Jeff Locke dominant as Pirates roll to another victory

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6. 4. 2. 76. Final

Locke, Marte keys as Bucs win again

Left-hander Jeff Locke turned in eight innings of one-run ball on Saturday and the offense put six runs on the board for the second-straight day as the Pittsburgh Pirates rolled to a 6-2 win over the division rival Milwaukee Brewers.

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Locke allowed just four hits and no walks, striking out six on the afternoon, lowering his earned run average on the year to a minuscule 1.93 mark.

Pittsburgh (5-6) crept within one game of .500 with the win, despite falling behind 1-0 after the first half inning of play when Jonathan Lucroy plated a run with a sacrifice fly. Gregory Polanco got the Pirates’ offense going in the bottom of the first with an RBI double and a two-run single by Starling Marte pushed the Bucs ahead 3-1.

The Pirates added three more runs in the bottom of the fifth when Marte clubbed a three-run blast, his third homer of the year, extending the home team’s lead to 6-1. Neither team scored again until the top of the ninth when a Khris Davis single off Arquimedes Caminero cut the Pittsburgh lead to 6-2.

Marte led the offense with a pair of hits, along with catcher Francisco Cervelli, who went 2-for-4 with a pair of strikeouts. The team reversed course from its early season woes of reaching base, drawing four walks on Saturday while striking out just six times – a promising sign moving forward.

Locke’s counterpart, right-hander Kyle Lohse, struggled yet again, allowing six earned runs on six hits in six innings of work. He struck out four, but walked three as he saw his earned run average rise to 10.34 on the year – as he continued a trend of poor starts to open the season.

What Stood Out:

Locke has silenced his critics early on in 2015, pitching well in each of his first starts. As the only other left-hander in the Pittsburgh rotation apart from Francisco Liriano, his presence in the starting staff is valuable.

If the southpaw can revert to his All-Star status from two seasons ago, this starting staff could very well shape up to be one of the best in the league moving forward.

What’s Next:

Pittsburgh (5-6) will take on Milwaukee (2-9) in the series finale at PNC Park on Sunday afternoon. Right-hander Gerrit Cole (1-0, 3.27 ERA) is set to square off against right-handed veteran Matt Garza (1-1, 4.22 ERA).

First pitch is slated for 12:35 p.m. CT.

Next: To win, these Pirates much reach base more often