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Pirates Morning Report: Pirates Home Run Their Way To Victory.

Final Score: Pirates 6 Royals 5

Why The Pirates Won: The Pirates survived a 13-hit barrage by the Royals by hitting 3 two-run homers to pull out a nice 6-5 win. Ronnie Simon hit his first career homer to give the Pirates a 2-0 lead. Jake Mangum hit another two-run shot in the 4th to stretch their lead to 4-1. Bubba Chandler struggled for over 4 innings, giving up 8 hits and being charged with 3 runs. Camilo Doval had a tough 7th inning, giving up 2 runs on 4 hits to allow the Royals to take the lead 5-4. In the bottom of the 8th, Rafael Flores led off the inning with a single. On a 1-1 pitch, Brandon Lowe took a 94 MPH cutter and drilled it 401 feet into the right-center field seats to give the Pirates the lead 6-5. Mason Montgomery came in to pitch the 9th. After giving up a leadoff walk, he retired the side in order, with the game ending on a sliding catch of a foul pop-up by none other than Henry Davis. I guess the Pirates don’t have the tiebreaker with the Padres, so they are eliminated from the playoffs. Maybe they can finish above .500. That would be something. Not much, but something.

Key Moments of the Game: Bubba Chandler danced through the raindrops figuratively and literally in the first four innings of the ballgame. He retired the side in order in the first. In the second, he gave up two singles but no runs, thanks to a double play. In the third, he surrendered a home run and then two singles but no more runs. In the top of the fourth, he gave up two singles and hit a batter but managed to keep any runs from scoring. In the top of the fifth, he did not get an out. Don Kelly brought in a reliever, which was a miracle. Chandler had thrown 90 pitches, which I am sure was the biggest factor in his removal, not the fact that he was stinking up the joint. He brought in Brandon Eisert with runners on first and second and no outs. The Royals quickly executed a double steal to put runners on second and third. The Royals made it 4-2 with a ground out to first. Michael Massey laid down a bunt down the first base line. Ryan O’Hearn picked up the ball and shuttled it between his legs to Eisert to get Massey at first base. It scored another Royals run, but now the bases were empty. Eisert gave up another single but got the last out of the inning on a fly out to left field. With the exception of Doval, the Pirate bullpen did not give up a hit the rest of the way.

Next Game: This afternoon, the Royals in Pittsburgh. With a rainy day predicted in Pittsburgh the Pirates will try and go for the sweep. Looks like another bullpen day for the Pirates as they refuse to let their young pitchers start a game and see how they can do. More on that later in the month. The Pirates have always shown they play well in meaningless games. Maybe Mother Nature will stop them today. Stay tuned.

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Pirates Morning Report: Several Players Have Big Day As Pirates Defeat Royals

Final Score: Pirates 8 Royals 5

Why the Pirates Won: Led by Konnor Griffin, who went 4 for 5, the Pirates put 8 runs on the board. The game started out as if the Pirates might give one away. They had 3 hits in the 1st inning, with one being a double, and they did not score a run. In the 2nd inning they had a walk and a double with one out and could not score. They finally broke the ice in the 3rd scoring 2 runs on a Brandon Lowe 2 run homer. Griffin was not the only Pirate who had a big day at the plate; Bryan Reynolds went 2 for 5, with both hits being doubles. Oneil Cruz went 3 for 5 and scored 2 runs. Griffin, Brandon Lowe, and Spencer Horwitz each had 2 RBIs. Henry Davis went 1 for 3 to bring his OPS up to .585, and he may not be the worst hitter in the league anymore. Not all the news was good, as Paul Skenes got knocked around pretty well. He did finish strong, managing to go 6 innings and retiring the last 8 batters he faced. Before that, he had given up 5 runs on 6 hits, including 2 home runs. Skenes saw his ERA rise to 3.91. The Pirates remain 8 games out with 8 games to play.

Key Moments Of The Game: The Pirates had just tied the game in the bottom of the 5th. Skenes breezed through the top of the 6th. The Pirates had a chance to take the lead in the bottom of the inning. They had runners on 1st and 2nd with one out but failed to score. Brandon Eisert came on to pitch the top of the 7th. He had not given up a run in his last 4 outings since his September call-up. The Royals got a bloop single off him that went off Nick Gonzales’s glove. He walked the next batter. The Royals gave the Pirates an out with a bunt that moved the runners to 2nd and 3rd. Eisert struck out Carter Jensen on a 3-2 pitch. This brought up Bobby Witt Jr. Then, lo and behold, Don Kelly made a move. It is a good thing I do not have a heart condition. Witt does hit lefties a little better, and by God, Kelly made the move bringing Yohan Ramirez to face Witt. He threw him 4 straight sweepers and got Witt to ground out to third to end the inning. In the bottom of the 7th, the Pirates had runners on 2nd and 3rd with no outs, thanks to a single, a hit by pitch, and a wild pitch. Ryan O’Hearn struck out, and Ronnie Simon popped out. Spencer, who seems to have finally found his groove in the last 7 games, singled to left field to drive in the 2 runs. After the Royals committed the sin of walking Henry Davis, putting runners on 1st and 2nd, Konnor Griffin got his 4th hit of the game to make the score 8-5. Ramirez and Gregory Soto finished up the game, and the Pirates climbed back up to .500. Too bad the Pirates are not in the American League.

Next Game: Tonight Royals in Pittsburgh. Bubba Chandler will go for the Pirates facing left hander Noah Cameron. I was going to do an essay on the Pirate catchers today but with Henry Davis having his little hot streak I felt it would only be fair to hold off. There is plenty of time to evaluate this team position by position. We will see how he does the rest of the weekend. The Pirates have an off day on Monday. This could be elimination day for the Pirates. Stay tuned.

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Pirates Morning Report: Pirates Salvage One Game Of The Series, On The Brink Of Elimination

Final Score: Pirates 7 Brewers 4

Why The Pirates Won: The Pirates put on a remarkable two out lightening inning scoring 5 runs after two were out and nobody on base. The next 8 batters got on base in various ways and the Pirates jumped out to a 5 to 1 lead. The bullpen game worked out well. Wilber Dotel and Khristian Curtis went 5 and 1/3 innings giving up 2 runs on 4 hits walking 4 while striking out 5. Luke Weaver’s poison ivy must be acting up again as he could only get through 2/3 of an inning giving up 2 runs on 3 hits. Mason Montgomery got the last 4 outs of the game to get his 14th save. Stop the presses! The worst hitter in all of baseball Henry Davis hit a big 2 run homer in the bottom of the 8th to give the Pirates that nice 3 run cushion going into the 9th. More on him over the weekend. The Pirates find themselves 8 games behind the relentless Padres for the last wildcard spot with 9 games to go. The Pirates could be eliminated tonight.

Key Moment Of The Game: It was all the 2 out scoring the Pirates did in the bottom of the 2nd inning. A lot of it was helped along by the Brewers playing very un-Brewer like baseball. It started off innocently enough with a 5 pitch walk to Ronnie Simon. Jared Triolo got an infield single up the middle. Henry Davis loaded the bases on catcher interference. Konnor Griffin took an inside fastball and ripped it down the left field line for a double scoring 2 runs. Oneil Cruz took an up and in fastball and hit a soft liner to left center field to drive in two more runs. Both hitters got the hits with 2 strikes on them. The Brewers gift wrapped the 5th run with a hit by pitch, a walk and another hit by pitch to make the score 5-1. The Brewers as usual made it interesting cutting the lead to 5-4 going into the bottom of the 8th. The Henry Davis miracle happened, and the Pirates were able to win the final game of the series to avoid being swept at home

Next game: Tonight, the Royals in Pittsburgh. Paul Skenes goes to tonight. It would be fitting if the Pirates got eliminated on “Paul Skenes Day”. Because these games are basically meaningless the Morning Report will take a little different format. The synopsis of the game will be even briefer as I take a look at the Pirates position by position on how they did in 2026 and where the Pirates will need to improve in 2027. This team deserves a more in depth look than just an end of the season wrap up. Stay tuned.

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Pirates Morning Report: Brewers Showing How It Is Done

Final Score: Pirates 4 Brewers 5

Why The Pirates Lost: The Brewers have a manager. The Pirates do not. For the second series in a row, we saw a manager on a team that is going to make the playoffs making move after move after move when it came to the bullpen. Our manager sits on his hands talking to his incompetent pitching coach while a lead dissolves away with no one even warming up in the bullpen, let alone being brought into the game. The Pirate offense had a very strange game. They hit 3 home runs that accounted for all of the Pirate runs. You could say they had 3 runs on 4 hits. They collected 8 other hits and a walk but could not produce another run. In fact, they had only 2 other at-bats with runners in scoring position. Brandon Lowe’s 2-run homer came with Konnor Griffin on 2nd base. The Padres won last night, putting the Pirates 8 games behind them with 10 games to go. Elimination is on the horizon. All Pirate fans can only think of what might have been if the Pirate managerial staff knew what they were doing.

Key Moments of the Game: The Pirates gave away the lead in the top of the 7th in typical Pirate fashion. The Brewers scored 2 runs on 2 hits and 2 walks, and Carmen Mlodzinski was allowed to do all of this. The Pirates had no one warming up in the bullpen as the inning progressed. In fact, the Pirates let Mlodzinski come out for another inning; they were so pleased with his work. Christian Yelich got the big hit to make the score 5-4. Too bad he did not have to face a left-hander, as his batting average is 32 points lower against lefties. Do the Pirates even know what high leverage means? I do not think so. This was the spot that Mason Montgomery should have been put into the game. In the bottom of the 7th, the Pirates put runners on 1st and 2nd with one out. Of course, they had to earn their runners with two singles. Bryan Reynolds grounded into a double play. In the bottom of the 8th, an opening single was erased on a double play. Oh, by the way, during the two innings, there were two pitching changes made. This is how games are won, Don Kelly. They are not won by putting Billy Cook in to run with 2 outs in the bottom of the 8th.

Next Game: This afternoon, Brewers in Pittsburgh. The Brewers can win the season series with a win today. At least the game is in the afternoon and the evening won’t be ruin by the Pirates. The Pirates did break their home run mark for the season last night. This is what this team has always been about all year. Individual records and not trying to win ball games. Fortunately, this mess is coming to end soon.

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Pirates Morning Report: To Quote Joe Block, That Is Why The Pirates Are The Pirates And The Brewers Are The Brewers

Final Score: Pirates 1 Brewers 5

Why the Pirates Lost: The Pirates wasted 9 hits and 2 walks to score 0 runs. They were 1 for 9 with runners in scoring position. The Pirates are the Pirates. Their only run scored was on a home run. The Brewers scored 5 runs on 8 hits and 6 walks. They did not hit a home run. They were 2 for 8 with runners in scoring position. The Brewers are the Brewers. Oneil Cruz was called out on strikes in 4 consecutive at-bats. For the game, he swung at more pitches outside of the strike zone than at pitches in the strike zone. The Pirates are the Pirates. The play that Joe Block referred to involved a baserunning blunder by the Pirates where they should have tied the game 1-1 but instead had one runner standing on third and another runner heading to third. The Brewers did manage to throw out the runner going to third despite laughing the entire time. Yes, the Brewers are in first place with the best record in baseball. The Pirates can only wonder what might have been if they knew how to play baseball. Thank you, Joe Block, for that gem.

Key Moment Of The Game: The Pirates, in the bottom of the 4th with one out, had 3 singles in a row. Instead of scoring a run or at least having the bases loaded with one out, the Pirates wound up with runners on 1st and 3rd and two outs. With 1st and 2nd occupied, a ground ball went past the 3rd baseman off his glove into left field. Nick Gonzales and the 3rd base coach did not see it for some reason. Ryan O’Hearn did see it and headed for third. Ryan O’Hearn meet Nick Gonzales. One of you does not belong here on third base. And they say sitcoms are dead. Tune in tonight.

Next Game: Tonight the Brewers in Pittsburgh. The Pirates did not lose any ground last night as they remain 7 games behind the Padres with 11 games mercifully to go. The Padres poor history in Colorado continued as their 8 game winning streak was snapped 9-3. The Diamondbacks also lost which was huge for them and are still 3 games back in the lost column. Jared Jones goes tonight for the Pirates. He has been spectacular his last two starts going 13 innings giving up just 4 hits and no runs while striking out 17. Hopefully the Pirates will have enough sense to make this his last start of the season. The Brewers will counter with Logan Henderson who is 10-3 with an ERA of 2.34. Another solid starter for the Brewers. What blunder will the Pirates do tonight. Stay tuned.

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Pirates Morning Report: Weaver and Montgomery Come Through Again.

Final Score: Pirates 4 Cubs 3.

Why The Pirates Won: Bubba Chandler danced through the raindrops for 5 and 1/3 innings, giving up 3 runs on 5 hits and 4 walks. He struck out 2 and surrendered a 2-run home run while throwing 90 pitches. See, the Pirates will let you throw over 82 pitches; all you have to do is struggle. Pitch counts are meaningless to this coaching staff. Carmen Mlodzinski escaped a jam created by Chandler in the 6th and pitched a scoreless 7th, allowing only a walk. Luke Weaver and Mason Montgomery retired the side in order in the 8th and 9th, enabling the Pirates to salvage the last game of the series. The offense did not do much but did enough, managing to score 4 runs on 9 hits and 5 walks. They were 3 for 6 with runners in scoring position. Brandon Lowe got the big hit, a pinch-hit single to drive in runs 3 and 4. In the bottom of the 6th, Chandler tried to give it back, but even Don Kelly saw that he did not have it and went to the bullpen just in time. The A team did the job.

Key Moments of the Game: One thing is for sure; Henry Davis was not involved in any of them. He went 0 for 4, not hitting a ball over 300 feet or over 98 MPH. This dropped his sparkling batting average down to .164. The Cubs were 0 for 4 with runners in scoring position. In the second inning, the Cubs had runners on 1st and 2nd with nobody out and did not score. It was in the 6th inning that they left this game on the table. After one out, they got a single, a double, and a walk to load the bases. In came Carmen (Why Was He Not in This Role All Year) Mlodzinski. He got a weak ground ball out that did score a run, putting runners on 2nd and 3rd with 2 outs. After falling behind Michael Conforto 3-0, he intentionally walked him to load the bases once again. On a 2-1 pitch, he induced Pedro Ramirez to hit a lazy fly ball to Jake Mangum in right field to end the inning. The Cubs never threatened again.

Next Game: Tomorrow night, the Brewers in Pittsburgh. The Pirates picked up no ground on the Padres as they won again, sweeping the pathetic Giants in San Francisco. The Pirates could not do that at home. The Padres play tonight; they go to Colorado to play the Rockies, where believe it or not, they have had some problems. When the dust settles, the Pirates will either be 6 or 7 games behind them with 12 games to go. Even Greg Brown says they have to win every game. Stay tuned.

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Pirate Morning Report: Synopsis Of The Season In One Game

Final Score: Pirates 3 Cubs 4

Why the Pirates Lost: In a game that the Pirates desperately needed to win, they put Oneil Cruz at the top of the order. He has not performed well in that role. They batted Konnor Griffin 4th for the first time in his career. It was not surprising that they went a combined 0 for 9 with 2 strikeouts. Nick Gonzales and Rafael Flores were on the bench while Henry Davis and Jacob Gonzalez played. It only got worse when it came to handling the pitching. Paul Skenes gave up 2 runs in 7 innings of pitching, throwing only 82 pitches. Skenes did not come out to pitch the 8th inning. In his last 3 innings, he faced just 9 batters thanks to a double play ball. Eight times this year, Skenes has thrown between 92 and 109 pitches, struggling through anywhere from 4 to 6 innings. What a philosophy. When a pitcher is struggling, let him throw a lot of pitches. When he is mowing them down, stop him at 82. Then the Pirates bring in Gregory Soto to pitch the 8th. Don Kelly just sits there, and watches Soto walk 2 batters and hit 2 batters to blow a 3-2 lead. All of this happened after 2 were out. The Pirates’ broadcast booth said that Luke Weaver and Mason Montgomery were not available; why, I do not know, as they did not pitch on Friday. Montgomery was warming up in the bullpen in the 9th in case the Pirates rallied, so I guess he was available. Available for nothing. Meanwhile, everyone got to see what a real manager does, as Craig Counsell made strategic move after strategic move. No move was better than taking out the left-hander in the 9th and bringing in a right-handed pitcher to face Bryan Reynolds. This mystified the Pirates’ booth. Reynolds’s OPS is 42 points lower when batting left-handed. I bet Counsell was the only one in the stadium who knew that. Reynolds struck out to end the game. The game that put the Pirates 7 games back of the last wild card spot in the loss column was a synopsis of the entire season: a poorly constructed starting lineup, not taking a pitcher out when he is struggling because no one is warming up in the bullpen, and taking out the starting pitcher when he is doing well, even though his pitch count is low. The sad thing is we are probably going to have to watch the same thing next year.

Key Moments of the Game: In a nutshell, handing in the lineup card, taking Skenes out after 7 innings, and sitting on your hands while watching a pitcher blow the game. Soto threw 31 pitches in the inning, finding the strike zone just 10 times. Kelly stood in the dugout and watched all of this. He did not get Ramirez warming up until after Soto hit a batter, making the score 4-3 Cubs. The Pirates have had some key injuries; make no mistake about it. Poor lineup construction and poor in-game management are the reasons this team is not going to make the playoffs. What the Pirates do makes no sense at all.

Next game: This afternoon, Cubs in Chicago. The Cubs will be going for the sweep. I am sure that Henry Davis and his .167 batting average will make his third consecutive start, since lefty Matthew Boyd is pitching for the Cubs. Davis hits .127 against lefties, but he does bat right-handed. I expect that Luke Weaver and Mason Montgomery will be able to pitch today but who knows? Stay tuned.

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Pirates Morning Report: Blown Away By The Cubs

Final Score: Pirates 2 Cubs 12

Why the Pirates lost: The Pirates failed in every phase of the game. They could not pitch, giving up 16 hits. They could not hit, managing only 7 hits, with 3 of those coming in the first inning when they got their only runner in scoring position for the game. Nine of the last 10 batters of the game made outs. Even though they were only charged with one error, it looked like a little league game in the field. Not only could they not catch pop-ups and fly balls, but they also struggled to stay on their feet while trying to make routine plays. On the rare occasions when they did catch a ball, they would fall over backward. This was not the support that three rookie pitchers needed. Needless to say, a team like the Cubs took full advantage of the Pirates’ circus in the field. The one oddity of this game was that there were only a combined 6 strikeouts. The Pirates struck out 4 times, and the Cubs 2. To make matters worse, Esmerlyn Valdez pulled up lame, apparently with a hamstring injury, and Billy Cook had to bat. Another winning streak was stopped before it could reach 6 games.

Key Moments Of The Game: The bottom of the 2nd showed how this game was going to go. Wilbur Dotel had retired the side in order in the 1st inning. Alex Bregman opened the inning with a single on a 0-1 fastball right down the middle. Ian Happ followed up with a ground ball that hit Dotel in the leg and stopped between him and 1st base for an infield hit. If he could have gotten out of the way, it most likely would have been a double play. Nico Hoerner singled to center to load the bases. The Cubs scored on a foul ball sacrifice fly that Jake Mangum stole out of the stands for the first out. Another Pirate pitcher failed to quickly cover 1st base, which may have cost them a double play chance. This left runners on first and third with 2 outs. If Dotel could have stopped the bleeding here, you never know what might have happened the rest of the way. Unfortunately for the Pirates, the Cubs started a catcher who can hit, and Carson Kelly came through with a big 2-out double that scored 2 runs to put the Cubs out in front 3-1. The Cubs added two in the third and four in the fourth as the Pirates made every fielding play an adventure. I am not saying the Pirate rookie pitchers pitched well, but they deserved better support than they got.

Next Game: This afternoon, Cubs in Chicago. It is Paul Skenes vs. former Pirate Clay Holmes. Holmes is another player the Pirates failed to develop. The best way to describe this is that in the 4 years he was with the Pirates, he had a WAR of -0.9. In his 7 seasons away from the Pirates, he has a WAR of 9.7. I would say he will have some incentive to pitch well today. Both the Padres and the Diamondbacks won last night. The Pirates are now 6 games back in the loss column with 14 games to go. If the Cubs sweep the Pirates, they are done. Stay tuned.

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Pirates Morning Report: Pirates Sweep White Sox, Stay 5 Games Back In The Loss Column.

Final Score: Pirates 2 White Sox 0

Why the Pirates Won: Jared Jones pitched another gem, not giving up a hit for 6 and 2/3 innings. In 7 innings, he allowed one hit, struck out 8, and walked 2. Luke Weaver pitched a clean 8th. Mason Montgomery gave up a leadoff single but no more for his 12th save. The Pirates played some nice defense. Brandon Lowe made two excellent plays in the bottom of the 9th to assist Montgomery. Oneil Cruz and Jake Mangum made two sliding catches in the outfield to help keep the no-hitter intact. Cruz provided the offense with a home run in the 4th and a big RBI single in the 8th that gave the Pirates a valuable insurance run. This was a significant win for the Pirates since the Diamondbacks and Padres had the day off. They remain 5 games back in the loss column with 15 games to go. They play their nemesis, the Cubs, next.

Key Moments of the Game: Both walks given up by Jones were leadoff walks. The first one occurred in the bottom of the 3rd, and he struck out the side after that. The second walk led off the bottom of the 4th, and that one made it to third with two outs due to a stolen base and a throwing error by Rafael Flores. Jones was able to get the batter to pop out to Brandon Lowe to end the inning. Cruz got the RBI single in the 8th off a left-hander. The two-run cushion provided a whole different perspective on the last two innings. The Pirates continue to win and make it interesting, but they still have only a 1.1% chance of making the playoffs.

Next Game: This afternoon, the Cubs in Chicago. The Pirates announced the bad news yesterday that Braxton Ashcraft will go on the IL with right arm discomfort. There is talk that he might come back for the St. Louis series, but I would assume that would happen only if the games are meaningful. The Pirates will send the youngster Wilber Dotel to the mound for his first major league start. I like the move. Give the youngster a shot in a big game. Again, for the Pirates to have any chance at all to make the playoffs, they must sweep the Cubs and hope for some big-time help. Matt Capps last night had the audacity to say that the Pirates control their own destiny. Wow. He also viewed it as a positive that the Padres and Diamondbacks finish the season against one another. That is about the worst thing that could happen. If the Pirates are two games behind both teams at that point, they are eliminated. Somebody is going to go 2-1. This is part of the reason the Pirates’ chances are so remote. Remote is still better than being eliminated. However, they are not close to controlling their own destiny. Stay tuned.

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Pirates Morning Report: A Gritty Win But Still 5 Games Back

Final Score: Pirates 4 White Sox 2

Why The Pirates Won: On a night where both offenses had some bad luck at times the Pirates were able to prevail and come away with a 4-2 victory. Another bullpen game for the Pirates was a big success. Eight Pirate pitchers held the White Sox to 2 runs on 8 hits and 3 walks while striking out 14 batters. I must say I was very critical of the Pirates when they brought up Brandon Eisert on September 1. However, he must have found something down in AAA. In his 3 appearances he has gone 4 innings giving up only one hit, striking out 6 with no walks. Last night he went 2 and 1/3 innings retiring all 7 batters he faced striking out 5 of them. The bullpen this year has had their bad moments, but they sure have made me eat a lot of crow. Unfortunately, the Pirates picked up no ground in the wild card race. They are still 5 games behind the Padres. The Padres leap frogged the Diamondbacks who lost last night. There are no teams between the Pirates and the two teams fighting for the final wild card spot. The Marlins and Cardinals have folded up their tent and are almost eliminated. There are only 16 games left. The Pirates must win tonight.

Key Moments In The Game: The Pirate offense had some bad luck early in the game. In the first inning they opened with 2 walks. Reynolds hit a line drive out and Nick Gonzales ground into a quick 5-4-3 double play to end the inning. Oneil Cruz opened the second inning with a single. On a 3-2 pitch to Esmerlyn Valdez, Cruz ran on the pitch. Valdez hit a 103 line drive that the White Sox 2nd basemen made a spectacular catch on and easily doubled up Cruz. Valdez hit a homer in the 5th to for the first Pirate run. Konnor Griffin got a big one out single to drive in runs 3 and 4 giving the Pirates a 4-0 lead in the top of the 7th. The Pirates almost paid the price for pinch running for Valdez in the 7th inning with Billy Cook, when the White Sox made a late inning rally. Camilio Doval came in to pitch the 7th. He loaded the bases with one out on a walk, a single, and a walk. Then he committed the cardinal sin of not even thinking about covering first base on a ball that Spencer Horwitz made a great play on. Who knows what he was thinking but the score was now 4-1 with the bases still loaded. This brought in Yohan (My Other Crow Eating Nemesis) Ramirez into the game. On the 4th pitch he got a 5-4-3 double play to end the inning. In the bottom of the 8th Luke (Poison Ivy) Weaver came into the game and got lit up. The inning opened with a towering home run by true outcome king Munetaka Murakami to make the score 4-2. Weaver loaded the bases on a single, a strikeout, a double and hit a batter. Chase Meidroth took a thigh high middle in change up and lined it 100 MPH down the 3rd base line. Jared Triolo leaped and stretch that 6’3″ frame as far as it would go and made a spectacular grab, stepped on third to end the inning. On a night full of bad breaks for the offenses the Pirates benefitted the most in the 8th inning. Mason Montgomery shut the door again and Pirates came away with a hard earned 4-2 win.

Next Game: Tonight. White Sox in Chicago. Both the Diamondbacks and Padres are idle tonight. If the Pirates lose tonight, they will fall 6 games back in the lost column with just 15 games to go. The 1964 Cardinals came back from a 6 game deficit with 12 games to go when the Phillies collapsed down the stretch. If the Pirates lose, they will need for 2 teams to that. Not that good of odds. There is no margin for error. Stay tuned.