The Pittsburgh Pirates kicked off their series against the New York Yankees on Monday with an absolute nightmare in the first inning, turning what should have been an easy double play into a full-blown scoring fiesta for the home team. Yankees fans got their money’s worth and then some, watching their squad put up four runs, all because the Pirates forgot how to play defense.
A Play So Bad It’d Make Little Leaguers Cringe
With a man on first and just one out, Paul Goldschmidt hit a grounder between second and third. We’re talking textbook double play ball here. But Pirates third baseman Nick Gonzales completely whiffed it, letting the ball bounce right off his glove and into shallow left field. That’s a fielding error right there, allowing Goldschmidt to reach first and advance on the fielder’s choice. But wait, it gets worse. Left fielder Bryan Reynolds scoops it up and tries to gun it home to keep Ben Rice at third. Instead, he spiked the ball directly into the dirt in front of his own feet. Rice capitalized on that blunder instantly, rounding third and strolling home without a play at the plate to give the Yankees a 1-0 lead. Seriously, you just don’t see plays like that from pros.
From Bloopers to Bombs: The Yankees Cashed In Big Time
The initial blunders were just the appetizer. Instead of an inning-ending double play, the Pirates had men on the corners after Cody Bellinger followed up with a single. And then Jazz Chisholm stepped up to the plate. You know what happened next, right? He blasted a three-run bomb into the right-field bleachers, putting the Yankees up 4-0 in the first inning. Just like that, Pittsburgh starting pitcher Braxton Ashcraft was in a massive hole. To add insult to injury, the official scoring only accounted for two errors on the original play, not the potential double play that was lost. Ashcraft ended up with three of those four runs being earned. It’s a brutal way to start a game, and even tougher when your defense hangs you out to dry.
This was just the first game of a three-game series. The Pirates have to shake off this embarrassing opener fast, or this series could get ugly quick. Can they tighten up the defense and recover, or will the Yankees keep feasting?
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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