October 2, 2021 3:59 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Pittsburgh second baseman Cole Tucker made a spectacular diving catch, then hit his first career grand slam to cap an eight-run rally in the eighth inning that sent the Pirates over the Cincinnati Reds 9-2. Tucker’s slam off Dauri Moreta came a night after the Pirates lost their 100th game of the season. Tucker also tripled to lead off the first inning and scored the game’s first run. The grand slam might have been just Tucker’s second-best highlight of the night after his fielding gem in the seventh. Tucker raced into short right field and snagged Tucker Barnhart’s popup with his back to home plate. Tucker quickly rose to his feet and made a strong throw to first base to double up Eugenio Suarez and end the inning.
October 1, 2021 3:48 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Justin Steele breezed through seven shutout innings and the Chicago Cubs scored six runs in the second inning Thursday night, beating Pittsburgh 9-0 and sending the Pirates to their 100th loss of the season. Steele (4-4) struck out seven and gave up four hits on 76 pitches. Pittsburgh joined Texas, Baltimore and Arizona, giving the MLB four 100-loss teams for the third time, after 2002 and 2019. Sergio Alcantara had three RBIs, two coming on a homer off Miguel Yajure (0-2) in the second.
October 1, 2021 3:46 am
TORONTO (AP) – Aaron Judge hit two of New York’s five home runs and the Yankees extended their AL wild-card lead by beating the Toronto Blue Jays 6-2. Gleyber Torres and Anthony Rizzo also connected off Blue Jays starter Robbie Ray, and Brett Gardner added a solo homer as New York slimmed its magic number to clinch a postseason spot to two. The Yankees are two games ahead of Boston and idle Seattle, both 89-70, after the Red Sox lost to last-place Baltimore 6-2 earlier Thursday. Toronto trails New York by three games.
October 1, 2021 3:51 am
CINCINNATI (AP) – The Cincinnati Bengals won a battle of recent No. 1 picks, doing it in comeback fashion. Evan McPherson kicked a 35-yard field goal as time ran out to give the Bengals a 24-21 triumph over the Jaguars. Cincinnati trailed 14-0 at halftime before Joe Burrow led a pair of quick TD drives in the third quarter. The first player taken in the 2020 draft was 25 of 32 for 348 yards and a pair of TD passes to C.J. Uzomah. Tyler Boyd had nine receptions for 118, while Uzomah grabbed five passes for 95 yards to help the Bengals improve to 3-1. Trevor Lawrence ran for a touchdown, but the No. 1 pick in this year’s draft failed to throw a scoring pass, completing 17 of 24 for 204 yards and no interceptions for the 0-4 Jaguars.
October 1, 2021 3:44 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – The offense isn’t the only unit struggling on the Pittsburgh Steelers. The defense has looked ordinary at times during back-to-back losses to Las Vegas and Cincinnati that dropped the Steelers to 1-2. Having star outside linebacker T.J. Watt out with a groin injury has hurt Pittsburgh’s pass rush, though veteran defensive end Cam Heyward says injuries aren’t an excuse for shaky play. The Steelers will have their hands full when they visit Green Bay in Week 4.
September 30, 2021 3:48 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Willson Contreras drove in all of the Cubs’ run as Chicago beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 3-2 to end a seven-game losing streak. Contreras’ two-run double high off the right-field wall in the seventh inning rallied the Cubs from a 2-1 deficit. He also accounted for the game’s first run with a long sacrifice fly to center field in the fifth. Bryan Reynolds became the first Pirates player to hit two triples in a game since Josh Harrison in 2014. Pittsburgh fell to 59-99, putting the Pirates on the brink of the ninth 100-loss season in franchise history.
September 30, 2021 3:49 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Pittsburgh Pirates reliever David Bednar has revived his career with his hometown team. Bednar arrived in Pittsburgh last January as part of a deal that sent starter Joe Musgrove to the Padres. The 26-year-old from the northern Pittsburgh suburbs has evolved into one of the team’s most dependable relievers. Bednar entered the final week of the season with a 3-1 record and a 2.11 ERA in 60 appearances. He has been named the team’s pitcher of the year. Bednar says he hopes to keep the momentum going into next season.
September 30, 2021 3:52 am
UNDATED (AP) – The AL wild-card races just got a bit tighter. The Boston Red Sox are back within a game of the New York Yankees for the first wild card, with the Mariners a half-game behind the Sox and a half-game ahead of Toronto. The Red Sox’s four-game skid is over after J.D. Martinez smacked a solo homer and a two-run double in a 6-0 shutout of the Orioles. Hunter Renfroe also homered to back Nathan Eovaldi, who allowed four hits over six innings. Alex Verdugo added a two-run single in the eighth for Boston. Bo Bichette homered twice for the Blue Jays, including the tiebreaking blast in the eighth inning of their 6-5 victory over the Yankees. Marcus Semien slammed his 44th home run, breaking the single-season record for second basemen. The Jays lead the majors with 251 home runs, six off the team record. Jose Berrios retired the first 14 Yankees in order, striking out seven, before giving up three straight hits in the fifth. The Yankees had won seven in a row.
September 29, 2021 3:49 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin says he’s not going to hit the panic button with the team sitting at 1-2. Tomlin says his players have to have “tough skin” and learn quickly if they want to bounce back following home losses to Las Vegas and Cincinnati. Tomlin added quarterback Ben Roethlisberger will continue to rest rather than practice on Wednesdays in order to preserve his long-term health. The 39-year-old Roethlisberger has three touchdown passes and three interceptions through three games. Pittsburgh visits Green Bay in Week 4.
September 29, 2021 3:47 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Colin Moran hit a three-run home run and drove in four runs as the Pittsburgh Pirates dealt the Cubs their seventh straight loss, rallying to beat Chicago 8-6 on Tuesday night. Moran’s homer, his 10th of the season, to deep center field in the first inning opened the scoring. The Pirates scored four runs in the sixth for a 7-6 lead. Moran singled home an insurance run in the seventh and reached base four times. Bryan Reynolds had three hits and scored three times for Pittsburgh, which won for the second time in six games.
