PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – After a double play helped him through the first inning, it was going well for Jared Jones in his MLB return until the fourth inning as the Cubs win a second straight against the Pirates 9-5 Tuesday.
Chicago scored nine runs on only seven hits. The Pirates have allowed 27 runs to Chicago in two games.
Retiring seven straight including a pair of strikeouts in the third inning, Jones started the fourth off with a walk to Mike Tauchman. Five pitches later, a home run by Seiya Suzuki barely over the Clemente Wall tied the game. Jones would get the first out, then another walk was followed by a double and the second home run of the inning, by Dansby Swanson to make it 5-2.
Jones would strike out two of the next three, but the damage done. The rookie’s return was four innings, five hits, five earned runs, three walks and four strikeouts. Of his 83 pitches, 48 went for strikes.
"Health wise, I felt really healthy the whole time,” Jones said. “That's the good thing, but I couldn't land an offspeed pitch the entire day. Pitching like that in the Major Leagues is pretty tough."
“I mean he kinda lost the ability to command the breaking ball,” said Pirates manager Derek Shelton. “When you get a veteran team like the Cubs and you go back down to one pitch, regardless of what it is, it's challenging. So, execution of the breaking ball and then once he started with that, he started to kinda cut across with the fastball. He kinda just lost the zone and had to come back in the zone to Dansby with the fastball and he's a veteran hitter that knows he's pretty much getting a fastball. He didn't miss it."
1st HR
Acquired at the trade deadline to bring power to the Pirates lineup, outfielder Bryan De La Cruz hit his first Pirates home run. It took 76 at bats for the first dinger, but he has come on recently. The 27-year-old right-fielder has hit safely in 11 of his last 14 games with 11 RBI since August 17.
“When he stays in the middle of the field, drives the ball in the middle of the field, I think that's the guy we acquired,” Shelton said. “But the fact that he hit the ball off the back wall in the middle -- and most of the hits are center to right-center, to right field, which I think is a good sign."
Related
Other Notes
· DH Oneil Cruz had four hits, including a double, driving in two including a sacrifice fly
· Carmen Mlodzinski returned from the minors throwing two scoreless innings with two walks and three strikeouts
· Pirates struck out 14 times
· Infielder Liover Peguero hit his 12th home run in AAA-now 69 RBI, Matt Gorski his 19th
· Former Pirates minor league pitcher of the year Mike Burrows continues to work back from Tommy John surgery going four innings, three hits, no runs, a walk and five strikeouts
Up Next
Paul Skenes goes for a ninth win with his 2.16 ERA against RHP Kyle Hendricks (3-10, 6.33 ERA) at 12:35 on Wednesday. Paul Alexander hosts the North Shore Tavern Leadoff Show starting at 11:40 on 100.1 FM and AM 1020 KDKA.