'Chest hair. Gut’s out. Bucs win': Bart celebrates walk-off in 13th

PITTSBURGH -- Joey Bart’s jersey had taken a beating by the time he prepared to do his on-field interview. It had already been in a couple of collisions at home plate in the 13-inning affair -- one catching a perfect throw home from Tommy Pham to help extend the game in the 10th, the other with Endy Rodríguez after the two smacked into each other trying to catch a popup in the eighth.

But the real damage was done when his teammates tried to rip his jersey off on the field after launching a walk-off single to beat the Cardinals Thursday, 2-1. The bottom buttons were undone, and the collar was visibly looser.

The look might not get him on the cover of GQ, but it was fitting for an ugly ball game that ended in the win column.

“Chest hair. Gut’s out. Bucs win,” Bart said on the field at PNC Park.

It may not be a “clear eyes, full hearts, can’t lose,” but there is a rhythm to it. Do you want Ibsen, or the joyous relief of someone who is absorbing the moment of their first walk-off hit, knowing he doesn’t have to squat for a 14th inning?

“That’s just what hit me right there at the end,” Bart said afterward in the clubhouse. “I’m just glad we won. Games like that [are] so long and tough. Somebody’s going to pull through. It’s not as exciting, just because of how long the game was, but this win’s huge, and the series win, also.”

It’s way too soon to think about games or series as must-wins, but Wednesday would have been a tough one to lose after being on the wrong side in extra innings three times already, especially given the pitching performance of Mitch Keller. After a rough outing in the team’s home opener Friday, Keller delivered 7 1/3 scoreless frames, the longest outing by a Pittsburgh pitcher this season. He struck out six, using his fastball for quick outs and his breaking stuff to get whiffs and punchouts.

The bullpen had its best showing of the season, too, only allowing one unearned run in the 12th inning and getting multiple ups from Caleb Ferguson, Dennis Santana, Ryan Borucki and Justin Lawrence to seal the win, but it was Keller who set the pace.

“I didn't shake Joey one time today,” Keller said. “We were just in a groove the whole game. Kind of fitting to see him cap it off with the walk-off there.”

Keller is the second pitcher this homestand to sing the praises of Bart’s work behind the plate this homestand, joining Monday’s starter Carmen Mlodzinski. Bart’s bat helped him break onto the scene when he was acquired at the start of last season, but his work behind the plate is what’s getting the most rave reviews.

“He's probably the first person here every day,” Mlodzinski said Monday. “You have full trust in the guy who really puts in the work day in, day out. That gives me and [Thomas] Harrington a lot of confidence to just shake your head 'yes' and to be able to work with him. He just does a lot of things right. He's obviously a really, really good player, and when you see the work that he puts in both scouting, physically, mentally and communication-wise, you can really, really trust a guy like that behind the plate.”

Bart can be trusted at the plate too, becoming a staple of the middle of the Pirates’ order. The team will need him to keep hitting, especially as the Bucs try to build on a divisional series win and erase their slow start.

“We’re however many games in and have however many to go,” Bart said. “It’s a long year. Don’t get too high or too low. Let the thing play out and stay about our process and try to win games like that, that are close. If you can win a lot of close games, you can be a good team.”