The Pittsburgh Pirates dropped the first game of their series against the Tampa Bay Rays on Friday night, 10-3. But, they were able to bounce back on Saturday afternoon, picking up a 4-3 victory.
It was a well-played game by the Pittsburgh Pirates, who received contributions from several players. Bryan Reynolds kept his hitting streak alive, reaching 19 games. Oneil Cruz launched a 445-foot home run into the Allegheny River in right field.
On the mound, Jared Jones continued his impressive rookie campaign. With the bullpen worn down, he gave the team exactly what they needed, firing seven strong innings. He surrendered only three hits and three walks, resulting in two earned runs with eight strikeouts.
That was enough for him to get his fifth win of the season. Colin Holderman, who has turned into one of the best late-game options in baseball, picked up his 16th hold of the season. He now has an ERA of 0.68 on the season after another scoreless appearance.
Closing out the game was Aroldis Chapman with David Bednar unavailable. He did allow one run but was able to shut the door for his second save of the season.
In the process, Chapman became part of a rare occurrence. As shared by OptaSTATS on X, the Pittsburgh Pirates accomplished something on Saturday afternoon that has not been done in nearly 54 years.
They had a player who was 36+ years of age record a save and hit a triple, with designated hitter Andrew McCutchen, in the same game as someone 22 years of age or younger record a win.
It is the first time that has happened since August 12th, 1970, when the San Francisco Giants did it. In their game, Don McMahon, who was 40 recorded the save and Willie Mays, who was 39, hit the triple. The win was recorded by 20-year-old Don Carrithers.
The Pittsburgh Pirates had only five hits in the game, but they made it count. Their pitching staff has been excellent all season, keeping them in games they otherwise would have no business being in.
Achieving more oddities as they did Saturday will always be welcome as long as the team continues racking up wins. These are all important given how tight the National League playoff picture currently is.
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