Nick Burdi leaves with arm injury, Pirates lose to Diamondbacks

After hurling a 97-mph fastball, reliever Nick Burdi clutched his pitching arm just above the right elbow, fell to his knees and stared down at the PNC Park mound.

At that awful moment, which forced Burdi to walk off in tears, an ugly night for the Pittsburgh Pirates bullpen became painfully worse.

The Arizona Diamondbacks scored 11 runs combined in the seventh and eighth innings Monday night, five charged to Burdi, as the Pirates squandered a late lead and lost 12-4 at PNC Park.

The loss was their second in a row after five straight wins, but it was Burdi’s injury that was forefront in a somber clubhouse. Teammates had gathered around and consoled him as he sat on the mound in the eighth inning.

“I can’t explain (what I was thinking) because it’s a moment when you think a lot,” catcher Elias Diaz said. “You say, ‘Oh my God.’ … He was crying. That’s something that broke my heart.”

The Pirates described Burdi’s injury as elbow/biceps pain and said he was being evaluated by the medical staff. The right-hander has had arm trouble before with Tommy John surgery in 2017.

“It takes the breath right out of you,” manager Clint Hurdle said. “It gives you something to contemplate – the fine line between competing one pitch and then the next pitch you’re down like that.”

“It’s really quiet right now around the whole clubhouse,” starter Joe Musgrove said. “It’s not easy to watch anybody go through but especially a teammate. Everyone in here saw how hard he worked over the last year and half.”

The night started with the Pirates celebrating outfielder Gregory Polanco’s return to the lineup, and it ended with outfielder J.B. Shuck pitching for them.

This was the first time in 11 games the Pirates (12-8) allowed more than three runs. The Diamondbacks (12-11) collected 13 of their 17 hits in the final three innings.

The start of a four-game series drew 9,233.

The Pirates had led 4-1 when Musgrove left with two runners on and no outs in the seventh. The Diamondbacks then scored five times with Kyle Crick on the mound, including a three-run triple by David Peralta. Burdi relieved Crick and allowed a two-run homer by Arizona’s Christian Walker.

But the rally had started with softly hit singles.

The Diamondbacks’ six-hit, seven-run seventh inning started with a leadoff walk and three ground balls. On the third, an infield single by Blake Swihart, Crick threw home to Diaz in time, but the catcher missed home plate with his foot. An RBI bloop over shortstop by Eduardo Escobar later scored another run.

In all, seven consecutive batters reached base.

“I had some tough luck there, but all in all, I need to make some better pitches for sure,” said Crick (0-1), who took the loss.

The Diamondbacks led 8-4 after the seventh and scored four more runs in the eighth.

Two runs were charged to Musgrove, who allowed three runs on five hits and two walks in six innings. Crick was charged with four runs in two-thirds of an inning, and Burdi was saddled with five runs in one-third inning.

Burdi threw 17 pitches including a 1-0 fastball to Jarrod Dyson that was his last.

“That was heart-wrenching,” Crick said, “to know what he went through in the previous year.”

Francisco Liriano pitched a scoreless eight before Shuck handled the ninth. Shuck was the first position player to pitch for the Pirates since catcher Erik Kratz threw an inning in 2016.

Polanco went 2 for 4 with a walk and two runs scored in his season debut. The right fielder was returning from September shoulder surgery.

The Pirates scored two runs in the third and added two more in the sixth. Each time, Polanco reached base and scored as the leadoff hitter.

In the third, Polanco drew a leadoff walk and scored on Colin Moran’s double. Diaz’s two-out single scored Moran.

In the fifth, Polanco doubled to right and scored when Josh Bell tripled off the center-field wall. Moran followed with an RBI single that scored Bell and chased Diamondbacks starter Zack Godley with no outs.

Godley allowed four runs on seven hits and four walks in four innings. He struck out two.

Matt Andriese (3-1) threw two scoreless innings in relief for the win.