Pirates storm back vs. Angels
It was over month since 2 wins in row
ANAHEIM, Calif. — It had been over a month since the Pirates made the plays necessary to win on consecutive days. The previous time the Pirates won two games in a row was July 6- 7 against the Milwaukee Brewers at PNC Park heading into the AllStar break.
A 10- 7 win Tuesday night against the Los Angeles Angels finally stopped a stretch of not being able to win consecutive games.
The victory secured the Pirates first series win since the All- Star break. The Pirates were 0 for 9 in series since being 2 ½ games behind the Chicago Cubs in the National League Central Division standings.
Trevor Williams got off to an arduous start in the first inning. Leadoff hitter David Fletcher slashed a double off Williams, and Mike Trout drew a walk. By the time the inning was over Williams had allowed three hits and three runs with a walk.
The Angels scored a run in the second and third as Williams struggled with his
command. Williams had five walks on the night with seven hits and the Angels scored five earned runs against him.
Williams didn’t have an ideal performance but left the game with the Pirates up, 7- 5, and got credited with his fifth win of this season.
Adam Frazier and Bryan Reynolds started the third with singles. Frazier advanced to third on a fly ball by Starling Marte. Josh Bell hit a single that left fielder Justin Upton couldn’t get to on a dive. Chaos ensued after Bell’s single.
Upton threw to an empty third base and Angels starting pitcher Griffin Canning picked up the ball. Canning threw it to second in an attempt to get Bell. The ball ended up in center field. Frazier and Reynolds scored to put the Pirates on the board.
Colin Moran drove in Bell with a double. The score was 4- 3 when the inning ended.
Bell hit his 31st home run on an 0- 2 pitch from reliever Taylor Cole. The blast was a towering shot that bounced off the rocks in left- center field. Bell has home runs in back- to- back games and three of his past four. Bell had three RBIs on the night to take his season total to 98. It appears Bell might be bouncing back from a swoon after the break.
Bell drove in Marte, who hit a double two pitches after a foul tip hit his right hand.
The Pirates scored four runs in the fifth.
Jose Osuna had an RBI double in the inning. Pablo Reyes drove in Osuna with a two- out single.
Bryan Reynolds had three hits, including a home run in the seventh inning. Reynolds leads all NL rookies with 113.
It wouldn’t be all that easy, though. Clay Holmes allowed two runs in the ninth. Felipe Vazquez earned the save with one pitch as Calhoun grounded into a double play.