PHILADELPHIA — The record didn’t matter, nor did the Philadelphia Phillies’ place in the standings, with Aaron Nola on the mound. The 24-year-old right-hander was dealing Monday night. He shut out the Pirates for seven innings as they lost for the fourth consecutive day to a last-place team, 4-0, at Citizens Bank Park.
The Pirates (37-46) have lost four in a row against the San Francisco Giants and Philadelphia, who have a cumulative record of 61-104 and are a combined 42 games out of first place. The Pirates are nine games worse than .500, tying a season low, and seven games back of first.
“What we like to do is take care of things in here and play a game,” manager Clint Hurdle said. “You all can figure out who we are as a team … Those kind of things are external noise. You’ve just got to play the game. We’ve got to play better.”
Nola’s two-seam fastball had good movement as did his curveball and changeup. The Pirates didn’t get a hit until Jordy Mercer’s two-out double in the fifth. With runners on the corners and one out in the seventh, Nola struck out Mercer and pinch-hitter John Jaso.
“Nola was on the offensive against us,” Hurdle said. “We had to do some reactive hitting.”
Ivan Nova infuses reliability into the Pirates rotation. When circumstances within control, like Tyler Glasnow’s inability to adapt to the majors or Gerrit Cole’s up-and-down season, and out of their control — Jameson Taillon’s cancer diagnosis and subsequent five-week absence — broadsided the starters, the big right-hander kept pitching, always effectively, always deep into games.
Nova gave the Pirates six innings Monday. He also gave up four runs courtesy of two, two-run homers.
“Just missed some pitches,” Nova said. “I just missed some pitches trying to go inside with the ball. They hit a homer. They were aggressive. I missed, and they took advantage.”
Nova’s recent outings have shown some regression, which was inevitable. Nobody pitches to a 1.50 ERA, like he had April 29 after shutting out the Miami Marlins. Only the best of the best keep the mark better than 3.00, where Nova was as recently as June 17.
In his past four starts, he has allowed 31 hits in 25 innings and 13 runs, for a 4.68 ERA. He allowed four runs for the second time in his past three starts. The length remains. He has pitched six or more innings in each of his 17 starts but one, and seven or more innings eight times.
After a leadoff single in the first, Freddy Galvis hit a first-pitch fastball into the seats in right field.
Two innings later, also with a man aboard, Maikel Franco ambushed another first-pitch fastball. This one was up in the zone, and Franco sent it out on a line to left.
“I missed that pitch high in the strike zone,” Nova said. “Actually, I think it was a ball. The guy put a good swing on that pitch.”
Bill Brink: bbrink@post-gazette.com and Twitter @BrinkPG.
First Published July 4, 2017, 7:43am
