ST. LOUIS (AP) — Bubba Chandler has lived up to the hype so far.
Chandler led the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 2-1 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday night, pitching four scoreless innings of relief in his second major league game. The 6-foot-3 right-hander allowed one hit, struck out three and walked one.
The 22-year-old Chandler got the win after he picked up the save in his Pittsburgh debut on Friday night against Colorado. He also worked four scoreless innings in relief against the Rockies.
Chandler’s arrival has provided a glimmer of hope for Pittsburgh in another lost season. He could join Paul Skenes in a potentially formidable rotation for the Pirates as soon as next year.
But Chandler is working out of the bullpen for now as a way to ease his transition to the majors while the last-place Pirates closely monitor his innings.
Chandler entered Wednesday night’s game after starter Carmen Mlodzinski pitched three innings of one-run ball.
After Chandler retired the side in order in the fourth, St. Louis put runners on first and second with one out in the fifth. Iván Herrera lined out to center field on a 100.4 mph fastball and Alec Burleson flied out, ending the inning.
Chandler hit Masyn Winn with a pitch with two outs in the sixth before retiring Thomas Saggese on a grounder to shortstop. Chandler also worked a perfect seventh before he was replaced by Isaac Mattson.
Widely regarded as one of baseball’s top pitching prospects, Chandler went 5-6 with a 4.05 ERA in 24 starts for Triple-A Indianapolis before he was brought up by the Pirates. The Georgia native was a third-round selection in the 2021 amateur draft.
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