Burnett battles in defeat
PITTSBURGH — A.J. Burnett tied a Pirate record Monday afternoon.
That's not what was on his mind.
“One pitch and a rosin bag ... That was my day,” the 36-year-old right-hander said.
A load of strikeouts were part of his day as well.
Burnett — the Pirates' oldest opening day starter since Rick Reuschel in 1986 — struck out 10 in 5.2 innings before suffering a 3-1 loss to the Chicago Cubs at PNC Park.
Only two other Pirate pitchers ever fanned 10 in a season opener. John Candelaria did so in 1983 and Bob Veale turned the trick in 1965.
“My slider and curve were working for some swings and misses, but it was taking me a while to get there,” Burnett said. “My pitch count got up too high.”
Burnett threw 98 pitches before hitting the showers during the sixth inning. Beforehand, he fell victim to an exploding rosin bag on the mound and to a towering two-run homer by Chicago's Anthony Rizzo.
Rizzo's blast to deep center followed a one-out single to left by Starlin Castro in the first inning.
“That was the pitch sequence I'm sure he'd like to have back,” Pirate manager Clint Hurdle said of Burnett. “A breaking ball stayed up against Castro and the next pitch was a fastball that backed up over the plate to Rizzo.
“Besides that, there's not much to complain about with A.J. 's performance.”
Burnett made his first career Opening Day start —and wondered if he was the victim of an April Fool's joke when the rosin bag exploded on him.
“It just blew up on me,” he said, smiling. “The stuff was all over me, in my face, in my mouth, on my arms. It is April Fool's Day, so who knows?
“I was nervous out there, man. I hadn't felt that nervous in a while. It was good nervousness, though. It felt good being back out here, pitching on that mound in front of those people again. Win or lose, it was fun.”
As for the home run by Rizzo?“I left it out over the plate. He's supposed to hit it out,” Burnett said.Burnett kept the Pirates in the game after that, striking out back-to-back hitters to escape a jam after allowing a walk and double to lead off the fourth.“He threw some effective pitches in the chasezone and got himself out of it,” Hurdle said. “He knows how to battle.”Catcher Russell Martin was impressed by Burnett's grit on the hill.“He kept fighting,” Martin said. “The guy's a competitor. His curve ball was on today. Even when he fell behind in the count, he kept making good pitches.”Notes: Attendance was 39,078. ... Temperature was 41 degrees at game time after the Pirates' batting practice session was curtailed by a heavy dose of sleet and snow. ... Left-handed relief pitcher Justin Wilson is the only rookie on the Pirate roster. He struck out two and retired all four batters he faced Monday in relief of Burnett. ... Starling Marte became the Pirates' seventh different Opening Day leadoff hitter in seven years, joining Chris Duffy, Nate McLouth, Nyjer Morgan, Aki Iwamura, Jose Tabata and Alex Presley. ... The Cubs and Pirates met for the 2,385th time Monday. The Cubs opened a season in a fifth Pittsburgh ballpark — Recreation Park in 1887 and 1889, Exposition Park in 1891, Forbes Field in 1948 and 1964, Three Rivers Stadium in 1998.
