Road narrowing fast, as Pirates drop game one to Dodgers in extras

LOS ANGELES — Now, here comes the hard part.

Friday night against the Dodgers and Yoshinobu Yamamoto was theoretically the soft spot in this series, the one game where the Pirates didn’t have to face a two-time Cy Young Award winner.

They weren’t able to take advantage, suffering a 5-4 loss in 10 innings at Dodger Stadium for a few different reasons.

First and foremost was second baseman Tommy Edman's line-drive single to left off Gregory Soto, sealing the victory for the Dodgers. That, along with the Pirates' inability to score in the top half.

It now increases the pressure on the Pirates as they enter two of the toughest tests they'll face all season in Tarik Skubal and Blake Snell the next two games.

“We’ve got to look at tomorrow," Pirates manager Don Kelly said. "We've got to find a way. Our approach has been better against left-handers, and against Skubal, we need to make sure we’re locked in.”

As for Yamamoto, it's not like he's some slouch. He spun 6 1/3 innings of two-run ball, walking one, striking out nine and dropping his season ERA to 2.61. Over his past half-dozen starts, Yamamoto now has a 1.98 ERA with 10 walks and 39 strikeouts.

The bigger issue is … well, bigger.

The Pirates can’t afford to get swept, not with a record of 63-77 or considering the fact that they’re 6 1/2 games back of the final National League Wild Card spot with 32 to play.

Pittsburgh did some things well Friday. Oneil Cruz had a stellar game. The bullpen spun five scoreless frames before Gregory Soto faltered in the 10th. Nick Gonzales continues to hit. But it's still a lot, and the Pirates need wins.

"Been resilient all year, and we need to find a way to do it tomorrow here against a really good pitcher," Kelly said.

Cruz got the Pirates back into this one with a two-run homer in the eighth, his second in three games since returning from a 59-game absence due to a pair of fractures in his left hand.

Facing Dodgers reliever Kyle Hurt in the eighth, Cruz worked the count full before obliterating a fastball over the heart of the plate. Cruz put his 16th of the season onto the tarped-off seats in center, 424 feet away with an exit velocity of 112.8 mph.

It stunned the crowd of 51,872. But unfortunately for the Pirates, Edgardo Henriquez entered the game and shut down the inning, striking out Jake Mangum and getting Jacob Gonzalez to fly out to center.

In the top of the 10th, Bryan Reynolds delivered a hard single to right, but that was all the Pirates could muster. Gonzales struck out swinging, and Henry Davis — after the Dodgers intentionally walked Cruz — bounced into an inning-ending double play.

"We have to find a way to score there," Kelly said.

Friday also represented a "relapse" for Bubba Chandler, who was 3-0 with a 2.16 ERA and no homers allowed in August.

Vying to become the first Pirates rookie since Gerrit Cole in 2013 to win four straight starts, Chandler wasn’t as precise as he needed to be at times with his command. He allowed eight hard-hit balls (95 mph) and had an average exit velocity of 95.5 over his four innings.

"Tried to do a lot today," Chandler said. "Kinda relapsed a little bit from what I’ve been doing over the last handful of starts. Tried to make the moment too big when it wasn’t."

At another point of the season, it would be a fine learning lesson, a way for Chandler to take feedback and improve. Now, however, the Pirates need wins. And the road is narrowing.

After Gonzales tied the game with his second RBI of the night, shortstop Mookie Betts put the Dodgers in front, 4-2, with a two-run single in the third. Betts found a first-pitch four-seamer located low and away, grounding it up the middle and just past Gonzalez at short.

"I threw it where I wanted to," Chandler said. "It just found a hole. Can’t be mad at a single off the end of the bat."

Kelly talked about the Pirates needing to be prepared for Yamamoto and his splitter, and Gonzales checked both of those boxes to give Pittsburgh a 1-0 lead in the first.

Gonzales ambushed a first-pitch splitter that was middle-in, lining an RBI single into center for single.

Unfortunately for the Pirates, it didn’t last long. In the bottom half, third baseman Max Muncy hammered a 2-2 sinker from Chandler into the right-field seats for a 2-1 Dodgers lead, the ball leaving his bat at 104.3 mph.

It was the first home run Chandler has allowed since July 5 -- including Friday, a span of seven starts. Chandler didn't hate the pitch, but he was unhappy he walked the first batter of the game, Shohei Ohtani, because he let Dodger Stadium get to him.

"Next time I pitch here I’m gonna pump the brakes a little bit," Chandler said.

Gonzales struck again in the third, as the Pirates tied the game at 2. This time, he got a 1-0 sinker middle-middle and belted it at 104.7 mph into center to score Brandon Lowe for a second time.

Friday marked the MLB-high 50th two-hit game of the season for Gonzales. That’s the most for a Pirate since Andrew McCutchen had 60 such games in 2013. Gonzales is now hitting .311, second in the National League behind Luis Arraez (.322) of the Phillies.

"That's what I'm there to do -- drive in some runs," Gonzales said. "It's nice to do that."

It'll be even better for the Pirates if it happens the next two days.

Jason Mackey: Jason.Mackey@pirates.com and @JMackey_PGH on X.