GM Ben Cherington confident when it comes to Pirates pitching staff: ‘We know we’re capable’

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Ben Cherington knows the results haven’t matched expectations — internal or external — when it comes to the Pirates pitching staff.

At the same time, Pittsburgh’s general manager believes a turnaround is near, emphasizing on the Pirates Insider Show Sunday on 93.7 The Fan that it’s been a combination of inconsistent performance mixed with a little bad luck.

“Still really see a lot of potential in this group,” Cherington said. “We know to win as many games as we aim to win this year, we’re gonna need a little more consistency on the run prevention side.

“Still really believe most of the solution for that is in the Pirates organization. Certainly no shortage of effort [spent] on it every single day.”

One stat Cherington cited was how the Pirates have fared with runners on base versus what happens when the bases are empty.

With runners on, the Pirates are allowing an OPS of .782 that’s the ninth-highest in MLB. When the bases are empty, Pirates pitchers have a .627 OPS against, second-lowest.

“We’re getting beat with runners on base,” Cherington said. “We have to keep attacking the things that are controllable in our preparation, game-calling and execution. And also trust that there has probably been a little bit of bad luck mixed in.

“Believe in the group. It’s also our job, as we get into July, to keep looking externally, too. Can we support the staff and make it even deeper with guys who aren’t here yet? It’s gotta be all that.

“We’ll keep working at it. We know we’re capable of preventing more runs. We need to do that. We need to do that if we’re going to win games more consistently.”

Pirates pitchers have a 4.22 ERA thus far, which ranks 18th in MLB. Over the past month, only four teams have a worse ERA (4.96) than the Pirates.

Paul Skenes, who delivered six innings of two-run ball Sunday while striking out 10, isn’t the concern. But the Pirates certainly need more from Mitch Keller, who has the fifth-highest ERA (5.14) among qualified starting pitchers.

Bubba Chandler has been much better over his past two starts, producing a 3.27 ERA while walking three and striking out 13. Chandler walked 6.6 per nine innings over his first nine starts compared to 3.5 in his past five.

“When he stays within himself, he’s so athletic,” Cherington said. “He’s so powerful that the ball’s going to come out, and it’s going to be really good stuff. He’s made good progress, and we’ll keep working with him on it.”

Among the other topics Cherington addressed ...

• It looked strange when Oneil Cruz was in the lineup Tuesday against the Dodgers, then a short while later wound up on the 10-day injured list with two non-displaced fractures in his left hand.

Asked what changed, Cherington said the fractures didn’t show up on the initial X-ray, and Cruz told the team things were trending upward when he arrived at PNC Park for the start of the series.

“Sunday into Monday, symptoms were improving,” Cherington said. “He was feeling a lot better. He was expressing to us, ‘I think I can be good for Tuesday.’

“We have him in the lineup Tuesday tentatively. He gets here Tuesday. Gets into his hitting and felt it again, maybe a little more acutely. At that point he’s pulled out of the lineup, then we schedule an MRI and CT scan to get closer pictures.

“Sometimes small fractures show up on MRI or CT scans and not an X-ray. Sometimes injuries like that take 24-48 hours to actually appear on imaging.”

Around a four-to-six-week timetable is accurate, Cherington said. He also cited Cruz’s willingness to play through pain, though it’s hard to imagine how that would come into play here.

“If/when he feels he can get back out there, he’s gonna do it,” Cherington said. “With his hand and how important his has hands are to him as a hitter, we wanna make sure we’re taking care of this thing so he can be a threat for the rest of the season, too.”

• Cherington said Wilber Dotel’s right lat muscle strain will be “on the shorter side of things” because the Pirates caught it early. While allowing 10 earned runs in 1 2/3 innings over his past two appearances, Cherington didn’t rule out Dotel was pitching through the injury to try and make an impression.

• Konnor Griffin is in the middle of his throwing progression, no longer experiencing symptoms and continuing to hit. Cherington said it’s still too early to discuss a rehab assignment for Griffin, “but the fact that he’s in his throwing progression means that hopefully that’s coming not too long from now.”

• Isaac Mattson returned to the Pirates Saturday and Sunday delivered 1 1/3 scoreless innings, showing off a revamped pitch mix Cherington alluded to on the show. Among his 27 pitches, Mattson threw just 12 four-seam fastballs to go along with seven sliders, six changeups and two curveballs.

“We were trying to encourage a little bit more mix from him,” Cherington said. “He went down to Indy. Did that. Got results. We know about his character and the type of teammate he is. It was fun seeing him in the clubhouse [Saturday].”

Jason Mackey: Jason.Mackey@pirates.com and @JMackey_PGH.