The Pirates beat the Cardinals, 9-4, at PNC Park Friday behind the momentum of a six run seventh inning. The key play that inning was not a hit, but beating out a throw.
With runners on first and second and two outs, Starling Marte hit a soft roller to shortstop, but Paul DeJong did not field it perfectly and went for the shorter throw at second base. That hint of a bobble was all Kevin Newman needed and he beat the feed.
From there, Josh Bell, Melky Cabrera, Jose Osuna and Adam Frazier rattled off consecutive RBI hits, swinging a three-run deficit to a three-run advantage.
Without that play at second, the Pirates would not have scored in the inning and likely would have lost. Without Newman's hustle, the play would not have happened.
"There's nothing guaranteed in this game," Clint Hurdle said on the play at second. "... We were able to take advantage of a situation where there wasn't an out made. Just love the finish."
As soon as the ball left the bat, Newman had one thought: "Just dig hard."
"Not being held on at first, I knew if he went to second, there would be a chance to beat it out," Newman was telling me. "I was just trying to get there as quick as I could."
He ran pretty hard for a guy who had to miss three starts this week with right hip discomfort. The time away has not seemed to slow him down, and he continued to ride a surge that started when he was reinstalled as the leadoff hitter on Aug. 23.
In his 12 games played since returning to the top of the order, Newman is slashing .438/.500/.729 over 54 plate appearances with seven extra-base hits, one of which got the Pirates on the board in the third:
On the season, Newman has a .389 on-base percentage when batting in the top spot, among the very best of baseball's leadoff hitters. He has said that it is a spot he is not only comfortable with, but enjoys hitting from. I asked if he could elaborate why.
"I like the competition that comes with it," Newman explained. "You're going to get five at-bats mostly every night and have a chance to face the starter three or four times. I just like the challenge. I like to go up there and compete."
Newman ended up making five trips to the plate Friday. He got two hits, drew a walk and was hit by a pitch. He was almost as valuable on the basepaths.
Sounds like a guy who went up there and competed.
• Just when you start to think Bryan Reynolds can't surprise you anymore, he does something like this:
"Maybe as good a catch as I've ever seen in this ballpark," Hurdle said.
That fifth inning grab robbed Dexter Fowler of extra-bases and closed the book on starter Alex McRae.
"You can't say enough about that guy," McRae said of his left fielder.
Reynolds made a pair of diving catches manning center field Wednesday night, but neither was on the warning track.
"Scraped my knees up pretty good, but I'll take that," Reynolds deadpanned.
• A little from Statcast on the play: Reynolds covered 108 feet on the grab and only had a 5% catch probability, meaning this was a five star catch. Here is the route he, and the other players on the field, took on the play.
• Reynolds Watch: Unfortunately for Reynolds, five-star catches do not count as hits in a batting-title chase. He went 1 for 5 with a double, lowering his average to .331.
Anthony Rendon went 1 for 3 Friday, so his league leading .338 average holds steady. The Diamondbacks' Ketel Marte had a 3-for-4 day and is now tied with Reynolds for second with a .331 average. Christian Yelich raised his average to .326 during his three hit night.
• Starling Marte returned to the lineup Friday after being sidelined the last two days. Hurdle said before the game Marte felt some discomfort running down the line on Tuesday night.
• Joe Musgrove also experienced some discomfort of his own, with his being located in his right foot. He was scratched from his spot in the rotation Friday, which is why McRae made the start.
McRae started shaky and allowed a two run homer to Tommy Edman in the second, but he retired 11 of the final 12 batters he faced. He finished with two earned runs allowed on three hits and two walks over five innings, striking out one.
"He did his job," Hurdle said. "Definitely did his job. Gave us a chance, put us in a position to win the game. Very proud of his effort tonight."
Friday was the longest outing of McRae's major league career and just his second start.
"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous, but it's still the same game as anywhere else," McRae said about facing the first-place Cardinals. "We've played it our whole life. You've just gotta go out there and compete and do everything you can to keep your team in the ballgame."
• It was an off night for Richard Rodriguez, who allowed a home run, two hits and a walk in just a third of an inning in the seventh. Wei-Chung Wang got out of the jam and picked up his second win in three days.
• Felipe Vazquez recorded a four-out save. It was the seventh time this year he recorded a save of at least four outs and the 12th time he pitched more than one inning in an outing.
• The Cardinals' eight-game winning streak over the Pirates is over. This is also the first time the Pirates beat the Cardinals at PNC Park this season. They are now 1-6 at home and 5-12 overall against St. Louis this season.
THE ESSENTIALS
• Boxscore
THE INJURIES
• Chris Archer (10-day IL, shoulder)
• Chris Stratton (10-day IL, right side inflammation)
• Yefry Ramirez (10-day IL, right calf strain)
• Gregory Polanco (60-day IL, shoulder)
• Lonnie Chisenhall (60-day IL, still absent)
Here's the most recent full report.
THE SCHEDULE
The Pirates will try to make it two in a row Saturday. Steven Brault (4-3, 3.88) will square off with Adam Wainwright (10-9, 4.30), with first pitch scheduled for 7:05 p.m. Hunter Homistek has you covered.
THE COVERAGE
All our baseball content, including Mound Visit by Jason Rollison, Indy Watch by Matt Welch, and Altoona Watch by Jarrod Prugar, can be found on our Pirates page.
MATT SUNDAY GALLERY
Pirates vs. Cardinals, PNC Park, Sept. 6, 2019 -- MATT SUNDAY / DKPS