PITTSBURGH -- Amid a rough stretch, the Pirates will take wins any way they can. Facing one of baseball’s hottest relievers, Anthony Bender, Pittsburgh was dead in the water. With some luck and a surge from the bottom of the order, the Pirates’ offense found a way.
In a tie game, Bender retired the first two batters of the eighth with ease, but two singles, a walk and a hit-by-pitch gave the Pirates a 3-2 win over the Marlins on Saturday at PNC Park.
The Pirates took advantage of the Marlins’ bullpen game quickly. Lake Bachar hit Spencer Horwitz and then walked Brandon Lowe to start the game. Ryan O’Hearn then gave Pittsburgh the lead with a single through the right side.
After Pirates starter Bubba Chandler cruised through the order during the first two innings, he fell into trouble in the third. Miami notched three hits, including a Liam Hicks single with two outs that scored the tying run.
Bryan Reynolds then took over. The left fielder first scored Horwitz on a double to left-center field in the third before he made a leaping catch at the left-field wall to rob a home run in the fourth, preserving the 2-1 lead he built with the bat.
The Marlins tied the score in the sixth and Bender entered in the eighth to silence Pittsburgh with his sweeper. But Tyler Callihan singled and Jake Mangum slapped a single on a hit-and-run to move the potential go-ahead run to third. Jared Triolo walked to turn the lineup over and Horwitz was hit by a pitch, snagging the lead.
Gregory Soto entered for the save, and despite allowing the first batter to reach, he worked out of the jam and retired Hicks to clinch the victory.