Pirates Comeback and Walk-Off Against Phillies

The Pittsburgh Pirates made numerous comebacks, ending in a walk-off against the Philadelphia Phillies.

Dominic Campbell

Jun 28, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates second baseman Nick Gonzales (39) hits a ground-rule double against the Atlanta Braves in the seventh inning at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 28, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates second baseman Nick Gonzales (39) hits a ground-rule double against the Atlanta Braves in the seventh inning at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports / Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Pirates were behind for most of their game against the Philadelphia Phillies, but they made numerous comebacks, culminating in a walk-off to take series opener Friday night at PNC Park.

The win for the Pirates (49-48) against the Phillies (62-35) is the fifth straight and seventh in the last eight games, keeping them fully in the National League Wild Card race. It is also their second walk-off of July, as they did so against the St. Louis Cardinals on July 2.

Left-handed starting pitcher Martin Perez struggled in the first inning against the Phillies, as he walked shortstop Trea Turner, first baseman Bryce Harper would reach on a single and then walked third baseman Alec Bohm to load the bases.

Philadelphia right fielder Nick Castellanos then hit a shot right over the third baseline, which ended up fair, resulting in a double and scoring Turner and Harper and moving Bohm to third base.

Perez got Phillies second baseman Edmundo Sosa to groundout, but left fielder Weston Wilson hit a shot right at Pirates third baseman Ke'Bryan Hayes, who failed to control it, scoring Bohm to make it a 3-0 game.

The Pirates responded in the bottom of the first inning, starting with singles from designated hitter Andrew McCutchen and left fielder Bryan Reynolds. Shortstop Oneil Cruz would rip a hit over Phillies center fielder Cristian Pache at 120.5 miles per hour for a double, scoring McCutchen and moving Reynolds to third base.

Second baseman Nick Gonzales would score Reynolds from third base on a ground out and then first baseman Rowdy Tellez hit a sacrifice fly to left field, scoring Cruz, who moved to third base after the ground out, tying the game up at 3-3 between the two teams.

The Pirates got something going at the end of the second inning, as center fielder Jack Suwinski singled and McCutchen walked, but Phillies starting right-handed pitcher Aaron Nola struck out Reynolds to end the inning.

Philadelphia retook the lead in the top of the third inning, as Wilson took a pitch in on his hands and drove it just over the glove of Reynolds over the right field wall for a solo home run.

Cruz started off the bottom of the third inning with his second double of the day in as many at-bats. He moved to third base on a ground out from Gonzales and then Tellez would hit his second sacrifice fly of the game to tie it up at 4-4.

Perez allowed a single to start the fourth inning, with Pache getting his hit just under the glove of the diving Cruz. He then gave up his second home run of the game, as Turner hit a fastball on the inside over the left field wall just over the reach of Reynolds to give the Phillies a 6-4 lead.

A groundout from Harper would serve as the last batter for Perez as Pirates manager Derek Shelton chose to go to the bullpen, bringing on right-handed pitcher Kyle Nicolas.

Perez finished his night with just 3.2 innings pitched, allowing six runs, seven hits, two walks and two home runs, increasing his ERA to 5.61

Nicolas found himself in trouble in the top of the fifth inning, allowing a walk to Sosa, a hit to Wilson, his third of the day and a walk to catcher Garrett Stubbs to load the bases with nobody out,

He didn't allow a hit the rest of the inning, but gave up a sacrifice fly to designated hitter Kyle Schwarber, scoring Sosa from third base to make it 7-4 to the Phillies.

Right-handed pitcher Denis Santana came in for the Pirates in the top of the sixth inning and found himself with bases loaded and Wilson up to bat with just one out. He made a great catch at the mound and then walked over to first base to get the double play to get out of the inning unscathed.

The Pirates began the bottom of the seventh inning with the top of the order, which led to better results then their previous two innings.

McCutchen singled and so too did Reynolds, moving McCutchen to third base. Cruz hit a weak ground ball, but it played in his favor, as he sped to first base for the single, scoring McCutchen.

Gonzales then struck out, but Tellez hit his third sacrifice fly of the night, a franchise record, scoring Reynolds from third base, to cut the deficit to just one run. Cruz ran to second base and while the umpire called him safe initially, a challenge from the Phillies convinced them to call Cruz out and ended the inning.

Pirates right-handed pitcher Carmen Mlodzinski struggled initially in the top of the ninth inning, allowing singles from Sosa and Castellanos. He managed to get out of the inning, unscathed, forcing Wilson to foul out to catcher Joey Bart, Stubbs to fly out to right and striking out pinch-hitter Brandon Marsh.

Pinch-hitter Connor Joe started off the bottom of the ninth inning with a single and then McCutchen walked. Center fielder Michael Taylor came into run for Joe and he just stole third base, while McCutchen took second base on the double steal.

Reynolds worked a long at-bat, but Phillies left-handed pitcher Jose Alvarado came in and struck him out with a slider in on his hands, for the first out.

Cruz hit a chopper and Sosa chose to throw it home, but Taylor beat the throw home to tie the game at 7-7.

Gonzales then stepped to the plate and singled through to left field, scoring McCutchen and winning the ball game, 8-7.

The Pirates face off against the Phillies for the second game of the series Saturday night with the first pitch at 6:40 p.m.

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Dominic Campbell

DOMINIC CAMPBELL

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