Paul Skenes was not at his best May 17 versus the Philadelphia Phillies, his most recent start before taking the hill on the road versus the Toronto Blue Jays on Saturday.
Last time out, Skenes tied a career high in runs allowed (five) while taking a loss.
In Saturday’s 5-2 defeat to the Blue Jays at Rogers Centre, the 23-year-old again wasn’t in top form as he allowed a career-high nine hits and had only two strikeouts, taking another loss.
Skenes (6-4, 3.00 ERA) gave up a homer and a double in the first inning, settled in, but was chased in the sixth after allowing four straight hits, with the Blue Jays scoring three runs.
The eight runs allowed by Skenes over his last two outings are the most in back-to-back starts in his career.
Skenes departed the game having thrown 62 of his 98 pitches for strikes with one walk.
Manager Don Kelly and pitching coach Bill Murphy were ejected by home plate umpire Alan Porter in the bottom of the sixth, leaving bench coach Kristopher Negron to manage the remainder of the contest.
Blue Jays starter Patrick Corbin (2-1, 3.86 ERA) was effective over six innings, allowing one run on five hits and striking out seven.
George Springer took Skenes deep to lead off the bottom of the first, connecting on an 0-2 fastball for a line drive solo shot down the left-field line.
Skenes also walked Daulton Varsho, with Yohendrick Pinango doubling, but Skenes avoided any further damage as Toronto took a 1-0 lead.
The homer was Skenes’ sixth allowed this season.
Offensively, the Pirates (26-26) enjoyed some early success against Corbin but couldn’t capitalize, failing to bring anyone home in the second inning after Spencer Horwitz and Jhostynxon Garcia hit back-to-back singles to start the frame.
Skenes settled down after the Blue Jays jumped on him early.
Toronto (25-27) went down in order in the third, and in the fourth Skenes recovered from a one-out double allowed to Jesus Sanchez, who stretched a base hit for an extra bag and was originally ruled out at second before a successful challenge.
But Ernie Clement lined out, and Andres Gimenez popped out to end the inning.
Springer got the best of Skenes again in the fifth, roping a two-out double into center field, but Varsho flew out to end the inning, narrowly missing a two-run homer.
The Pirates tied the score in the sixth.
After Bryan Reynolds singled with two outs, Marcell Ozuna brought him home with an RBI double.
The 1-1 tie did not last long as, with zero outs in the sixth, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Pinango singled back to back.
Sanchez then doubled into right field for Toronto’s eighth hit of the game, the most allowed by Skenes in an outing, scoring Guerrero.
Clement soon followed with an RBI single to make it 3-1 Blue Jays, which spelled the end of Skenes’ afternoon.
Yohan Ramirez took over for Skenes with runners on the corners and zero outs.
Ramirez got Gimenez to hit into a double play but at the cost of Sanchez scoring, putting Toronto up 4-1.
Home plate umpire Alan Porter tossed Murphy and Kelly in quick succession during an at-bat by Lenyn Sosa in the bottom of the sixth.
Murphy had taken exception to Porter not seeing an ABS challenge attempt by Henry Davis, and Kelly was tossed for arguing about a Sosa check swing.
Toronto added some insurance in the seventh when former Pirate Tyler Heineman launched a solo shot to deep right field off Ramirez.
The Pirates cut into their deficit in the eighth courtesy of an Ozuna RBI groundout that scored Konnor Griffin, who singled, stole second and advanced to third on a botched pickoff try by pitcher Yariel Rodriguez.
After Rodriguez walked Reynolds, Adam Macko came in and hit Horwitz with a pitch. That brought the tying run, Garcia, to the place. But “The Password” grounded out softly as Toronto maintained a 5-2 lead.
In the ninth, the Pirates went down in order against Jeff Hoffman, who struck out the side.