Andrew McCutchen returned to PNC Park Friday for the first time since being traded from the Pirates to the Giants. As was to be expected, the fans in Pittsburgh stood and applauded their former franchise cornerstone.
Chills
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Truthfully, McCutchen’s return was almost perfect from a Pirates fan’s perspective. The game’s result was almost never in doubt, and McCutchen even got a double that ultimately did no damage. But for the Giants, it was their fifth straight loss, none of which has been especially close. And it sure didn’t look like the Pirates themselves missed McCutchen very much, as they dominated the Giants en route to an 11-2 win.
The Giants once again fell behind early after starter Andrew Suarez gave up a two-run home run to Starling Marte to put the Giants in another early hole in the first. Meanwhile, Pirates starter Jameson Taillon struck out five in three shutout innings, but left before the fourth with a finger laceration on his pitching hand. Steven Brault replaced Taillon in the fourth and struggled out of the gate, loading the bases with two out before Austin Jackson cashed in with a game-tying two-run single.
But the tie was ultimately brief, as Suarez was unable to shut out down the Pirates in the bottom of the frame. They responded with three runs on a Jordy Mercer triple and a Jose Osuna two-run home run, a gut punch that put the Giants in a deeper hole than they had been in before the fourth.
The Pirates added on with a run in the sixth when a Colin Moran double scored Mercer from first, and then blew the game wide open with a Josh Bell two-run home run in the seventh. Max Moroff’s three-run home run in the eighth capped the scoring.
McCutchen received yet another standing ovation after a double in the seventh, and even when he stepped to the plate with the bases loaded and two out in the eighth. He ultimately grounded into a force play to end the threat in the latter inning.
The Giants will try once again to stop their now five-game losing streak Saturday.
