Control has been an issue for Francisco Liriano of late and because of this, his success as a pitcher has hit a snag.
With the Pittsburgh Pirates looking for a series win against the Texas Rangers, command and control once again eluded Liriano in a 6-2 defeat.
Liriano (4-4) was given a 2-0 lead which in the past has allowed for him to get into more of a comfortable mindset.
Jordy Mercer led off the game with his seventh double of the season and immediately was batted in by Andrew McCutchen, who also doubled.
Two innings later, David Freese hit his fourth home run of the season off Martin Perez. The homer snapped an 0-for-6 streak at the plate.
This support seemed to fuel Liriano until the fourth inning came.
Liriano threw a 1-0 pitch to Prince Fielder nearly right down the middle of the plate. Fielder was leading off the bottom half of the inning and connected for his third home run of the season to right-center field.
Liriano’s struggles continued as he walked two of the next three batters he faced. The last batter in that sequence was Ryan Rua, and he took the trot to first base after looking at four consecutive pitches.
Coming into Sunday’s game, Liriano was tied for second in Major League Baseball when it came to walks-per nine innings. The two walks complicated things and brought Mitch Moreland to the plate.
Moreland is a player the Pirates have had their eyes on to acquire for the past couple of so seasons but chose to go with other options.
Rangers fans and media have criticized Fielder and Moreland for what they deem below-par seasons.
Fielder answered some questions with his home run earlier in the inning, and now Moreland could do the same.
Moreland did not waste any time either connecting on the first pitch he saw, which was in the upper middle portion of the strike zone for a three-run home run.
Immediately after throwing the pitch, Liriano did not even bother following through, he was disappointed with the location. Moreland’s home run, his sixth of the season, not only gave the Rangers a lead they would not relinquish, but also brought Liriano to his knees.
Liriano again struggled with control in the sixth inning.
Each of the first three batters reached base and again Liriano walked two Rangers.
It appeared Liriano had a chance to get out of it when Moreland struck out on a foul tip, but Bryan Holaday quickly hit a sacrifice fly which added a run.
Liriano did not stay in for the seventh inning when the Rangers added another run that was scored when Rob Scahill threw a wild pitch and Chris Stewart added a throwing error.
Dropping two of three to the Rangers puts the Pirates at 28-21 on the season.
Up next
The Pirates will travel for a road series against the Miami Marlins. Jeff Locke (3-3, 5.08 ERA) will face Justin Nicolino (2-2, 4.37 ERA). Locke is 3-2 with a 3.00 ERA in seven career starts against the Marlins.
Originally Monday and Tuesday’s games were to be played in Puerto Rico but instead were moved back to Miami due to Zika virus concerns.
