Boyd backed up by stellar defense to stay unbeaten in 10 straight starts

PITTSBURGH -- Dansby Swanson hit the go-ahead single in the 10th inning, and second baseman Nico Hoerner and left fielder Ian Happ made pivotal defensive plays, but none of the three could be considered the backbone of Friday night’s victory.

Left-hander Matthew Boyd pitched one-run ball over seven innings. Though the veteran did not factor in the decision, he set the tone as the Cubs defeated the Pirates, 3-2, in 10 innings to open a three-game series at PNC Park.

Boyd allowed seven hits and three walks but yielded only one run. He was able to navigate traffic throughout the game and also got help from a pair of Gold Glove winners.

“He did a wonderful job,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said, “especially in the fifth inning when everything was going wrong.”

The Pirates scored the game’s first run in the fifth when Marcell Ozuna and Brandon Lowe walked to start the inning, and Jared Triolo and Henry Davis followed with consecutive infield singles. Yet Boyd escaped the jam, allowing only that one run as he got Jake Mangum and Nick Gonzales to fly out, then struck out Bryan Reynolds.

“Not only did he get out of it, but he gave us two more innings,” Counsell said.

Boyd has not lost since Opening Day when he was beaten by the Nationals. He has not lost in his last 10 starts and has won his last six decisions.

Though Boyd was injured early in the season, he is now a steadying force in the Cubs’ battered rotation. Since returning from the injured list on June 25 after missing seven weeks while recovering from knee surgery, Boyd has gone 4-0 with a 2.31 ERA in six starts.

“He’s just so impressive with his persistence to just keep improving his career even with all the injuries he has had in his career,” Hoerner said of the 35-year-old Boyd. “He is in a great spot right now, and he’s helping us in a huge, huge way.”

Hoerner kept the game scoreless in the third when he dove fully extended to his right to field a ground ball hit by Nick Gonzales. Hoerner got up and threw to third base, catching Davis off the bag as he rounded too far off third.

Pete Crow-Armstrong hit his 22nd home run in the sixth inning to pull the Cubs into a tie at 1. Crow-Armstrong also hit a double in the third but was left stranded.

Happ then started a double play that ended the seventh inning and kept the score tied. Happ caught Gonzales’ fly ball then threw out Davis at home as he tried to tag up from third base.

“We made two wonderful defensive plays, and that’s something we are able to do on a consistent basis,” Counsell said. “It showed up in the biggest moments tonight. Two guys made incredible plays.”

That set the stage for the Cubs to win the game in the 10th inning when they scored twice to move in front 3-1.

Swanson’s single scored Happ, the automatic runner, who barely beat Mangum’s throw from center field to make it 2-1. The call was upheld upon video review. Seiya Suzuki drew a bases-loaded walk to force in an insurance run.

Gavin Hollowell allowed a run in the bottom of the 10th but needed five pitches to get three outs for his first save of the season and second of his career. Caleb Thielbar (3-2) got the win after pitching a perfect ninth.