Pittsburgh had clawed back to even. Then Noelvi Marte made it irrelevant. His two-run homer to left center in the eighth inning broke a 4-4 tie and sent the Cincinnati Reds to a 6-4 victory over the Pirates on Friday night at PNC Park.
The Pirates had rallied from a three-run deficit, getting home runs from Konnor Griffin, Marcell Ozuna, and Esmerlyn Valdez to force the tie. Griffin went 2-for-4 with a solo shot to left center in the first inning, his fifth of the season. Ozuna was 2-for-3 with a walk and a homer to center in the sixth. Valdez followed with a solo blast to left that tied the game at 4-4. Paul Skenes, carrying a 3.39 ERA, struck out seven over 5.0 innings but allowed 4 runs on 6 hits and took no decision.
Cincinnati's big inning came in the second, when the Reds pushed across 4 runs against Skenes. Nathaniel Lowe scored on a single by Spencer Steer to tie the game, then Suárez scored on a single by Tyler Stephenson to give Cincinnati the lead. Steer scored on a sacrifice fly by Blake Dunn, and Stephenson crossed the plate on a sacrifice fly by Elly De La Cruz, making it 4-1. The Reds' lead held until Pittsburgh's sixth-inning surge tied things up.
Marte settled it. His homer — 405 feet to left center — scored Sal Stewart and gave Cincinnati a 6-4 advantage it would not relinquish. Brock Burke earned the win, working a scoreless inning with two strikeouts. Caleb Ferguson recorded his first career save, retiring Pittsburgh in the ninth. Mason Montgomery took the loss, allowing 2 runs in 0.2 innings in relief for Pittsburgh. Andrew Abbott started for Cincinnati, going 5.1 innings and allowing 4 runs, 3 earned, on 6 hits with 6 strikeouts.
Two milestones were reached in this game. Paul Skenes crossed 500 career strikeouts during his start. Andrew Abbott reached 500 career innings pitched. Brandon Lowe, meanwhile, is 2 RBI away from 500 for his career. Cincinnati fell to 37-42, extending its losing streak to three games. Pittsburgh dropped to 41-40 despite having won its previous two.