• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers
• Game Tracker

Burnett tosses one-hitter, Walker has 5 RBI as Bucs beat Cubs

Aug 1, 2012 - 4:37 AM Chicago, IL (Sports Network) - A.J. Burnett took a no-hitter into the eighth inning and Neil Walker belted a grand slam and knocked in all five of Pittsburgh's runs to power the Pirates to a 5-0 win over the Chicago Cubs.

Burnett, who was bidding to become the first pitcher to throw a no-hitter at Wrigley Field since 1972, gave up a line single to right from pinch-hitter Adrian Cardenas with two outs in the eighth.

That was the only hit the right-hander gave up all night, as he tossed his first shutout of the year and 10th of his career.

Cardenas' hit, which came on a 3-2 pitch, occurred just after a 64 mph knuckle curve nearly painted the outside corner. After Cardenas' hit, Burnett turned and voiced his displeasure with home plate umpire Jeff Nelson.

"Skip's (Clint Hurdle) got a good term for it, he calls it 'no-no going to - uh-oh'. I didn't want to go to uh-oh," Burnett said. "I was upset, but I'm able to regroup and make a pitch. I over-reacted because I was in the spur of the moment, but I was able to calm down and finish what I started."

Burnett (13-3), who has won 12 of his last 13 decisions, notched his first shutout since June 27, 2006. He was pitching for Toronto against Washington in that game.

"A lot of my success this year has come because of the guys in this clubhouse," Burnett said. "They accepted me from the get-go, before I even took the mound as a Pirate. The fans back home are amazing too, they go nuts."

On Tuesday, Burnett walked two batters and had eight strikeouts, capping a day of trades for the Bucs, winners in five of their last seven games. They acquired first baseman Gaby Sanchez and pitcher Kyle Kaminska from the Miami Marlins in exchange for outfielder Gorkys Hernandez and the club's 2013 competitive balance draft pick. The Pirates also shipped Casey McGehee and cash to the Yankees in exchange for veteran reliever Chad Qualls.

The Cubs, who had a three-game winning streak broken, were also busy at Tuesday's non-waiver trade deadline. They dealt catcher Geovany Soto and pitcher Ryan Dempster to Texas.

Dempster was supposed to start Tuesday, but Casey Coleman (0-2) was pressed into duty and allowed seven hits and four runs through 4 2/3 frames.

The Pirates haven't thrown a no-hitter since July 12, 1997 when Francisco Cordova and Ricardo Rincon tossed a combined one over 10 innings against Houston.

Travis Snider, acquired from Toronto on Monday, legged out an infield hit with one out in the opening inning. Andrew McCutchen also had an infield hit, and after Garrett Jones walked Walker blasted a pitch over the wall in right- center field.

Walker's sacrifice fly plated Snider in the seventh.

Anthony Rizzo walked with two outs in the fourth and Burnett walked David DeJesus in the sixth until the eighth-inning drama.

Burnett hit Darwin Barney in the helmet with a pitch with one out and pinch- runner Jeff Baker stole second. After Luis Valbuena struck out, Cardenas ended the no-hit bid.

Burnett then fanned David DeJesus to end the eighth and retired the side in order in the ninth.

"I was able to get that hit, it was great but it was very short-lived," Cardenas said. "In the grand scheme of things it meant nothing, but it was definitely sweet to break up the no-hitter at our place. It's something you don't want to be a part of."

Game Notes

Milt Pappas was the last pitcher to throw a no-hitter at Wrigley Field, Sept. 2, 1972 against San Diego. The Reds are the only visiting team to ever throw a no-hitter at Wrigley and they've done it twice, last by Jim Maloney on Aug. 19, 1965...Walker is hitting .345 with five homers and 18 RBI in 15 career games at Wrigley Field...The Cubs haven't been no-hit since Sept. 9, 1965, when Sandy Koufax turned the trick...Burnett has 22 career complete games...McCutchen, who went 3-for-5, has reached base safely in 39 straight games against the Cubs.