Jameson Taillon allows two more home runs, but he sees some positives

PITTSBURGH — Two home runs, one coming on a fastball that clipped the high outside corner, one coming on a fastball that clipped the low inside corner.

Those home runs — a three-run shot by Brandon Lowe that wiped out an early 3-0 Cubs advantage and a solo shot by rookie Konnor Griffin that erased a 4-3 Cubs lead — will form the narrative around Jameson Taillon’s latest start.

He understands that. He knows that he has allowed a major-league-leading 19 home runs, four more than Zack Littell of the Nationals. He knows, after allowing four runs to the Pirates in five innings Wednesday night at PNC Park, that the ERA sits at 5.37 11 starts in.

He’s not oblivious to the grumbling back home. But where others measure steep decline, and Taillon, 34, acknowledges that he has to keep the ball in the yard, he insists that if you look hard enough, you will see some positives, too. Taillon sees a better shape to his pitches, a slight uptick in velocity, room to mix up his repertoire so he isn’t as predictable.

“It’s just, unfortunately, my time to go through it right now, but I feel great,’’ he said. “I’m really encouraged by what I’m doing and the work I’m doing. But I’ll keep saying it: I’m really excited about the long term, really upset about the short term.’’

PCA tormentor

Pirates first baseman Spencer Horwitz smiled when he was told that Pete Crow-Armstrong said he might have won Horwitz the Gold Glove by hitting three rockets that he turned into outs Monday night.

Horwitz snagged two line drives and a wicked one-hop smash, all with exit velocities of 100-plus mph.

The line drives, Horwitz said, were pretty much hit right at him.

“A little jump, that was it,’’ he said. ‘‘The third one, the grounder, a one-hopper, that was a top-spinner that went to my left. I’ve been working really hard on my first-step quickness, a drop step. We’re going to get it in, and I think it showed there.’’

Horwitz appreciated the compliment from PCA, but doesn’t foresee any Gold Gloves, at least not any time soon. Did he have any message to impart to PCA?

He smiled again.

“Maybe try bunting,’’ he said.

For me and my Al

Hall of Fame broadcaster Pat Hughes, in his 31st season of calling Cubs games on the radio, turned 71 on Wednesday. Hughes, who began his broadcasting career as a 22-year-old calling minor-league baseball in San Jose in 1978, shared a story from his days broadcasting Marquette basketball with Marquette’s motorcycle-riding legendary coach, Al McGuire.

“We had a game in Charlotte one night, and that day, as I was preparing, my wife called,’’ Hughes recalled.

“ ‘Pat, I just got a strange call from Al McGuire. He said, ‘Hi, honey, it’s Al. Is Pat there?’ I said, ‘No, he’s in Charlotte.’

“He says, ‘Oh, that’s where I’m supposed to be! Thanks.’

“Al shows up at around 5:30. Tipoff is 7. He looks like he hasn’t shaved in a week. He’s wearing a sweatsuit and carrying his suit over his shoulder. I said, ‘We’re taping the pregame show in about 10 minutes.’ He said, ‘Don’t worry, I’ll be there.’

‘‘So he disappears into the UNC-Charlotte locker room, grabs a student assistant who is thrilled to be talking to the great Al McGuire, and while Al is changing, he gives him a rundown on the whole team.’

“We begin the taping and I say, ‘Al, this Charlotte team is going to pose a real challenge.’ And he says, ‘Oh, Charlotte, here are their best shooters, the guys who play the best defense, the guys you don’t want to foul late’ as if he’d been preparing all day.’’

McGuire was one of a kind.