7 years agoPittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Ivan Nova had his worst outing of the season on Tuesday, allowing five runs in two innings against the Chicago White Sox. Two batters into the game, Nova surrendered the lead, and he was tagged for four total runs in the first inning. When he gave up another in the second after the Pirates had tied the game at four, Nova was pulled with 77 pitches. The right-hander coughed up six hits and two walks on the day, while striking out just two. He has now allowed 10 earned runs, including three homers, in his last 6 2/3 innings to end what had been a solid four-start stretch. Despite his generally good control, his lack of strikeouts makes him hard to trust, especially when his average exit velocity allowed is among the highest in baseball for a starting pitcher. Nova will look to turn it around in his next start against the San Francisco Giants on Sunday.--Matt Wilkes
Source: MLB.com