When the crowd roared and chanted his name, Chris Archer reared back and unleashed his wipeout slider, not once, but twice. After Paul DeJong swung over the second for strike three to strand the bases loaded, Archer twirled off the mound, pounded his chest with his closed right fist and yelled into the night, "Let's Go!"
While that raw, unfiltered emotion helped him pack an extra punch, it also put an abrupt end to his debut at PNC Park. Archer, a two-time All-Star and the prize of the non-waiver trade deadline, gave up a home run to the first batter he faced, allowed each of his five leadoff batters to reach safely and lasted only 4 1/3 innings.
Yet, a 12-hit onslaught by the Pirates' offense, capped by Adam Frazier's go-ahead RBI single in the eighth, resulted in a 7-6 win over the Cardinals in front of an announced crowd of 26,773 Friday night. Although Archer was tagged for four earned runs, he offered fans a brief glimpse of the limitless potential that's made him one of the majors' best over the past five years and did just enough to help improve his new team's record to 57-53.
"The fans were incredible," Archer said afterwards. "I’ve never pitched in an atmosphere like that. ... It was unbelievable."
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