SAN FRANCISCO -- For the Pirates, the loss of their newly acquired right fielder and a shutout defeat that dropped them to a low point in a low season seemed part of a familiar theme.
After learning before the game that Armando Rios will miss the rest of the season with a knee injury, the Pirates were held to one hit over seven innings by Kirk Rueter and managed just three singles in a 3-0 loss to the San Francisco Giants, which dropped them 25 games under .500.
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The Giants' Jeff Kent jumps over Pirates' Adam Hyzdu while completing a double play in the eighth inning yesterday at Pacific Bell Park. (George Nikitin, AP photo) |
"When you lose guys you've gone to battle with for most of the year, it's going to be a blow to you one way or another," said Kevin Young, who had one of the three hits and turned in a sparkling defensive play on former teammate John Vander Wal in the seventh to keep the game close.
"It doesn't make it any easier when your starting right fielder you just got goes down with a knee injury and is out for the season. Add all those things together, and it comes out to a lot of negatives. But we are professionals. We have to bounce back. We're really going to have to pick ourselves up right now."
In a city known for earthquakes and dense fog, the Pirates suffered jolts, aftershocks and a murky spell of a different sort in losing to the surging Giants, who have won a season-high eight consecutive games to climb near the top of the National League West ladder. They swept the Pirates for the first time at home since April 4-6, 1994, and finished 5-1 against them this season. The Giants have won 15 of their past 20 against the Pirates since 1999.
"There are ups and downs during the course of the year. It seems our situation right now is magnified a little bit," said Manager Lloyd McClendon, referring to a spate of trades this week, a lack of offense and a season's worth of injuries. "We just have to kick each other in the backside. All of us have to get better, including myself, the coaching staff and the players, pull together and try to get it done.
"We don't have time for excuses. We certainly can't lean on them. We just have to keep plugging away and moving forward."
The Pirates got a look at their future in starting pitcher Tony McKnight, who was acquired Tuesday from Houston for reliever Mike Williams. McKnight pitched into the seventh inning and allowed only two earned runs -- a solo homer by Marvin Bernard that hit the top of the center-field wall and a run-scoring double by Jeff Kent.
Kent also drove in an unearned run with a sacrifice fly in the seventh after shortstop Jack Wilson made his first error since July 3 and only his second since he was recalled from Nashville June 12.
"I wish it could have been better. I wish we would have won the game. It doesn't matter what you do if you don't win," McKnight said. "Overall, I'll take it for a first start.
"It's been a big disappointment for this team with all the injuries they had, and they're kind of dismantling the team. You can't worry about the past. You have to look forward to tomorrow."
As a new addition to the team with the worst record in the National League, McKnight said being traded was a bit overwhelming and came as a shock. It also was disruptive, prohibiting him from following his between games routine, allowing him to play catch only once since his winning start Saturday against the Pirates.
Yesterday was McKnight's 10th major-league start over a two-season span, but he had to battle some butterflies.
"I had the jitters like it was the first time. It was strange. I just wanted to leave a good impression with my new team," he said.
"This year, I guess, is now more building on next year, getting experience and older guys getting back on track. There's a lot of talent in this room. I faced a lot of these guys. This team is not as bad as people make it out to be, as far as personnel. We battled as hard as we could. We all just didn't get the job done."
McKnight (1-1) held the Giants scoreless for six innings, and McClendon said his newest pitcher's outing was all he hoped it would be.
"He certainly kept us in the ballgame. He got his pitches up a little bit in that one inning. Not a bad performance. Certainly a good start for him. I was pleased with his outing."
McKnight pitched into the seventh when the Giants loaded the bases on two singles and Wilson's error. McKnight went to a 2-0 count on Vander Wal, and McClendon summoned Mike Lincoln from the bullpen.
"I thought he had probably tired. He forced his pitches a little bit, and I didn't want things to get out of hand," McClendon said.
Vander Wal belted a ball that seemed like a sure hit, but Young gloved it to get a force at home. The only run in the seventh was scored on Kent's sacrifice fly, his 76th RBI.
The Pirates' offense amounted to a single by Young and two walks. But Young was caught stealing and the Giants turned a double play.
"We're not swinging the bats very well. We have to find some offense from some place," McClendon said. "Of course, we ran into some pretty good pitching. They shut us down pretty good."
The Pirates got consecutive singles from Keith Osik and Adam Hyzdu off reliever Tim Worrell in the eighth, but Pat Meares grounded into a double play to end the inning. It was the first time in 61 games the Pirates were held without an extra-base hit.
In the ninth, Tike Redman and Abraham Nunez pinch-hit against Robb Nen, who was perfect in earning his 32nd save and moving the Giants closer to Arizona and Los Angeles in the West.
"The players know management is as sincere as us about winning. It gives you a lift," Manager Dusty Baker said of the Giants' moves to acquire players before the trade deadline passed Tuesday. "Our spirits and the spirits of this city are rising every day."
Down the hallway, in the visiting clubhouse, Rios had an opposite view as the news sunk in about his knee injury.
"It's heartbreaking for me and my family. It's tough for the team," he said.
Pirates hit low point with loss to Giants, 3-0 
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