Pirates Crush Athletics 12-4 as Ryan O'Hearn Drives In Career-High 6

Q: Is Zack Gelof's record hitting streak built on skill or just luck, as analytics suggest?

Zack Gelof’s 21-game hitting streak looks like a mix of real improvement and significant good fortune, with the analytics leaning toward some regression ahead. There is clear evidence of skill growth. Gelof has cut his strikeout rate sharply from prior seasons, improved his chase rate, and made more contact in the zone. Those are meaningful changes, not random noise, and they help explain why he has become a more reliable hitter during this stretch. His home run Wednesday night against Pittsburgh, which extended the streak, also fits a broader run of better at-bats and stronger confidence after returning from injury. But the underlying metrics suggest the streak is outperforming the quality of contact. His actual numbers are well above his expected stats: a batting average around .286 versus an expected mark closer to the low-.220s to .240 range, and a wOBA in the mid-.360s versus an expected figure closer to the high-.280s or low-.310s. His slugging also exceeds expected levels by a wide margin. Analysts point to below-average exit quality, a modest barrel rate, and too many weak-contact indicators for this level of production to be fully sustainable. That does not make the streak a fluke in the pure sense. Gelof appears to have improved his approach and bat-to-ball skills. But the length and production of the streak have likely been boosted by favorable batted-ball outcomes, and the data suggests he is a strong candidate to cool off if those breaks stop going his way.

3 articles · Updated · ESPN · Jun 18

Ryan O'Hearn homered, doubled and singled for a career-high six RBI as Pittsburgh rolled past the Athletics 12-4 in West Sacramento.
Pittsburgh piled up 16 hits and jumped ahead 7-0 by the fourth inning, with O'Hearn's two-run double in the first and two-run homer in the fourth driving the early surge.
Braxton Ashcraft improved to 6-3 after striking out seven over six innings, allowing two runs — one earned — on four hits.
The Pirates broke it open with five runs in the seventh, including Marcell Ozuna's 448-foot solo homer, while Zack Gelof's ninth-inning shot extended the majors' longest active hitting streak to 21 games.
Pittsburgh scored at least 10 runs for the seventh time this season, already matching its total from 2025.