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Young's slam, 5 RBIs lead D-backs past Pirates 9-1

Apr 10, 2010 - 6:04 AM PHOENIX(AP) -- Chris Young stayed calm at the plate and propelled Arizona to a big night on offense.

Young hit a grand slam for his second homer in two games and matched a career high with five RBIs, leading the Diamondbacks to a 9-1 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday.

"I just tried to lock in on a zone and I got some opportunities with some runners on base," Young said. "I tried not to let the adrenaline flow too much, just act like nobody's on and try to hit a line drive in the gap or something like that and keep it simple, and it turned into a home run."

Young's second career slam highlighted a six-run third inning for Arizona, which improved to 3-1 and equaled its best start set in 2000.

Adam LaRoche broke an 0-for-13 slump with a two-run single in the third, and the Diamondbacks reloaded the bases against Charlie Morton (0-1) when Mark Reynolds was hit on the left hand with a pitch.

Young came up after Morton struck out Miguel Montero and sent a 2-1 pitch well over the 413-foot sign in left-center for one of his three hits.

The Diamondbacks provided plenty of support for starter Rodrigo Lopez, who limited the Pirates to one run over six innings.

The 34-year-old Lopez (1-0) helped himself with a single in the third, his first hit since 2007 and only the third of his career. The two-time 15-game winner who had Tommy John surgery in August 2007 made the Diamondbacks as a non-roster invite to spring training brought in to push prospects for a spot in the rotation.

Lopez, who did not pitch in the majors in 2008, allowed six hits and struck out five. He threw 90 pitches.

"Just locating my fastball," said Lopez, who lives in the Phoenix area with his family. "That was the key. It's special being a Diamondback and being at home."

LaRoche added an RBI single in the fourth and finished 2 for 3 with a walk.

"It feels good to finally contribute a little bit," he said.

Montero drove in a run with a double in the fourth and the Diamondbacks shined on defense, with left fielder Conor Jackson and center fielder Young each making a diving catch.

Morton struck out five of his first six batters but threw two wild pitches. He was charged with eight runs and nine hits in 3 1-3 innings.

"I just didn't bear down," Morton said. "I had good life on my fastball and I was confident in it, then I started to fall behind throwing too much off-speed stuff and not focusing on getting ahead with the fastball."

The Pirates have two wins in their past 10 games at Chase Field, going back to 2008. Arizona is 12-4 in its last 16 against Pittsburgh.

"They made some nice plays," Pirates manager John Russell said. "You get down six runs, it puts a lot of pressure on trying to come back, but we swung the bat decent. They made some very good defense plays against us tonight."

NOTES: Reynolds was fine after the game, with only an abrasion on his hand. ... Russell said right-hander Joel Hanrahan, who pitched Thursday night in a minor league rehabilitation assignment for Class-A Bradenton, will be re-evaluated after Saturday's outing. Hanrahan missed spring training with a right elbow injury and began the season on the 15-day disabled list but could be activated Monday. ... Russell said right-hander Daniel McCutchen might be sent to the minors to get more work after his scheduled start Sunday against Arizona because the Pirates won't need a fifth starter until April 24. Pittsburgh moved up Zach Duke a day to pitch Saturday against Diamondbacks ace Dan Haren.