PITTSBURGH -- If there was a theme to Mike Burrows' first two Major League starts, it’s that he has been quite good once he settles in, but it can be a bit bumpy getting to that point.
That was almost the case Wednesday night, falling behind leadoff hitter Jeremy Peña, 3-0. Instead, Burrows quickly reset, got Peña to strike out and then got rolling, tossing 5 1/3 scoreless innings to earn his first win as a starter as the Pirates beat the Astros, 3-0, at PNC Park.
“I think I came out with a little bit of adrenaline, got 3-0 on [Peña] and then settled in from there,” said Burrows, who’s ranked as Pittsburgh’s No. 15 prospect by MLB Pipeline. “I think I overcomplicated the game in the first two outings. I just kept it simple and made the pitches and tried to get quick outs tonight."
For Burrows, simplifying the game meant trusting Endy Rodríguez, who has been catching him for years during their ascents through the Pirates’ farm system. For Rodríguez, that meant calling for plenty of offspeed and breaking stuff.
“They didn’t know how to hit his changeup,” Rodríguez said. “They were just blind, so we got to use it.”
The changeup has been Burrows’ best performing pitch in The Show thus far, with the Astros swinging at it nine times and whiffing on six of them. Jacob Melton was the primary victim. In the third, Burrows threw him three straight changeups. Melton whiffed on all three.
“He pitched backwards, and you don’t see that with a young pitcher too often,” Astros manager Joe Espada said. “In fastball counts, he was throwing sliders. In breaking ball counts, he was throwing fastballs. So, he was really changing it up and you’ve got to give him credit for that. He pitched well.”
Burrows struck out six with five hits allowed and no walks.
Wednesday normally wouldn’t be a typical start day for Burrows, having last pitched last on May 27 in Arizona. However, a pair of off-days presented a scheduling challenge for manager Don Kelly, who opted to keep Paul Skenes and Mitch Keller on five days’ rest and have them start on Tuesday and Thursday, respectively. That meant that Burrows was the one in an awkward spot, but the extra bullpen and time turned out to be advantageous, Kelly thought.
“He’s been working on some stuff, too, with [pitching coach] Oscar [Marin] and [Brent] Strom and Miggy [Perez], and it showed tonight out there on the field,” Kelly said.
Simplifying and getting back to what makes his four pitches work was part of it, as well as trusting his catcher. Burrows was pulled after 70 pitches rather than face the top of the order a third time, but he had his curveball ready in reserve after offering it sparingly most of the night. There was an attack plan, and the battery felt they executed it.
"Just try not to overcook pitches and don't make 'em better than they already are, and just staying within what I know I can do and making the pitches to Endy,” Burrows said.
Rodríguez also helped offensively, setting the team up in the second with a double to put himself and Tommy Pham in scoring position. Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Andrew McCutchen would have productive outs to get the RBIs. Rodríguez is working his way back from a right finger laceration, and picking up an extra-base hit and hitting two balls hard is a step towards normalcy.
“That’s my game: rip it,” Rodríguez said.
Wednesday wasn’t Burrows’ first Major League win. That came in the penultimate game last season at Yankee Stadium, coming out of the bullpen to cover 3 1/3 innings after an abbreviated Skenes start.
This was the first win in a game he started, though. And just in case you had any doubt if that makes it more special, Burrows assured it “100%” does.