MILWAUKEE — Andrew McCutchen fumed as he descended the dugout steps in the sixth inning Sunday. He walked into the tunnel and spiked his batting helmet on the cement floor. The frustration that was building and building within McCutchen has started spilling over. Frustration at striking out in his first three at-bats of a 4-2 loss Sunday. Frustration at what he perceives as an increasingly unfair strike zone. And frustration, too, at being swept by the Milwaukee Brewers.
If the Pirates season is slowly slipping away, Sunday presented a good picture of the problem. Consider the team’s two highest-paid players.