SAN FRANCISCO -- Braxton Ashcraft yelled something to himself leaving Oracle Park’s mound Tuesday night. It wasn’t out of frustration. It was an amped-up rookie celebrating as Oneil Cruz snagged a lazy fly ball to close Ashcraft's night.
Nine up, nine down. He was able to go three innings, and after the Pirates’ bullpen was taxed to go seven frames Monday, they needed every one. It was a clutch performance, but it may need an equally clutch follow-up if his parents find out what he said that inning.
“I'm sure my mom's gonna get a little frustrated with my language,” Ashcraft said with a smile.
Ashcraft’s performance, plus an eighth-inning go-ahead single by Joey Bart, propelled the Pirates to a 3-1 win over the Giants. Ashcraft entered in a tie game in the sixth and exited protecting a lead.
It’s a clutch spot for a pitcher who didn’t start pitching out of the bullpen until his promotion to the Majors in May. It can take some pitchers years to learn how to handle that pressure. He’s looked like a natural in those leverage spots.
"You know, I think if we didn't enjoy the pressure of that part of the game, how important those last nine outs are, we'd be playing the wrong game,” Ashcraft said. “So going in and knowing that those are the last nine outs of the game, they mean a little bit more so the awareness is a little bit heightened. The focus is a little heightened. It makes it a little bit more fun.”
Ashcraft has taken his bullpen role in stride, maintaining that the goal has gone from trying to reach the Majors to staying in the Majors and winning. Still, figuring out a new role at the game’s highest level is easier said than done.
“I've gone through it a little bit whenever I was with the Phillies,” Bailey Falter said. “Just getting thrown into that bullpen role, it's tough, especially when you've always been a starter. But he's been doing a great job at it. I know guys out in the bullpen have been really taking care of him. He's been talking to a lot of guys, trying to get in that routine as a leverage arm reliever.
“The numbers don't lie. He's been doing really well."
The numbers are glowing thus far. Ashcraft has posted a 2.17 ERA through his first 29 innings. His slider and curveball have whiff rates above 30%. He limits hard contact (35.1% hard hit rate) and gets plenty of ground balls (53.2%).
Liover Peguero saw him as a starter with Triple-A Indianapolis and now as a reliever in the Majors, and by his eye test, it’s the same dude.
“He’s someone who is going to go after it,” Peguero, who homered in the win, said. “It doesn’t matter if you have him as a starter, a reliever, or a closer, he’s someone who’s going to compete and do his thing.”
A closer, you say? He’s probably not a candidate to slide into that role right now, regardless of who is or isn’t traded between now and Thursday, but it seems well within his talent range. He also could be a starter, something manager Don Kelly has maintained during this bullpen experiment. Or how about an Andrew Miller-type Swiss Army knife that could pitch at any given time for multiple frames?
"The role that he's in right now, the way he's throwing it, the sky's the limit for how he goes about it,” Kelly said. “He's prepared, he attacks the zone. He does everything. I could see him starting. It's tough with closing. He's so effective over multi-innings that I don't know. It's nice when he's got that stuff and he throws strikes like he does. A lot of different options that you can use him."
And if he does go back to start again – or transitions to a late-inning leverage arm – the reps he’s getting now are going to help with that development.
“Whenever you come in situations like I came in today in the sixth inning, you want to be able to replicate that feeling,” Ashcraft said. “I think that coming in in those situations and getting outs in that time of the game is going to help me get outs early in games, if I get the opportunity to do that again. But regardless, I said it time and time again, I’m just here to get outs. Whether that's in the first inning or at the back end of the game, I'm just happy to be able to help the team win."