What Clint Hurdle declared the most important at-bat of the game was Trevor Williams' last on Wednesday afternoon. Williams, holding a two-run lead with two on and two outs, challenged Bryce Harper with a 91-mph fastball high and over the plate.
Harper, a former National League MVP, swung and missed for strike three. Williams, having thrown only 81 pitches, was removed for a pinch-hitter, as Hurdle handed the Pirates' fate over to his relievers. This bullpen, though, isn't as volatile as it was a month ago, as Kyle Crick and Felipe Vazquez powerfully illustrated again.
Crick, acquired from the Giants in the Andrew McCutchen trade, retired the side in the eighth, and Vazquez struck out the side in the ninth, as the Pirates beat the Nationals, 2-0, at PNC Park to clinch a series win. The two have each thrown 12 consecutive scoreless outings, providing at least some semblance of hope for an underperforming roster.
"It feels good to have the manager’s confidence," Crick told DKPittsburghSports.com. "It’s all what you do from there with it. You can prove him right every time you go out there with that aggressive mindset and going after people. It’s kind of what we’re trying to do."
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