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Jack Suwinski finds favorable matchups, produces extra-base hits for Pirates in defeat

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Jack Suwinski waited five games to finally face a right-handed starting pitcher and move into the cleanup spot in the Pittsburgh Pirates’ lineup.

The lefty slugger came off the bench in three of the first five games this season, as the Pirates faced a steady string of lefty pitchers. When he was in the starting lineup, Suwinski batted ninth and fifth in the order as Pirates manager Derek Shelton preferred to play the more favorable matchups.

Suwinski delivered a pair of big extra-base hits Wednesday night in a 5-3 loss to the Washington Nationals, the Pirates’ first defeat of the season, and one of them was a promising sign for the lefty slugger.

“Feels good to put a couple good swings on it and get the ball rolling,” Suwinski said after going 2 for 4 with his first double and home run of the season.

Suwinski got the Pirates going in a two-run second inning with a leadoff double, driving Trevor Williams’ 2-0 changeup down the right field line. Andrew McCutchen and Rowdy Tellez both drew walks to load the bases, and Suwinski scored on Michael A. Taylor’s two-out single to left for a 1-0 lead.

Suwinski credited his work with hitting coach Andy Haines for a solid showing at the plate, accounting for half of the Pirates’ hits and two of their three runs.

“(It’s just) going back to preparation and stuff like that,” Suwinski said, “talking with Hainesy, having a good plan going into the box.”

But Suwinski’s third at-bat was an important one, for him and the Pirates. After Williams struck out Ke’Bryan Hayes to start the sixth inning, the Nationals replaced him with left-handed reliever Robert Garcia. The move made sense, given that Suwinski batted .200/.296/.313 against lefties but hit .232/.353/.503 with 16 of his 21 doubles, 24 of his 26 homers and 60 of his 74 RBIs against right-handers last season.

Instead, it backfired when Garcia left a 1-0 slider over the middle of the plate and Suwinski turned on it for a 402-foot home run to right field at an exit velocity of 109.1 mph. Shelton was impressed that Suwinski went deep in a left-on-left situation so early in the season.