Pittsburgh Pirates use longball in 7-5 win over Washington Nationals
The Pittsburgh Pirates bounced back from their last game against Max Scherzer, defeating the Washington Nationals 7-5 last night. The offense tagged Scherzer for three home runs and were able to add more once he was removed from the game. Jeff Locke started out strong but did not make it past the fifth inning and like Scherzer did not factor into the decision. Last night’s win puts the Pirates at 56-40 entering the third game of the series tonight.
The Pirates got two runs off of Scherzer in the second inning when Pedro Alvarez blasted his 14th home run out of the ballpark and on a bounce into the Allegheny River. They would hold the lead until the fourth inning, when the Nationals got to Locke. Up to the fourth inning Locke had managed to keep his pitch count at a reasonable number, along with four strike outs up to that point.
Around the three walks that Locke issued in the inning, the Nationals collected hits from Tyler Moore, Wilson Ramos and Dan Uggla to give the Nationals a two run lead. The reasonable pitch count mentioned earlier was erased by the 40+ pitches he threw in the fourth inning. Locke was sent out for the fifth inning and managed to not give up any runs.
The Pirates took back the lead in the fifth inning with a two run home run by Gregory Polanco (4) and a solo home run by Neil Walker (8) in the following at bat. The Nationals would tie it in the sixth with a home run by Ian Desmond off of Vance Worley. Worley was able to get the next three hitters and limit the damage to just a tie game.
Pittsburgh roared back in their half of the inning, getting all the runs they would need to secure the win last night. After Francisco Cervelli singled, Brent Morel (!) doubled him in to give the Pirates a one run cushion. Polanco followed that up with a single, further extending the lead.
Jared Hughes and Tony Watson pitched scoreless innings in the seventh and eighth innings, respectively. With a two run lead, Mark Melancon was brought in for the ninth inning. He allowed Emmanuel Burris to get on with a bunt single that he fielded and threw past first base. With a double play and a ground out, Melancon earned his 31st save of the season and gave the Pirates two wins in the first two games of the series.
What Stood Out
As was the situation last night, the Pirates received fantastic production from just about everyone in the lineup. Polanco had his best game of the season and Alvarez hit a home run in his second consecutive game. The top seven hitters all collected at least one hit with Pedro Florimon as the lone hitter to not get a base hit. He did not run out a ball that he thought was foul but came back in fair territory and with the impending arrival of Aramis Ramirez, either he or Morel will be the odd man out.
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Standing out in not such a positive way was Locke’s outing. He was cruising along for three innings and then fell apart in the fourth inning. With the trade deadline only six days away and the left side of the infield already addressed, Neil Huntington may turn his attention to the rotation. Fortunately the bullpen (and to a larger degree, the offense) were able to overcome the poor start and still win the game.
What’s Next
The Pirates will try to take the third game of the series when Gio Gonzalez and A.J. Burnett take the mound at 7:05pm tonight. With the lefty Gonzalez on the mound, it will be interesting to see if Gregory Polanco and Pedro Alvarez are penciled into the lineup. Burnett will look to bounce back from his start in Kansas City where he go knocked around for six innings. Ramirez will reportedly make his Pirates re-debut tonight and play third base. He’ll most likely be somewhere in the middle of the lineup.