SAN FRANCISCO -- It’s safe to say this isn’t the offensive output the Pirates envisioned when they built this roster. Sunday’s 3-2 loss to the Giants at Oracle Park was another installment in what has been a brutal two weeks for the Pirates, marking the ninth time in their last 12 games they have scored two runs or fewer

“We’ve got to flip the narrative,” said Derek Shelton postgame. “We've got to create more opportunities early in the game. We just didn’t have a lot of baserunners.”

There’s belief it can still be a good offensive unit. General manager Ben Cherington said as much on his 93.7 The Fan radio show Sunday afternoon, while acknowledging the “majority” of players on the team have not performed to the team’s internal projections yet this season.

While Rowdy Tellez was not mentioned by name by Cherington, he’s one of those players who hadn’t played to expectations thus far. He entered Sunday slashing just .187/.271/.227 with one home run and seven RBIs. Though the team’s offensive struggles extend beyond just him, he was supposed to be a big bopper in the middle of the order. That hasn’t happened so far.

This weekend at least offered some hope for the future. After making some hard contact Saturday -- including a game-tying sacrifice fly late -- Tellez hit three balls 102.2 mph or harder Sunday, resulting in two doubles to go with a walk. Those doubles directly led to the Pirates’ only runs of the game, setting up Jared Triolo for an RBI groundout in the fifth and an RBI single in the ninth. Those were Tellez's first extra-base hits since his go-ahead home run against the Marlins on March 31.

“I think it'll get better,” said Tellez. “But it feels good to find some barrels and be able to run around.”

“It’s good to see him back in the middle of the field,” Shelton said. “It looks like there is more confidence in the takes, which a couple of hits, a couple good at-bats will do that.”

Sunday was a taste of what he could potentially bring to an offense. It’s also something that this team desperately needs. The feeling from the majority of the clubhouse is this team needs to do little things well, like stringing good at-bats together and coming through with runners on base, to be a good offensive club. That hasn’t happened of late. When that’s the case, power is a quick way to generate some runs.

Tellez has that power potential. This series could perhaps be a precursor to a turnaround from his slow start. After all, he’s finally hitting the ball hard, with six of his seven balls in play this weekend registering as hard contact. The hope is those swings could build a head of steam.

“When you're putting the ball in play and feeling like you're taking good swings at good pitches it's always going to boost that confidence up,” Tellez said. “It's a long way, but I'm not as far off as I feel and not as far off as people think I am. So I think I'm just going to be ready to go whenever I do pull the trigger and take the swings. Just make sure that they're the right pitches and put good swings on them."

Any way to jump-start the offense would be welcome for this team. The Pirates now rank in the bottom-third of the league in runs scored (21st with 115) despite their initial hot start to the campaign. The pitching has done its part so far, and the clubhouse knows some more offense is needed.

"It's a long season,” Tellez said. “You go through ups and downs, peaks and valleys. Obviously, you want to ride the hot streaks and ride those peaks and get out of those valleys as fast as you can. But sometimes you run into some good pitching and you just don't feel good in the box. I don't think any of us would say we're at our best right now. So I think as we keep going and we get going, more guys in position to score and let our guys when we're feeling good, we're all going to be better. I think it's just little by little, game by game."