With the approach the Pittsburgh Pirates have taken this season, swinging at the first pitch is often frowned upon. Jung Ho Kang, in his 2016 debut, apparently didn’t get the memo Friday night in a 4-2 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals.
Kang, in his first game back from left knee surgery, swung at the first two pitches he saw, which resulted in a double play and a pop-out. His approach seemed to be unsuccessful. That is, until Cardinals’ pitcher Tyler Lyons threw a sixth-inning pitch to Kang’s liking for an opposite-field home run.
Enjoy an all new season of #TheKangShow
WATCH: https://t.co/Auxcrdxs9H pic.twitter.com/LHMdJFpSNa
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) May 7, 2016
As much as Kang enjoyed the moment — especially considering what he went through — it meant nearly as much to his teammates, who screamed the name of their returning third baseman.
Two innings later, Kang knocked another pitch out of the park. He punished pitcher Kevin Siegrist on a 3-2 offering and knocked it into the upper deck, giving the Pirates a bigger cushion in the run department.
Once again, the players’ grins were ear-to-ear.
Missed that leg kick tho.
WATCH: https://t.co/GHSBHSATuh#TheKangShow pic.twitter.com/Xynjshi0Ej— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) May 7, 2016
It can be tough to come from another country and blend in with a team (Kang is from South Korea), but he did just that last season. Manager Clint Hurdle’s young son, Christian, took a liking to Kang and often played with the starting third baseman.
The Pirates players also have a special place in their hearts for Kang, and his performance Friday provided an extra gleam in that dugout.
His efforts put the Pirates at 4-0 this season against the Cardinals while holding a 19-9 scoring advantage
Liriano gets the win
From the word “go,” Francisco Liriano (3-1) was ready.
Sure, he allowed a leadoff single to Matt Carpenter, but Liriano struck out the next three batters he faced.
While Cardinals starting pitcher Carlos Martinez couldn’t complete five innings because of arm fatigue, Liriano didn’t allow a runner to reach third base until his seventh — and final — inning of work.
In that inning, Liriano threw a wild pitch significantly off its target that allowed St. Louis’ Randal Grichuk to score. Ruben Tejada’s sacrifice fly allowed Aledmys Diaz to cross the place for the second and final run.
Other than that, Liriano was dominant and threw more strikes than normal (70 of his 98 pitches). As a result, he struck out 10 Cardinals.
Watson survives tough eighth
There couldn’t have been a less-optimal outing for relief pitcher Tony Watson, who hit Stephen Piscotty, had to endure a replay review and allowed a single to Matt Holliday.
Still, Watson battled back, striking out Brandon Moss, but a groundout from Yadier Molina advanced the runners. Grichuk presented the final test for Watson, and Pittsburgh’s Sean Rodriguez’s stretch at first base created an out on a bang-bang play.
Watson’s eighth inning set the stage for closer Mark Melancon to earn his eighth save of the season.
Watson, much like the rest of the Pirates bullpen, had some tough games in April, but he hasn’t allowed an earned run since April 27 — he currently has a 3.07 ERA.
Up next
The final two games of this series will be early afternoon contests, and the first will feature Jeff Locke (1-2 4.73 ERA) facing Adam Wainwright (2-3 6.68 ERA) Saturday. Locke is 2-4 with a 3.98 ERA in eight career starts against the Cardinals.
Image credit: Jon Dawson
