Prior to the first pitch the Pittsburgh Pirates revealed that Francisco Liriano would not start Saturday night’s game against the Milwaukee Brewers. It was not the only loss of the night as the Pirates fell by an 8-5 score.
Liriano was scratched from the start due to neck stiffness and as a result, Vance Worley made his first start of the season since May 14, an appearance which came against one of his former teams, the Philadelphia Phillies.
Worley [3-5] allowed five runs [four earned] on seven hits in four innings. He threw 80 pitches, 51 of which were strikes. He had entered the start having been charged with six earned runs in his last 29 innings of work.
The Pirates spotted Worley a 3-0 lead after one inning.
Neil Walker opened the scoring with an RBI single and advanced to third base on a fielding error by Carlos Gomez. Walker then scored on a Jimmy Nelson wild pitch. Jung Ho Kang completed the inning with a single which plated Andrew McCutchen.
Worley allowed two runs in the second when Nelson [7-9], his mound opponent, hit a two-run single which scored Aramis Ramirez and Scooter Gennett.
The Brewers tied the game an inning later on a Gennett RBI single and then took the lead in the fourth inning when Jonathan Lucroy hit a two-run home run which was his third of the season.
Two more runs went the Brewers way, this time off Deolis Guerra. The first was a Ramirez home run in the fifth inning. It was Ramirez’s 11th of the season. An inning later, Ramirez singled to score Ryan Braun.
In the seventh inning, the Pirates struck for two runs. First, Starling Marte doubled home Gregory Polanco. The hit was Marte’s 17th double of the season. Pinch-hitter Travis Ishikawa then added the second run with an RBI ground out.
With Antonio Bastardo in the game, Khris Davis hit his seventh home run of the season, a solo shot in the bottom of the seventh inning.
Francisco Rodriguez pitched the ninth inning and earned his 21st save of the season.
Sunday marks the series finale between these two teams and Jeff Locke [5-5 4.03 ERA] will face Taylor Jungmann [4-1 2.15 ERA]. Locke is 4-2 with a 3.46 ERA in nine career starts against the Brewers.
Photo courtesy: AP Photo/Morry Gash
