The Pittsburgh Pirates salvaged one game of their weekend series in Arizona with a 6-5 victory in 10-innings Sunday. The Bucs were down to their final strike while trailing 2-1 in the ninth inning, when Rowdy Tellez and Joey Bart produced doubles to tie the game and force the extra frame. The Pirates then outscored the Diamondbacks, who have the second-most runs scored in the majors this season, 4-3 in the 10th.
Mitch Keller allowed two runs on two hits over his seven innings of work. David Bednar and Aroldis Chapman tossed scoreless innings of relief. Things got exciting in the tenth inning after the Pirates put up four runs. Reliever Colin Holderman allowed two home runs in an inning for the first time in his career, but managed to get the final out.
Oneil Cruz hit his 17th home run of the season in the sixth inning after the Bucs were down 2-0.
The Pirates were 3-for-16 with runners in scoring position during the game, and left eight runners on base.
The Pirates are now in Houston for a three-game series. First pitch is 8:10pm tonight. WISR pre-game is 7:45pm. Paul Skenes will start for the Pirates.
The Pirates are now 53-52 this season. They are seven games behind first-place Milwaukee and two games out of a National League Wild Card.
Houston enters tonight’s game tied with Seattle for first place in the American League West. They are 55-50 overall. The Astros lost to the Dodgers 6-2 Sunday.