Pirates' Vince Velasquez, 3 relievers blank Cardinals, Ji Hwan Bae shines in center field

The Pittsburgh Pirates launched a seven-game road trip through St. Louis and Denver with a 5-0 victory Thursday night against the Cardinals at Busch Stadium.

It was only one good game in a current seven-day stretch in which the team has alternated victories and defeats (4-3), but it was pleasing to manager Derek Shelton on three levels.

On a night when Bryan Reynolds wasn’t in the starting lineup, the Pirates (8-5) scored in each of the final four innings and four pitchers, including starter Vince Velasquez, held the Cardinals to only six hits. It was the Pirates’ first shutout victory in St. Louis since 2013 and came immediately after losing two of three to the Houston Astros at home.

“It feels good,” Shelton said on AT&T SportsNet. “We’re playing a team that has been in the forefront of our division (NL Central). To come in here and be able to hold the offense down and be able to execute and make defensive plays, I think it just shows that our group is resilient.”

The most remarkable two plays of the game were made by Pirates center fielder Ji Hwan Bae, whose glove wizardry — and courage — helped keep the Cardinals (5-8) scoreless.

In the fourth inning with two runners on base and two out, Bae crashed into the outfield wall 395 feet from home plate after chasing down and holding onto a 101.2 mph fly ball by Tyler O’Neill. It was a scary scene, but Bae jumped off the ground, uninjured.

“I don’t think he’s scared,” Shelton said. “There’s not much that really fazes him.”

An inning later, Bae sprinted toward the infield and made a face-first, diving catch of Alec Burleson’s sinking floater. It was the final out of the inning and forced the Cardinals to strand a runner.

The Pirates’ Connor Joe, who started in left field, was impressed, especially because Bae has yet to nail down a regular position in the field.

“The fact that he has to play so many different positions, he just can’t prepare at one,” Joe said. “He’s young (23 years old) and he’s going about it the right way. He’s a pro, preparing the right way and just letting his athleticism show. It’s really fun to watch and play next to him.”

Velasquez was the recipient of Bae’s defense, but he did plenty on his own. After carrying a 9.82 ERA and a 2.18 WHIP into the game, Velasquez pulled out a four-pitch arsenal, throwing six shutout, three-hit innings. He struck out six batters and recorded 18 swings and misses, 10 with a four-seam fastball.

The shutout came four days after the Pirates defeated the Chicago White Sox, 1-0, behind starter Johan Oviedo.

Shelton liked the way Velasquez challenged the Cardinals’ hitters.

“He was really good,” Shelton said. “We talk about how sharp his stuff is when he’s in the (strike) zone. He executed pitches, very good, very solid. He went right at a really good lineup.”

Among the Cardinals hitters who couldn’t solve Velasquez was rookie right fielder Jordan Walker, who was hitless in four at-bats. It ended his MLB record-tying, 12-game hitting streak for a player 20 years old or younger to start the season.

After Velasquez departed, relievers Duane Underwood Jr., Colin Holderman and Dauri Moreta pitched the final three innings. In the eighth, the Cardinals loaded the bases against Holderman, but Nolan Gorman lined out to first baseman Ji Man Choi to end the threat.

The Pirates broke a scoreless tie in the sixth and added a run in the seventh when veterans with double-digit years of experience drove in the first two runs.

In the sixth, Andrew McCutchen doubled ahead of Carlos Santana’s double. It was Santana’s 931st career RBI in 14 seasons. Later in the inning, Santana injured his left hand trying unsuccessfully to score on an infield ground ball. Reynolds pinch-hit for Santana in the ninth.

McCutchen’s sacrifice fly for his 1,006th RBI in 15 seasons increased the lead to 2-0. The Pirates missed an opportunity to broaden the lead when Choi struck out with the bases loaded.

In the eighth, Joe and Rodolfo Castro hit back-to-back solo home runs, marking the first time the Pirates managed that feat in St. Louis since Clint Barmes and Alex Presley did so in 2012.

The Pirates added a run in the ninth when Ke’Bryan Hayes doubled and scored on a wild pitch to give the Pirates, who are in the midst of playing 17 games in 17 days, a nice cushion.

“The fifth run was huge,” Shelton said, “because it kept (closer David) Bednar out of the game.”