(TNS) —After eclipsing the infamous five run hurdle three times in their last four games, the Pirates offense regressed Monday, getting shut out in a 5-0 loss to the Diamondbacks at Chase Field. Ryne Nelson was the game’s winning pitcher, improving to 2-1, while Andrew Heaney suffered the loss, dropping to 3-4.

The Diamondbacks jumped ahead in the bottom of the second thanks to a pair of runs, the first coming on a sac fly from Tim Tawa and the second on a single from Ketel Marte. Eugenio Suarez added on with a solo homer the following inning. Josh Naylor put an exclamation point on the effort with a two-run home run in the fifth. All five runs were allowed by Heaney.

A complete recap of the game can be read here. Below are the Post-Gazette’s three takeaways from the contest.

Another zero

The Pirates were shutout for a MLB-leading ninth time Monday evening. Nelson dominated manager Don Kelly’s lineup, allowing just four hits and walking none over 6 2/3 scoreless innings. Two of Nelson’s four strikeouts came against Cruz, who also tagged him for his lone extra-base hit allowed — a double that led off the game. But in the rare occurrence of Nelson pitching with runners on base, the right-hander was even better.

“He did a nice job,” Kelly said. “He’s short-armed, quick to the plate. The fastball was jumping out of his hand, especially when he had guys on base. He was side-stepping a lot, which made it tough for the hitters too, because he was quick to the plate and the ball was coming out good today.”

The Pirates had a chance to not only spoil Nelson’s shutout, but perhaps make the game interesting as well in the eighth inning. Scott McGough, who started the frame, struggled to find the strike zone, allowing Isiah Kiner-Falefa to reach on an error before walking Cruz and Andrew McCutchen to load the bases with no outs. However, a pitching change was all it took to kill Pittsburgh’s momentum.

Justin Martinez entered and impacted the contest immediately, striking out Bryan Reynolds for a key first out. Spencer Horwtiz and Joey Bart were both unsuccessful as well, stranding the bases loaded. In total, the Pirates tallied just six hits in the loss, leaving nine men on base while going 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position. They have now been shutout in 25% of their losses this season.

Heaney struggled

In the midst of an overall strong season, Heaney had a rare off day Monday evening against the Diamondbacks. Perhaps hungry to snap a five-game losing streak, Arizona’s lineup wasted no time attacking the veteran left-hander, and their aggressive approach persisted throughout the entire evening.

“They were putting good swings, swinging early, swinging aggressively,” Heaney said. “Just felt like I was throwing a lot of balls over the heart of the plate and I feel like that’s going to get you in trouble, regardless of who you’re facing most of the time.”

Pitch selection was a key to the Diamondbacks’ success. Rather than chasing Heaney’s changeup, arguably his best pitch, Arizona wisely instead pounced on his fastball. This led to good results even in instances where it was not in the strike zone, such as Naylor’s homer in the fifth inning.

“It seemed to be their game plan there, to stay on the fastball,” Kelly said. “Some of the pitches, those changeups down, they took pretty well. It was pretty impressive. They got fastballs and they didn’t miss them. They seemed to be good pitches, too.”

Ashcraft shined

If there was one good thing to come from Monday’s loss, it was the MLB debut of Braxton Ashcraft. Rated the No. 7 prospect in the Pirates organization by MLB Pipeline, Ashcraft was recalled Monday morning. A traditional starter, he was instead promoted to pitch out of the bullpen. His first action as a reliever went well, tossing three scoreless innings following Heaney’s departure.

“He did a great job coming in,” Kelly said. “You know, major league debut, you’re obviously going to have excitement and the jitters. He did an unbelievable job, mixed in his off-speed really well. That slider, like we’ve said before, is a swing and miss pitch. He showed that and was able to go to the curveball as well when he needed it. And used the fastball for effectiveness. He ran it up there too, hitting 98, 99 I think I saw a couple of times.”

Ashcraft’s jitters were on display early, missing up and in against Tawa, the first batter he faced. However, the right-hander quickly regrouped and retired him with a slider for his first career strikeout.

“First pitch got away from me a little bit,” Ashcraft said with a smile. “A little nerves. But I settled in, pitched my game. I lean on my slider a lot, especially coming in in relief. It’s a different way of pitching. Just trusting Joey [Bart] and trusting his head carried me through that. Helped with that process and made things a lot easier.”

Ashcraft’s full arsenal was on display, reaching 99.2 mph with his four-seam fastball, while generating five whiffs with his slider and four with his curveball. In the end, he allowed two hits, walked one and tallied the one strikeout.