Listless Bucs keep it within 6 but get blanked by Seattle

The depleted Pirates continued their streak of ineptitude with a 6-0 blanking at the hands of Marco Gonzales and the Seattle Mariners Tuesday night at PNC Park in Pittsburgh.

Pirates’ starter Mitch Keller pitched respectably, giving up two runs in five innings as he walked two and struck out seven.

The Mariners got on the board in the second when Omar Narvaez dropped a pop fly into short left for a single, went to third on Aaron Nola’s doubled that bounced up against the right field wall, then came home on Dee Gordon’s sacrifice fly.

Keller kept the deficit to 1-0 until the fifth when the opposing pitcher Gonzales roped a double to right to start off the inning and immediately came home on Shed Long’s single to left.

After reaching a total of 95 pitches, Keller was pinch-hit for in the bottom of the fifth, then Michael Feliz came on in the sixth to watch both Narvaez and Nola take him deep.

New waiver claim Williams Jerez worked the seventh and Long launched his first pitch to the back of the seats in right for yet another round tripper.

Erik Gonzalez started in center field and had a pair of hits, as did Jose Osuna, but the Pirates never threatened to score a run as Gonzales worked seven innings for his 17th win of the year.

The Pirates came into the game tied with the White Sox, who at this writing are tied with the Twins in the seventh inning, for the eighth worst record in the majors. and now just two games behind the Mariners for sixth place.

The series will continue at 7:05 p.m. Eastern on Wednesday evening as Seattle right-hander Justin Dunn will make his second major league start against the Pirates’ rookie Dario Agrazal (4-4, 4.91)