Francisco Liriano continues to dominate as a Pirate as he only gave up 2 hits in seven innings of work while striking out nine. Jeff Samardzjia was just as good, but he allowed a run which would be all the Pirates needed in a 1 – 0 victory on Wednesday night.
The Pirates scored the only run in the first with two out. Andrew McCutchen ripped a shot high off of the Clemente wall for a double. The ball should have left the ballpark, but 14 MPH winds help keep the ball in. Garret Jones would follow with an RBI single, his team-leading 25th RBI of the season, to make it 1 – 0. Samardzjia would be just as effective as Liriano as he only allowed a Cutch double in the fourth and a Jones walk in the sixth.
The Cubs had their golden opportunity against Liriano in the third. They would load the bases with no out, but a force out at home, strikeout, and fly out to right would get Liriano out of the jam. From there, he would only allow two runners to reach over the next four innings (error, hit) while striking out six in that span.
Manager, Clint Hurdle thought Liriano was able to work through the bases-loaded situation better than in his previous career starts; “There was a couple stretches tonight that probably have presented some problems for him in the past and he was able to come back and make pitches. 15 out of 26 first pitch strikes, when he gets ahead with his fastball and he’s close to the plate with it, the other stuff (His slider and changeup) plays up dramatically.”
Tony Watson would come in and keep the Cubs off the board in the eighth while giving up a hit. Mark Melancon’s ninth wasn’t as pretty as he allowed runners on first and second with one out, but he got the job done as he would get a line-out and pop out to end it for his first save as a Pirate. Final Score: Pirates 1, Cubs 0.
Starter’s Lines:
Liriano (Win): 7 IN, 0 R, 2 H, 1 BB, 9 K’s. 91 Pitches (57 Strikes)
Samardzija (Loss): 7 IN, 1 R, 1 ER, 3 H, 1 BB, 8 K’s, 1 WP. 111 Pitches (73 Strikes)
Tomorrow’s Starters:
(RHP) Jeanmar Gomes (PIT) 2 – 0, 2.78 ERA
(RHP) Edwin Jackson (CHI / NL) 1 – 6, 5.76 ERA
The Pirates will look for the 3-game sweep tomorrow afternoon at 12:35.
(Photo Credit: Matt Freed/P-G)
For in-game updates and news, follow Travis on twitter @TBerardi_OVA .
