The game turned in the eighth inning. Miami scored two runs to break open a tight contest and defeat Pittsburgh 4-2 at PNC Park, extending their lead from one run to three in the decisive frame.
Max Meyer dominated through six innings for the Marlins, allowing 1 run on 6 hits while striking out 9 batters. Meyer improved to 7-0 with a 2.75 ERA, remaining undefeated on the season. Peter Fairbanks closed out the ninth for his ninth save despite allowing a solo homer to Bryan Reynolds.
Miami built an early 2-0 advantage in the second inning on back-to-back home runs. Heriberto Hernandez homered to left center, followed immediately by Joe Mack's blast to center. Pittsburgh answered in the fourth when Jake Mangum singled to center, scoring Nick Gonzales to cut the deficit to 2-1. The Marlins pulled away in the eighth as Kyle Stowers singled to center, bringing Liam Hicks home, then Xavier Edwards followed with another RBI single to center that scored Otto Lopez.
Paul Skenes took the loss for Pittsburgh despite a strong effort, allowing 2 runs over 6 innings with 10 strikeouts. The Pirates managed only 8 hits against Miami pitching and could not mount a sustained rally until Reynolds' ninth-inning homer made it 4-2.
Miami fell to 35-36 while Pittsburgh moved to 36-35. Fairbanks is one save away from 100 career saves, while Skenes sits 15 strikeouts from 500 for his career.