Pirates blow lead versus Cubs, fall 6-5

Sep 24, 2022 - 12:25 PM

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The Pittsburgh Pirates blew an early lead against the Chicago Cubs on Friday night, came back to tie the game, then blew it again in true Bucco fashion, falling 6-5 to the Cubbies for their eighth straight defeat.

Bryan Reynolds got things started early for Pittsburgh with an RBI single, but that Bucco lead was quickly evaporated on a two-run homer the following inning by Patrick Wisdom off of starter Bryse Wilson.

Wilson actually had a solid night, going five innings, giving up just those two runs, while scattering five hits and three walks in addition to punching out five.

While Wilson was mostly holding back the Cubbies, the Bucs got the lead back and built up some cushioning. Jack Suwisnki hit his 17th homer of the year, while both Cal Mitchell and Kevin Newman had RBI doubles to make it a 4-2 game in Pittsburgh’s favor after three innings.

That lead would hold until the sixth, when Wil Crowe blew another one for the Buccos by walking home two runs. He would give up a total of three runs in just one third of an inning, walking three batters total and also giving up a hit. Crowe was good for a big chunk of the year out of the bullpen, but he seems pretty cooked at this point in the season.

With the Bucs now down a run, Reynold came to the rescue, smacking his 25th homer of the year to tie the game back up. B-Rey’s been pretty hot of late, and it’s been fun to watch. He finished the night 2-for-4 with two runs scored and two RBIs.

The tie would last only an inning, however, as the Cubbies snagged a run off of Yohan Ramirez in the eighth to take the lead, and though the Pirates would threaten in the ninth, getting two runners on, Cal Mitchell would strike out to end the game, handing Ramirez the loss.

The Bucs have two more games against Chicago this weekend, but with the end of the season careening towards more and more losses, does anyone have faith they’ll snag one?