The adjustments have come both ways and Pittsburgh Pirates rookie outfielder Austin Meadows is doing better at them than opposing pitchers.
Through the first three games of a series against Arizona that concludes Sunday at PNC Park Weston Richburg Jersey , Meadows has gotten the better of Diamondbacks pitching. Despite going 0-for-4 Saturday, her17;s 5-for-13 in the series with a run, a walk and a stolen base.
In fact, Meadows told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review that pitchers are only adjusting to him r0;a little bitr1; after his early success.
r0;Theyr17;re throwing a little more of their off-speed early in the count for strikes,r1; he said. r0;For me, itr17;s just going out there and having the same mentality I did when I got here. Having that fastball-first mentality and adjusting to certain things and staying in my zone and not swinging at their pitches.r1;
Meadows, 23, a 2013 first-round draft pick who is healthy after injury setbacks, started on fire after his call-up from Triple-A Indianapolis on May 18, but going from .409 to .330 is probably just leveling off to something closer to what he can maintain.
He has made 25 starts r12; he batted leadoff Saturday in a 7-2 Pirates loss r12; divided among all three outfield spots. He has hits in 20 of the 25 starts, including 12 of the past 14, with six doubles, two triples Cassius Marsh Jersey , five homers, 11 RBIs, 14 runs and five stolen bases.
Pirates manager Clint Hurdle expects that opposing teams will use whatever resources they have to try to shift the advantage to the pitchers.
r0;Wer17;ve seen a punch-back already,r1; said Hurdle, who doesnr17;t sound as if he expects opponents to fully solve Meadows any time soon.
r0;If your17;re not impressed by Meadowsr17; at-bats, you need to go watch another sport right now,r1; he said.
Pittsburgh (36-40) has lost four straight and five of six. Arizona (43-33) has won three in a row, five of six, and will go for a four-game series sweep Sunday.
Arizona right-hander Clay Buchholz (1-1, 2.94 ERA) is scheduled to face Pirates right-hander Trevor Williams (6-4, 4.00).
Buchholz has three no-decisions in a row. His most recent start last Sunday was one of the Diamondbacksr17; most frustrating losses.
He allowed one earned run in 5 2/3 innings and Arizona went into the ninth inning with a 3-1 lead before the New York Mets came back against closer Brad Boxberger to win 5-3.
r0;We got some very solid pitching, and Buccholz handed it off to the bullpen,r1; manager Torey Lovullo said.
Buchholz was subdued but r0;felt pretty good for the most part.r1;
Buchholz has been strong on the road with no wins to show for it r12; 0-1 with a 2.12 ERA and a .180 average against in three starts.
He is 0-1 with a 10.13 ERA in two career starts against the Pirates.
Williams is coming off a gem. He pitched seven one-hit Patrick Willis Jersey , scoreless innings and struck out seven Monday in a 1-0 win over Milwaukee. It was his first win since May 15.
Against the Diamondbacks, Williams is 1-1 with a 3.21 ERA in three career starts. That includes a 13-8 road loss on June 12 when he gave up six runs (one earned) in the first inning and two in the third.
The St. Louis Cardinals have struggled to get that one big hit they have needed recently, particularly during a three-game weekend sweep by Atlanta.
Yadier Molina came through early in a key situation, sparking the Cardinals to a play-from-ahead victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Molina hit a two-run single in the first inning and homered, helping the Cardinals end a four-game losing streak with a 6-3 win over the Diamondbacks on Monday night.
r1;Yadie comes through and her17;s got a knack for that and has for a long time,r1; Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said. r1;Then the other guys just kept coming.r1;
The Cardinals played from behind most of their series against the Braves, but jumped on the Diamondbacks early.
Molina hit a two-run single in the Cardinalsr17; four-run first inning against Robbie Ray (3-1) and hit his 12th homer off the Arizona left-hander in the sixth.
Jedd Gyorko also homered and had two RBIs to end Rayr17;s nine-game winning streak, dating to last season.
Martinez (5-4) allowed two runs on six hits and lined a double. Bud Norris worked a perfect ninth for his 16th save in 18 chances.
r1;We really wanted to come here and win the first one,r1; Molina said. r1;We had a good plan against their pitcher and we executed it.r1;
Paul Goldschmidt had four hits and an RBI for the Diamondbacks, who were not able to overcome the early deficit for their fourth straight loss.
r1;We got too far behind too early to play catch up,r1; Arizona manager Torey Lovullo said.
Martinez snapped a three-game losing streak his last start, holding Cleveland to two runs on six hits in six innings. The right-hander was staked to a four-run lead before taking the mound and gave up Jake Lambr17;s run-scoring single in the bottom half.
Goldschmidt lined a run-scoring single in the fifth inning off Martinez, who struck out seven.
r1;We talk about being sharp in the first inning and I thought he was DeForest Buckner Jersey ,r1; Matheny said. r1;He still had a couple things happen in a hurry, but he did a great job of limiting the damage.r1;
Ray returned from the DL (strained right oblique) to throw six scoreless innings in a 2-1 win over Miami on Wednesday.
The Arizona left-hander had a shaky start to his second post-DL outing, allowing four runs on five hits in the first inning.
Ray struck out six while retiring 12 of the next 13 hitters before Molina and Gyorko connected on consecutive solo homers to put the Cardinals up 6-2 in the sixth inning.
Ray allowed six runs on nine hits in five innings in his 100th career appearance.
r1;r1;I felt like I was making my pitches,r1; Ray said. r1;They were just putting good swings on them.r1;
LOVULLO AND MOLINA
Lovullo and Molina nearly came to blows the last time their teams met in April after the Diamondbacks manager uttered a profanity Molina thought was directed at him while arguing with an umpire. Molina charged Lovullo during the argument and both were suspended a game for their actions.
Lovullo said the profanity was not directed at Molina after the April game and met with the Cardinals catcher during batting practice on Monday to patch things up.
r1;Everything is in the past,r1; Molina said. r1;I have a bunch of respect for him and the organization, so everything is good.r1;
POLLOCK RETURNS
The Diamondbacks got a huge boost before the game, when center fielder A.J. Pollock was reinstated from the 10-day disabled list. The former All-Star had been out since May 14 with a broken left thumb and wasnr17;t expected to be back so soon, but was in the lineup batting fourth.
Pollock finished 0 for 4 and scored a run.
CARDINALS MOVES
The Cardinals place OF Dexter Fowler on paternity leave so he could be with his wife, Aliya, for the birth of their second child. St. Louis recalled rookie OF Tyler Or17;Neill from Triple-A Memphis to fill his roster spot. Or17;Neill started in right field and batted third, going 1 for 4.
TRAINERr17;S TABLE
Diamondbacks 2B Ketel Marte returned as a replacement in the seventh inning after missing Sundayr17;s game to a right hamstring cramp suffered Saturday against San Francisco.
UP NEXT
Diamondbacks RHP Zack Greinke is 12-5 with a 3.42 ERA and 102 strikeouts in 19 career games against the Cardinals headed into Tuesdayr17;s game. Her17;ll face RHP Jack Flaherty, who will be making his first career start against Arizona.
