Angels pound out 15 hits, hand Pirates their most lopsided loss of season

Quinn Priester has a tendency to pitch to contact, as the Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander was getting ground balls at a 68.5% rate.

The Los Angeles Angels put the ball in the air Tuesday night, pounding Priester for seven of their 15 hits, including a three-run home run by Kevin Pillar.

And the Pirates once again failed to produce any run support for Priester, extending that streak to 21 innings over four starts this season as they were shut out for the third time this season.

Pillar went 3 for 5 with two home runs and six RBIs and left-hander Patrick Sandoval allowed three hits over seven shutout innings as the Angels beat the Pirates, 9-0, before 10,844 at PNC Park to end their three-game winning streak. The game was delayed by 20 minutes before the start because of a threat of rain in the area.

The nine-run differential served as the most lopsided loss of the season for the Pirates, who had bookend shutouts on their West Coast road trip. They lost at the San Francisco Giants, 3-0, on April 26 and at the Oakland Athletics, 4-0, on May 1.

While Pirates manager Derek Shelton focused on where Priester needs to improve to become a reliable major-league starter, he acknowledged that the Pirates’ failure to provide any runs hasn’t helped.

“Well, I think that plays a factor in it, too,” Shelton said. “But, the things that he can control are the most important things. Obviously, the fact that we haven’t scored any runs for him is definitely a challenge for him. But in terms of him singularly, we have to just continue to finish that development.”

Sandoval (2-5) recorded seven strikeouts against one walk while throwing 71 of 103 pitches for strikes. He didn’t allow the Pirates to reach second base until the seventh inning, when Connor Joe was credited with a double on a line drive to left that Pillar lost in the lights.

Priester (0-3) threw three scoreless innings before Mickey Moniak singled to right to lead off the fourth. After Priester walked Willie Calhoun on four pitches, Pillar drilled a 2-0 sinker on the inside corner 403 feet to left field for a three-run home run.

After Jo Adell singled to left and Cole Tucker drew another four-pitch walk, Priester received a mound visit. He got Zach Neto to line out to first to end the inning with the Pirates trailing, 3-0.

“The first three innings, I think the sinker was good. He was aggressive with it. The slider had bite to it. And then it just looked like his stuff kind of ticked back a little bit,” Shelton said. “I think the slider lost a little bit of its shape. And then he threw a couple of sinkers that really didn’t sink that he left in the middle plate and ended up getting hit really hard.”

Priester got into more trouble in the fifth, after Moniak doubled to right. When Brandon Drury hit a grounder to Priester, his errant throw to second base in an attempt to get Moniak allowed Drury to reach on a fielder’s choice. Calhoun followed with a single to right to load the bases, and Moniak scored on a grounder to third for a 4-0 lead.

“I need to make that play,” Priester said. “That avoids a lot of that crap that we were into. Then, falling behind and I make the mistake.”

After Logan O’Hoppe singled to left to score Calhoun from second to make it 5-0, the Pirates pulled Priester after allowing three earned runs on seven hits and two walks with one strikeout in 4 2/3 innings.

Roansy Contreras struck out Adell for the final out of the fifth but gave up a run in the sixth when Neto singled, reached second on a passed ball by catcher Yasmani Grandal and scored on Nolan Schanuel’s RBI single to right to give the Angels a 6-0 lead.

Pillar homered again to lead off the seventh when Contreras left a 1-1 slider at the top of the zone, sending it 396 feet to left for his seventh career multi-homer game and a 7-0 Angels lead.

The Angels added two more runs in the eighth against lefty Josh Fleming. Schanuel hit a leadoff double and scored on a double to center by Pillar. O’Hoppe, who went 4 for 5, singled to drive in Calhoun to make it 9-0.

The loss left Priester frustrated, especially with his three-run fourth.

“You’re always trying to avoid that,” Priester said. “My thing is … just on to the next one. I don’t have a non-swear word, but screw it and on to the next one.”