MINNEAPOLIS — Chris Archer's slider had more bite, and he had pinpoint command in spurts. He even effectively used each of his four pitches to strike out seven batters, his most since joining the Pirates at the non-waiver trade deadline. Gregory Polanco, mired in another slump, had two hits, the first driving in two runs.
Josh Harrison, slowed by a hamstring for the past month, finally ran full bore again. Yet, all that mattered to Archer, and the other 24 players in a quiet visitors clubhouse Wednesday at Target Field, was the end result and a harsh reality. Their 6-4 loss to the Twins clinched a series sweep, and the Pirates, now 61-60, returned to Pittsburgh with only four wins, including one series victory, to show for a nine-game, three-city road trip. They lost ground in the standings, trailing by nine games in the Central Division and six in the Wild Card, and have dropped 11 of 19 since the end of an unexpected 11-game winning streak.
The road trip raised further questions about their status as a legitimate playoff contender and all involved were well aware of what's at stake with a four-game series against the first-place Cubs beginning Thursday at PNC Park.
"I honestly believe of the urgency in there now," Harrison, who went 3 for 5, said. "What are we here for? If there hadn’t been urgency — granted, you want urgency all the time — but as the season starts to progress you get away from, ‘Ah, there’s a lot of games left.’ Everybody gets away from that. If there’s not urgency now, then we’re in the wrong spot. I think everybody knows it’s urgent. Within that urgency, you can’t press. You can’t beat yourself down because that’s when it turns things into a mountain. … As far as urgency, oh, we know it’s urgent."
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TAP ABOVE FOR BOXSCORE[/caption]
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