For eight innings Monday night at PNC Park, the Pittsburgh Pirates looked every bit like they were on their way to a statement win and a near-historic pitching gem. Then the St. Louis Cardinals unloaded in the ninth.
Pedro Pagés and JJ Wetherholt smacked back-to-back home runs off Dennis Santana to erase a 2-0 deficit, and José Fermín followed with a tiebreaking two-run double that capped a four-run outburst. The Cardinals rallied for a 4-2 victory, snapping a four-game losing streak in dramatic fashion.
The Pirates jumped ahead early against St. Louis starter Dustin May. Ryan O’Hearn delivered an RBI single in the first, and Jake Mangum added another in the second on a single that scored Nick Gonzales from third. That was all Pittsburgh would get.
May worked six innings, allowing two runs on seven hits with two walks and two strikeouts. But the real story was Pittsburgh’s bullpen. Opener Mason Montgomery and Justin Lawrence each tossed a scoreless inning, and Wilber Dotel threw four hitless, scoreless frames with three strikeouts. Through six and two-thirds innings, four Pirates pitchers had combined on a perfect game.
Alec Burleson broke it up with a two-out infield single off Evan Sisk in the seventh. Isaac Mattson retired the next batter to keep the shutout intact, and Gregory Soto worked a scoreless eighth.
Then came the ninth. Santana, who entered with the two-run lead, surrendered a solo homer to Pagés on a 0-2 pitch. Wetherholt followed with a game-tying shot to right-center, his sixth of the season. After a walk to Jose Herrera (Victor Scott II pinch-ran) and a single by Burleson, Santana walked Nolan Walker to load the bases. Fermín ripped a double into the left-field corner, scoring Scott II and Burleson for a 4-2 lead.
Ryan Fernandez (1-0) worked two perfect innings with four strikeouts to earn the win. George Soriano closed it out for his first career save, allowing one hit but striking out one and inducing a game-ending fly ball after a single by Gonzales.
Burleson and Fermín each finished with two hits for the Cardinals, who managed just six hits total but made them count when it mattered most. Pagés and Wetherholt provided the power; Fermín supplied the clutch hit. For Pittsburgh, Gonzales had three hits and Mangum two, but the late collapse overshadowed an otherwise dominant outing from the bullpen.
The Pirates (16-13) fell to 8-6 at home. The Cardinals improved to 15-13.
Oneil Cruz was a late scratch for Pittsburgh because of illness. The teams meet again Tuesday night, with Cardinals right-hander Kyle Leahy facing Pirates right-hander Braxton Ashcraft.
