Cleveland stayed close for five innings. Then Paul Skenes and the Pittsburgh offense made sure it didn't matter. The Pirates pulled away with three runs in the sixth and two more in the ninth, turning a one-run game into a 7-1 win at Progressive Field.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PIT | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 11 | 1 |
| CLE | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 1 |
Skenes was the difference. Over 7.0 innings, he allowed just 1 run (1 earned) on 7 hits, striking out 8 with 2 walks across 100 pitches. He improved to 9-8 on the season, carrying a 3.43 ERA. The Pirates bullpen backed him up with 2.0 scoreless innings from two relievers, sealing the shutout the rest of the way.
Pittsburgh's decisive swing came in the fifth, when Billy Cook scored on a pickoff error by catcher Bailey, putting the Pirates back in front 2-1 for good. Cleveland had tied it in the third on Steven Kwan's bunt single, which brought Gabriel Arias home on an error. But the Pirates answered in the sixth: Nick Gonzales doubled home Ja. Gonzalez... it was actually Cook who scored on Gonzales's double, then Cook singled home Gonzales, and Jake Mangum added an RBI single to score Cook, turning a 2-1 game into a 5-1 lead in that frame. Esmerlyn Valdez capped the scoring in the ninth with a two-run homer to left, scoring Jared Triolo alongside him.
Joey Cantillo took the loss for Cleveland, allowing 4 runs on 7 hits over 5.0 innings with 7 strikeouts and 3 walks, falling to 8-5 with a 3.74 ERA. The Guardians bullpen couldn't stop the bleeding either, allowing 3 runs over 4.0 innings. Cleveland managed only 7 hits of its own, with Kwan and Petey Halpin among the lone bright spots at the plate, but the Guardians never found another run after the third inning.
The result dropped Cleveland to 52-48 and snapped its momentum with a loss, while Pittsburgh improved to 52-48 as well, snapping any skid with the win. Cook finished 3-for-4 with 2 RBIs, and Gonzales added two doubles in a complete team effort that carried Skenes to his ninth win of the season.