After a rainout on Labor Day, the Pittsburgh Pirates welcomed the New York Mets to town for a three-game series. Pittsburgh has struggled mightily through most of the year, while New York is looking to clinch a division title and bye in the Major League playoffs. Those hopes took a hit on Tuesday night when the Pirates put on a hitting clinic on their way to an 8-2 victory.
Michael Chavis started the scoring in the second inning when he hit a sac fly to center to bring in Kevin Newman. Pittsburgh added two more runs in the third when Rodolfo Castro hit a 359 ft. home run to right. Bryan Reynolds added to the lead in the fifth with an RBI single to right. All four of these runs were charged to Mets starter Tijuan Walker who worked five innings.
Pirates starter Mitch Keller looked like the man we hope to see more of in 2023. Keller pitched six innings allowing five hits, while striking out and walking two batters. New York scored their only two runs in the seventh when Brandon Nimmo hit a homer to right center. Those runs were charged to Robert Stephenson who worked .2 of an inning and struck out two batters.
Pittsburgh would pull away in the eighth with four more runs. Ke’Bryan Hayes scored on a wild pitch for the first run of the inning. They added another run on a Jason Delay single to center. The final two runs of the night came on a laser home run from Oneil Cruz, which landed in the river. Even with two walks in the ninth, Wil Crowe shut the door on the Mets to finish off the game.
This was a great and much needed win after being swept by the Toronto Blue Jays over the weekend at home. These two teams will be back on the field tomorrow for a day/night doubleheader. While winning both games would be great, earning at least a split would give the Pirates their first series win since the beginning of August.
Record vs. Mets: 1-0
Record vs. N.L. East: 9-20
Record at Home: 27-39
Overall Record: 50-84
And…
As Always…
Let’s Go Bucs!
