Pirates Rebound With 5-2 Win Behind Lyles, Vazquez, Marte & Cervy

Hey, a better start - Cervy banged a two-out homer off Yu Darvish in the first frame while Jordan Lyles worked a quiet frame with a couple of whiffs. It was a clean second both ways, with Jordan picking up two more K. In the third, Lyles got bopped by a pitch; it cost Darvish when Starling smacked a two-out, two-run dinger to make it 3-0. The Cubs led off with a couple of raps, with the second being a ball deflected by Lyles, and a wild pitch put Cubbies on second and third. But Lyle kept his cool, retiring the next pair on strikes before a fly closed it harmlessly. Colin Moran tried to continue the two-down home run vibe in the fourth, but a ball he crushed was kept in the park by the wind, which is blowing in from right. The other two Bucs choose more wisely by taking their long flies to left, and there have been a few balls already tonight that have died off the bat thx to the gusts. Chicago went down in order, and even w/seven strikeouts, JL is at a manageable 56 pitches. Erik Gonzalez legged out a hit to open the fifth; Jordan swung away into a DP (good thought but bad ball luck; he stroked it well but right to third) to calm it down. Lyles hook, which has been sharp today, hung once this frame and Jason Heyward took it yard, just dropping it into the first row.

So far, so good for Jordan Lyles (photo Pittsburgh Pirates)

After a Fraze lineout to start the sixth (the Pirates have been making solid contact off Darvish all game), Starling singled, stole second and went to third on a Cervy bloop. Lefty Kyle Ryan got the call against J-Bell, who ripped a rap the opposite way to plate Marte and send Amore to third. Melky hit for Moran; Ryan tried to pick off Josh and misfired on the toss, allowing Fran to score to make it 5-1 before banking the fire. A walk to Kris Bryant turned into an adventure when he stole second and went to third on a missed catch by Gonzo (error charged to Cervy; it wasn't the greatest throw), but Jordan whiffed his way out of danger, his 10th K. J-Mart led off the seventh with a single against Allen Webster, stole second and moved to third on a ball in the dirt. Gonzo K'ed swinging at ball four, Pablo pinch hit and bounced into a contact play out at home on a 3-0 count and Fraze flew out to left. Sheesh, that bottom of the order... Ric Rod took the ball, and a walk with a Fraze boot that should have ended the frame put him in a two-out pickle, but RR got Zobrist on a well-hit ball to left that J-Mart gloved.

Tyler Chatwood answered the bell for the eighth. J-Bell singled with two gone, moving up 90' when the ball handcuffed LF Kyle Schwarber. JB Shuck worked a walk, but JHK's bouncer to third ended the uprising. Keone Kela took the ball. Bryant softly rolled a one-out knock to right, followed by a walk. Javy Baez's double plated a run and set up shop for the Cubs. Felipe Vazquez was waved in; Cervy went to first and Jake behind the plate to allow for a five-out save opp. A whiff followed by a nice grab of a smoker by JB kept the lead at three. Tim Collins took over. He gave up a one-knock to Gonzo and Fraze walked with two down, but Starling couldn't pad the lead, grounding out. Heyward greeted The Nightmare with a knock - Jason has three of the Cubs six hits - before Felipe kicked it in, striking out the next three Cubbies for a nice bounce back win for the Bucs, 5-2.

Yep, he's still The Nightmare (photo Pittsburgh Pirates)

Nice to see Clint go to five-out save, even if he still won't match up guys (and prob loses Felipe for tomorrow after 28 pitches tonight). Nice to see J-Bell continue to smoke the ball, and hopefully Starling is on the verge of joining him. The series decider is tomorrow, and taking this set would be even nicer.

Notes:

• Jordan Lyle tied his career-high in K's with 10 (it was his third double-digit outing). He went six tonight, giving up a run on three hits with a walk on 87 pitches.
• Starling had two hits, two runs and two RBI; Cervy also had two knocks with two tallies and a run chased home. J-Bell and improbably Gonzo also had a pair of raps.
• JB Shuck is hitting .214, but his OBP is .476 - he has three hits and six walks.
• Funny play - SS Gonzalez dropped a white hand-warmer as he went to make a play in the fifth; the Cubs fans cheered thinking he had dropped the ball instead. He hadn't, and the throw to first curbed their enthusiasm.
• The wind at Wrigley was blowing in so hard that the Cubs took down the ballyard flags and pennants.
• Will Craig, Cole Tucker and Bryan Reynolds homered for Indy tonight. They won 4-3, with JT Brubaker getting the win.