Pittsburgh Pirates Split Doubleheader Against Cincinnati Reds

CINCINNATI, OHIO - JULY 07: Ke'Bryan Hayes #13 and Yoshi Tsutsugo #25 of the Pittsburgh Pirates celebrate after Hayes scored a run in the sixth inning against the Cincinnati Reds during game one of a doubleheader at Great American Ball Park on July 07, 2022 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
CINCINNATI, OHIO - JULY 07: Ke'Bryan Hayes #13 and Yoshi Tsutsugo #25 of the Pittsburgh Pirates celebrate after Hayes scored a run in the sixth inning against the Cincinnati Reds during game one of a doubleheader at Great American Ball Park on July 07, 2022 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images) /
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CINCINNATI, OHIO – JULY 07: Roansy Contreras #59 of the Pittsburgh Pirates pitches in the second inning against the Cincinnati Reds during game one of a doubleheader at Great American Ball Park on July 07, 2022 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images) /

Strong starting pitching carries the Pirates to a victory in game one of the twin bill

Roansy Contreras started game one for the Pittsburgh Pirates and quickly set the tone. The 22-year-old righty turned in arguably the best start of his MLB career to help lead the Pirates to a 4-2 victory.

Contreras pitched 6 innings in the start, walking a batter and striking out 7. The lone run Contreras allowed was on a solo home run. He generated 11 swings-and-misses in the start and his slider looked as good as ever. Contreras was rewarded for his strong start by being optioned to the minors. Great player centric culture by the Pirates right there.

Duane Underwood Jr. pitched in relief of Contreras and pitched a scoreless 7th inning. Underwood Jr. allowed a hit, but struck out two of the three batters he faced. As Noah wrote about earlier today, Underwood Jr. appears to be breaking out as a high leverage reliever.

Wil Crowe was next up out of the Pirate bullpen. Crowe allowed a run in the 8th inning, but that was it and kept the Pirate lead in tact. David Bednar then slammed the door shut in the 9th inning to seal the Pirate victory.

An offensive highlight from game one was a RBI double by catcher Jason Delay. This was both the first carer hit and RBI for Delay. Michael Chavis also had a double in the game, driving in a pair on the hit.

Diego Castillo started the scoring in game one with a solo home run. This was Castillo’s 9th home run of the season, and 7th in his last 10 hits. He also had a single and was intentionally walked in the game.