After succession of sweeps, Pirates hoping they can find way to show some consistency

When Spencer Horwitz saw the ball clear the center-field fence for his first career grand slam, he turned toward Pittsburgh Pirates first-base coach Tarrik Brock as he rounded the bag and let out a primal scream.

It served as a release of anger amid a blissful celebration and was a cathartic moment for Horwitz, who found frustration while trying to live up to the offseason trade that brought him to the Pirates and make up for the lost time spent on the injured list to start the season.

“I think it’s my first time not seeing results in a long time,” said Horwitz, who batted .265/.357/.433 in 97 games with the Toronto Blue Jays last season but was hitting .225/.297/.318 before the three-game series against the Detroit Tigers. “I have a track record of hitting — not to sound boastful, but I have — and when that’s not there, it’s frustrating when it’s your saving grace. It was just a release. It felt great.”

That Horwitz was a catalyst for the Pirates in their three-game sweep of the American League-leading Tigers, going 7 for 12 with two doubles, the homer and seven RBIs, was no accident. Nor was it a coincidence that left-hander Bailey Falter delivered one of his best starts of the season, tying a career best with eight strikeouts without a walk and allowing one run on four hits in seven innings of Wednesday’s 6-1 win.

After being swept the AL-worst Chicago White Sox over the weekend, a series that served as rock bottom for a disappointing season, the Pirates addressed their deficiencies in hitters’ and pitchers’ meetings before the start of the Detroit series. Pirates manager Don Kelly described it as a time to come up with a plan and an approach and be committed to it.

“A lot of guys in here found their edge,” Falter said. “We got swept by the Chicago White Sox, and it was a terrible series. Guys came in, and you found out what happened this series.”

What happened was a rare rebound. Not since the 1980 had a team been swept by a team with the worst record in a league and swept an opponent with the best record in a league in consecutive three-game series, when the San Diego Padres swept the National League-best Los Angeles Dodgers only to be swept by the NL-worst St. Louis Cardinals.

Six of the Pirates’ past seven series have involved sweeps. They swept the New York Mets and Cardinals back-to-back at PNC Park, then endured back-to-back sweeps at the Seattle Mariners and Kansas City Royals. After being swept by the White Sox, they swept the Tigers.

“We’ve got to continue to play better,” Horwitz said. “We’ve shown flashes of it, and we’re sweeping teams that are in the playoffs right now. And last series, we got swept by a team that has a worse record than us. So I think we just need that consistency.”

Where the Pirates scored a total of seven runs on 22 hits in the three losses to the White Sox, they had 17 runs on 31 hits in the three wins over the Tigers. Strong starts by Paul Skenes and Mitch Keller were supported by solid hitting. In Tuesday’s 8-5 win, the Pirates had eight doubles as Horwitz, Oneil Cruz and Tommy Pham had two apiece.

“To have the at-bats that we had consistently throughout the series, being able to stack them on top of each other and stay within our approach,” Kelly said, “that’s the challenge for us going forward.”

Neither Horwitz nor Falter waited until Monday’s meetings to address their concerns following poor performances.

Horwitz was acquired from Cleveland via Toronto in a trade to address the gaping hole at first base, only to require surgery on his right wrist that caused him to miss all of spring training and the first two months of the season. Horwitz has been working with Pirates hitting coach Matt Hague to iron out some wrinkles at the plate and, after going 0 for 5 in the first two games against Chicago, took swings in the indoor batting cage following Saturday’s game.

“They’ve been after it since Spence got back,” Kelly said. “He was in a tough spot, coming off the injury, new team, big trade, you can feel the pressure when you’re in that situation. He’s done a nice job working through it. Really good to see him see the results after all the hard work he’s put in.”

For Falter, it was just the opposite. Through May, he was 4-3 with a 3.14 ERA and five quality starts in his first 12 outings. But he hadn’t pitched six innings since May 31, a 5-0 win at the Padres, and his struggles had started to affect his sleep and his strategy. So he spent time working on the mental aspect of his performance.

After Friday’s 10-1 loss to the White Sox, Falter had a meeting with pitching coach Oscar Marin and catchers Joey Bart and Henry Davis to review what had changed since his success earlier in the season. Much of it had to do with throwing his four-seam fastball with conviction.

“I went back to when I was at my best, and I rolled with that,” Falter said. “I’m just going out there to compete and fill up the zone as much as possible.”

Now comes the next challenge for the Pirates: finding consistency amid a season of peaks and valleys. The Pirates made MLB history by shutting out the Cardinals in three games, then getting shut out by the Mariners in the next series.

The Pirates know the consequences of complacency, from the lows that come with an eight-game losing streak and a skid of 11 losses in a 12-game stretch to the thrill of sweeping first-place teams like the Mets and Tigers. Next, they will play host this weekend to the Arizona Diamondbacks (50-53), who have lost three in a row.

“The bats have been absolutely phenomenal the past couple days. A lot of guys in here are having fun,” Falter said. “We’re playing good ball. These past three games have been really fun, so we’re all excited to go head in to Arizona right now.”