Pirates Pull Away From Cards Behind Jordy & Gerrit 7-3

J-Hay got the Bucs rolling with a double off Lance Lynn. With two gone, Freeser got nicked by a pitch and J-Bell rolled a single up the middle to give the Pirates the early lead. It was a quick edge, tho, as leadoff hitter Matt Carpenter took a 3-2 fastball deep of Gerrit Cole - first inning and a home run, the daily double for Cole Train - to knot it up. It was 1-2-3 for Pittsburgh in the second. The Redbirds got a walk and two-out ground rule double by Lynn to threaten, but Gerrit got his revenge by whiffing Carpenter. It was a quiet third for the Corsairs while the Cards got a two-out knock. Andrew slapped a two-out single to right in the fourth, distracted Lynn with a little dancin' off first, and then boogalooed on home after Jordy got a 2-1 heater down Broadway and lined it into the LF seats. St. Louis went down in order for the first time.

Cole on a roll (photo Pittsburgh Pirates)

The Bucs are swingin' free with two outs; J-Hay copied Jordy, getting a 2-1 cutter down the middle and turning it into a souvenir to make it 4-1 in the fifth. It was three grounders, three outs for the Cards. Freeser opened the sixth with a walk and went to third an out later on Cutch's rap, scoring on Jordy's tapper. Stew was walked intentionally and Gerrit unintentionally to load 'em up, bringing in John Brebbia from the pen. He got ahead of Fraze 0-2, then plunked him for a cheap if painful RBI. Next J-Hay got smacked in the hip with a toss to keep the circle unbroken before the music stopped with the score 7-1 good guys. A Redbird knock opened the inning; an around-the-horn DP cleaned it up. Then a little drama broke out when Cole threw behind Jose Martinez, who posed and pouted. Joey then got a broken-bat knock, chirped at Gerrit and got barked at by Freeser in return. A swinging K dropped the curtain.

The Bucs went quietly in the seventh. Jhan Marinez took over for Gerrit, who was at 99 pitches, and tucked St. Louis away handily. Sam Tuivailala toed the slab in the eighth and served a quick frame. Tony Watson got the call and gave up a first-pitch single, then settled in to finish the frame without any further ado. The Pirates made no noise in the ninth and Wade LeBlanc climbed the slope and walked the first Redbird, sheesh. That was followed by a double, but a challenge changed it to a single and out; Paul DeJong overslid the bag and J-Hay held the tag. A two-out walk kept the Cards batting; the runner trotted to second via defensive indifference. Clint must really have no confidence in the pen (and who can blame him) as Felipe Rivero began loosening up. Stephen Piscotty hit a soft lob into center to make it 7-3, but thank you Lord, a pop out ended it.

Cutch is generating offense from the back end of the order (photo Pittsburgh Pirates)

Nice to have a runaway where you can fly a couple of struggling guys under the radar, but geez. Jhan continues to be a boss while Wade couldn't throw a strike and Tony had a mixed bag; everything was up but his sinker velo jumped a couple of ticks to his normal 94-95. Still, a very nice win as Cole Train keeps rollin', long balls keep flyin' and the scoreboard lit up after a couple of down days. The Bucs have cinched the series; a sweep would be sweet after the face plant in the last two games at Milwaukee.

Notes:

• J-Hay and Cutch had two hits; Josh scored twice and chased home a pair while Andrew plated twice. Jordy had a homer and three RBI
• This was the first time the Bucs have managed to hit more than one homer (Jordy, J-Hay) in a game against Lance Lynn; this was his 21st outing against Pittsburgh.
• Wade LeBlanc has given up runs in 6-of-8 outings; four times, he's surrendered multiple tallies.