PITTSBURGH — At long last, the Pirates won a series.
After dropping their last seven series, the Pirates took two out of three games from the Red Sox at PNC Park over the weekend. It was the first time Pittsburgh won a series since taking two of three games in Cleveland in the first series after the All-Star break from July 18-19.
“That was a big series,” manager Don Kelly said after Sunday’s win.
The Pirates won 8-4 in the opener on Friday night. Bubba Chandler pitched well, and Rafael Flores Jr. and Brandon Lowe carried the load offensively. But Pittsburgh couldn’t solve veteran Sonny Gray and got blanked 4-0 in the second game of the series on Saturday night.
The odds of the Pirates winning the series took a hit when it was revealed Paul Skenes — Sunday’s scheduled starter — had his start pushed back to Wednesday. Things looked even bleaker when a non-traditional lineup was deployed for the series finale.
But a well-executed bullpen game along with big contributions from regulars Bryan Reynolds and Brandon Lowe, as well as Nick Yorke, who joined the team on Sunday morning, lifted the Pirates to a much-needed series win.
“I’m really pleased with how they performed,” said Kelly. “Just trying to switch it up a little bit. I know the other day we scored eight, the first day, and just seemed like trying to flip it up a little bit more. It wasn’t the same guys in the lineup today, and I thought everybody handled it great.”
The series win was an impressive one on multiple fronts. For starters, the Red Sox came in as one of the hottest teams in baseball since the middle of June, despite some recent struggles. Boston is currently 66-58 and has possession of the second of three wild card spots in the American League.
Furthermore, both wins the Pirates had over the weekend came against left-handed starting pitching. The offense put up four runs in four innings against promising rookie Jake Bennett in the opener. On Sunday, the Pirates tagged Patrick Sandoval for seven runs on nine hits in four innings.
“To win the series here at home, especially to beat two lefties, we’ve struggled,” said Kelly. “Sonny Gray pitched so well [on Saturday] and so did our guys in a tight game. And then to be able to win the series and beat two good left-handed pitchers.”
After taking two of three from the Red Sox, the Pirates are 61-65 and 6.5 games out of a wild card spot. It’s desperation time for the team in black and gold, and the Pirates are hoping that by snapping a skid with an elusive series win, they will create some momentum for a pivotal stretch.
“We’ve talked a lot about it. 1-0 each day,” said Kelly. “How do we continue to grind and fight for that? And I thought we did a really good job in a big series win against a tough team.”
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