PNC Park — The Pirates continued to break out the bats and Gerrit Cole recovered from a shaky first inning as the Buccos continued to exercise their demons against the Brewers 9 \u2013 3 on Friday night. It was Gerrit Cole\u2019s fourth victory in as many tries to start his ML career. It ended an eventful day that saw the organization introduce Austin Meadows earlier that afternoon.<\/p>\n
The Brewers got to Cole fast in the first as Nori Aoki walked on four pitches to start the game off and Jean Segura and Carlos Gomez singled to load the bases. Cole would then hit Aramis Ramirez to force in a run. Another would score by way of a Jonathan Lucroy GIDP and Juan Francisco would single in Gomez to make it 3 \u2013 0. \u201cHe got some adversity \u2013 right away. His command wasn\u2019t there, he didn\u2019t really have much of a secondary arsenal to go to, initially, and then after the first inning he just met the demands of the game\u201d said manager, Clint Hurdle.<\/p>\n
Cole would then settle down through the next five innings thanks, in part, to some fine defense in the second. Andrew McCutchen would make a sliding grab to rob Segura of a hit with Aoki on first. Aoki would then be thrown out stealing on a perfect throw by Russell Martin to end the inning.<\/p>\n
He knows that it\u2019s okay to let your teammates contribute to help you succeed, \u201cThose were big (the two plays in the second) \u2013 we played solid defense all night and they took away a couple of hits and, you know, that\u2019s so huge when you\u2019re on the ropes and pitch count is getting up there to have those guys be able to pick you up and make some quick outs. It changes the ballgame.\u201d<\/p>\n
From there, Cole would only allow four hits while striking out three. Ryan Reid would then pitch the final three innings while allowing only three total base-runners for his first career ML save. To Reid, he was just contributing to the team, \u201cYou work hard for this opportunity and when you get here and get that opportunity \u2013 what are you going to do with it? And to have the opportunity to be a part of a winning ball club like this, I couldn\u2019t of imagined and you gotta keep it rolling. I\u2019m excited to be a part of it and we\u2019ll see what happens from here.\u201d<\/p>\n
On the other side of the mound, the Pirates bats were as alive as the thunderstorm that rolled through Pittsburgh two hours before first pitch. They would get to Brewers starter, Johnny Hellweg in his ML debut, with a 7-run second inning which was started by a 2 RBI double by Neil Walker. Starling Marte, Russell Martin and Andrew McCutchen would all record RBI singles in the inning.<\/p>\n
The Pirates would not be finished, although, as they would score once in the third, sixth, and eighth innings to end the scoring. Gerrit Cole would record his second hit as a Pirate in the second and score from first on a Marte RBI double.<\/p>\n
Marte would score the ninth run in the sixth inning after leading off the inning with a triple to right-center field. He may be the only player in baseball to be fast enough to do that. He, also, would barely avoid the cycle when he flew out to deep left in his final at-bat. Cutch would end the scoring with a monster shot six rows deep in the north side notch in the eighth.<\/p>\n
Final Score: Pirates 10, Brewers 3.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe maintained momentum we had on the road,\u201d said Cutch. \u201cIt\u2019s good to play at home in front of a sellout crowd. It makes it fun and just to have their support behind us, you know? It was good to be able to get a win.<\/p>\n
These two will be back in action tomorrow evening at 7:05<\/p>\n
Starters Lines:<\/p>\n
Cole (W, 4 \u2013 0) 6 IN, 8 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 3 BB, 3 K\u2019s 1 HP. 94 Pitches (56 Strikes)<\/p>\n
Hellweg (L, 0 \u2013 1) 1 2\/3 IN, 6 H, 7 R, 5 ER, 2 BB, 1 K. 52 Pitches (26 Strikes)<\/p>\n
Tomorrow\u2019s Starters:<\/p>\n
(LHP) Francisco Liriano (PIT) 6 \u2013 3, 2.30 ERA<\/p>\n
(RHP) Donovan Hand (MIL) 0 \u2013 0, 2.37 ERA<\/p>\n
Follow Travis for Pirate news and in-game updates on\u00a0 Twitter @TBerardi_OVA or @ovathletics<\/p>\n
(Photo Credit: AP Photo\/Keith Srakocic)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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