PITTSBURGH — Spencer Horwitz kept doing something Friday night that has turned into one of the strangest matchups in the Pirates' lineup. He went 3 for 3 with a double against Tampa Bay starter Nick Martinez, drove in Pittsburgh's first run and helped carry the Pirates to a 5-1 win over the Rays at PNC Park.
The hit parade pushed Horwitz to a perfect 10 for 10 in his career against Martinez. Before Friday, he had already been 7 for 7 off the right-hander with two doubles, one home run, four RBI and two walks, a line that only got even harder to explain after another clean night at the plate.
Horwitz did not have a neat answer for why Martinez has been such a favorable matchup. Asked after the game, he called it a tough question and said there is just something about the pitcher’s delivery that he picks up well. He said seeing Martinez more than once gives him an extra boost of confidence and makes the at-bat easier because of the familiarity.
That comfort showed up in another key moment later in the game. In his fourth trip to the plate, Horwitz drew a walk against Yoendrys Gómez and later scored when Brandon Lowe doubled off the wall in right-center field.
The night was another sign that Horwitz is moving out of the early-season slump that slowed him down at the start. He was hitting.111 with a.311 on-base percentage through his first six games, but over the next 12 games he hit.355 with two doubles, one home run, seven walks and four strikeouts. Asked about the turnaround, he said it is great for him and great for the team, adding that the work has to show up eventually and did so Friday.
That stability matters for a Pirates club trying to make its lineup deeper and harder to navigate. Horwitz had a 118 OPS+ for Pittsburgh last year, ahead of Bryan Reynolds’ 99 OPS+, and said the stronger group around him eases pressure on everyone. He noted that he has gone from hitting second, third or fourth to batting seventh, which he called less a knock on himself than a compliment to the other players the club has added. The way he sees it, the depth is already paying off.
Horwitz said he is still settling in as the season unfolds. He described his start as a case of being too jacked up for Opening Day and for the new season, then gradually calming down as the games have gone on. On Friday, that looked less like a hot streak than a hitter finding the shape of his season, one at-bat at a time.
