PITTSBURGH (AP) — San Diego’s Fernando Tatis Jr. sprinted home on a wild pitch by Pittsburgh closer David Bednar in the top of the ninth inning to lift the Padres past the Pirates 2-1 at rainy PNC Park on Saturday night.
Tatis, who exited Friday night’s win in the third inning after taking a 93 mph pitch off his left forearm, led off the ninth with a double. He stole third and took off when a pitch from Bednar (0-3) to Xander Bogaerts skipped in front of catcher Joey Bart. The ball squirted to Bart’s right and Tatis’ slide just beat Bart’s lunging tag to give the Padres their fourth straight victory.
Manny Machado hit his third homer of the season for San Diego, which won despite managing just three hits. Jason Adam (3-0) worked a perfect eighth. Robert Suarez walked Oneil Cruz with one out in the ninth, but Bryan Reynolds lined out to Bogaerts at short and Bogaerts doubled off Cruz at first to end it as Robert picked up his 13th save.
Pirates starter Bailey Falter dominated the Padres for seven innings. The left-hander limited San Diego to two hits and at one point retired 11 straight before Machado’s blast over the left field wall with one out in the seventh tied the game.
Cruz singled home Alexander Canario for Pittsburgh’s only run. Cruz also walked four times. Ke’Bryan Hayes had two of the Pirates’ six singles. Pittsburgh did not record an extra-base hit while losing for the sixth time in seven games.
Key moment
The Pirates had the bases loaded against Padres starter Randy Vasquez in the fifth only to have Canario — who came in batting .118 — strike out. Pittsburgh left 10 runners on base during Vasquez’s five innings of work.
Key stat
Padres manager Mike Shildt is now 27-5 all-time at PNC Park. Most of Shildt’s success in Pittsburgh came when he was managing the St. Louis Cardinals from 2018-21.
Up next
The series wraps up on Sunday. Veteran left-hander Andrew Heaney (2-2, 2.50 ERA) gets the nod for Pittsburgh against San Diego’s Stephen Kolek, a reliever who will be making his first career start.
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