Ashcraft Falters as Pirates Fall Short Against Cardinals

Let’s dig into Braxton Ashcraft’s rough outing against the St. Louis Cardinals, the Pittsburgh Pirates’ bullpen woes, and a late offensive push that just couldn’t erase a big early hole at PNC Park. One rocky start set the mood, and the game teetered from there—maybe it says something about where Pittsburgh’s season is headed as 2026 rolls on.

Ashcraft’s rough start and the early deficit against the Cardinals

Ashcraft’s shortest start of the year put the Pirates behind fast. That three-run first inning felt like a gut punch right out of the gate.

Braxton Ashcraft didn’t make it through five innings for the first time in 2026. He walked three and gave up two homers—just couldn’t keep his pitches down in the zone.

St. Louis pounced. Nolan Gorman hammered a fastball, then Victor Scott II crushed a two-strike curveball for a 2-0 lead, and Jordan Walker followed with an opposite-field shot after yet another high pitch from Ashcraft.

The Pirates’ bullpen had its own headaches. Hunter Barco, just up from Triple-A, got tagged for five earned runs over 4 2/3 innings after arriving late to PNC Park because of travel delays.

Pittsburgh’s offense didn’t stay asleep, though. They rallied late, but the early mess and bullpen struggles made the comeback a long shot.

Five Pirates managed multi-hit games. The fight was still there, even as the night slipped away.

Two-strike execution and command issues

Ashcraft admitted he didn’t execute, especially with two strikes. He said he let the team down and, honestly, it looked that way.

The Cardinals made him pay. Gorman’s homer and Scott II’s big swing on a hanging curveball pushed the lead early. Ashcraft kept leaving pitches up, and it put his defense and bullpen in a tough spot almost immediately.

Bullpen struggles and travel delays

The bullpen felt the pressure right away. Barco’s outing turned into a long, rough night—he gave up five earned runs in 4 2/3 innings.

The travel delays didn’t help. Barco barely made it to Pittsburgh in time, and the Pirates had almost no room for mistakes as they tried to claw back.

The combination of Ashcraft’s early slip and the bullpen’s struggles kept the offense from flipping the game around sooner.

Late offense lifts Pirates but not enough

Even after all that, the Pirates didn’t roll over. They put together a pretty decent late charge.

Oneil Cruz smashed his ninth homer, driving in a key run and capping off a multi-hit night. Ryan O’Hearn added a two-run blast and later knocked in another with a single.

Konnor Griffin joined the home run party as part of that late push. Nick Gonzales kept his hitting streak alive at nine games and chipped in an RBI single in the eighth.

• Cruz’s ninth homer and 24th RBI were a bright spot in the late innings.
• Gonzales’s nine-game streak showed off the Pirates’ depth, especially with that clutch RBI in the eighth.
• Griffin’s homer helped fuel a three-run sixth and another three-run eighth—maybe a sign this lineup still has some bounce-back in them yet.

What this loss means for Pittsburgh moving forward

Pittsburgh just dropped its third straight. That stings, honestly. Starting pitching keeps showing up as a big problem, and the team can’t ignore it anymore.

The game really put the spotlight on how much the Pirates need their starters to settle in and the bullpen to get its act together. After this rough patch, everyone’s watching Paul Skenes and the rest of the rotation.

They’ve got to nail those two-strike situations. The depth arms? They need to give the team more steady innings, plain and simple.

Offensively, the Pirates did show some grit. Still, falling behind early and having a bullpen running on fumes made the rest of the night an uphill battle.

They’ve got to find a way to turn those late-game bursts into early leads. It’s the only way this pitching staff gets a break—and maybe, just maybe, Pittsburgh can pull itself out of this rut.

 
Here is the source article for this story: Braxton Ashcraft struggles, as Pirates can’t climb out of hole against Cardinals