Bailey Falter throws 3⅔ scoreless innings in start but Red Sox beat Pirates

Bailey Falter came to camp with the intention of competing for a spot in the starting rotation and hopes of making the Opening Day roster, willing to pitch in whatever role the Pittsburgh Pirates want to use him.

“It doesn’t matter to me,” Falter said. “Start, long guy, closer — I know that’s not gonna happen with the guys we got this offseason — but it doesn’t matter to me. I just want to go out there and do my job, execute and hopefully be one of those 26 guys.”

In his second start of spring training, Falter delivered his best performance. The left-hander tossed 3⅔ scoreless innings, allowing one hit and one walk while striking out four in a 1-0 loss to the Boston Red Sox on Monday afternoon in a Grapefruit League game at JetBlue Park in Fort Myers, Fla.

The Pirates acquired Falter from the Philadelphia Phillies on Aug. 1 in exchange for infielder Rodolfo Castro, giving him a fresh start amid a season in which he was 0-7 with a 5.13 ERA and 1.144 WHIP. Falter was 2-2 with a 5.58 ERA and 1.39 WHIP in 10 appearances for the Pirates, including seven starts, and allowed 10 home runs.

This marked Falter’s second start in Fort Myers this spring as he started the Grapefruit League opener against the Minnesota Twins and gave up two runs on four hits with three strikeouts.

Against the Red Sox, Falter retired the first 10 batters he faced before getting into a jam in the fourth inning. Jamie Westbrook doubled off the left-field wall, Wilyer Abreu drew a walk and the runners advanced to second and third on a wild pitch in the dirt that bounced off catcher Henry Davis. After getting CJ Cron to pop out to second, Falter was pulled in favor of right-hander Brent Honeywell Jr., who struck out Eddy Alvarez to escape unscathed.

The Pirates managed five hits, none for extra bases. Billy McKinney, who started in center field and batted leadoff, went 1 for 3 to extend his on-base streak to 11 games, which is tied with Lane Thomas of the Washington Nationals for longest in the majors this spring.

The Pirates had a runner in scoring position in the fourth inning when Davis hustled down the line to beat shortstop Nick Sogard’s errant throw, and Canaan Smith-Njigba hit a two-out single to center. But Joe Jacques struck out Gilberto Celestino to end the inning.

The game remained scoreless until the seventh, when Ryder Ryan walked Joe Dunand, who advanced to third on a Marcelo Mayer double and scored on Nick Sogard’s grounder to first base to give the Red Sox a 1-0 lead.

Notes: The Pirates optioned their No. 7 prospect, RHP Braxton Ashcraft, to minor-league camp. Ashcraft didn’t allow an earned run in 3⅔ IP over four appearances, allowing two hits, two walks, one hit batter with three Ks. … Righty Chase Anderson is expected to start for the Pirates against Atlanta’s Reynaldo Lopez on Tuesday at LECOM Park.