PIRATES PILLAGE ROCKIES IN OPENING DAY BLOWOUT
Eternal Baseball Press
DENVER – “Shiver me timbers” is right, but the Pittsburgh Pirates’ bats were red-hot in an Opening Day blowout of the Colorado Rockies.
Pittsburgh center fielder Andrew McCutchen led the way with four hits, and took part in a three-homer onslaught in the Pirates’ 10-5 victory over the Rockies on Opening Day. The Pirates scored twice in the first inning off a Paul Waner triple and a Roberto Clemente sacrifice fly, before the Rockies offense fought back.
Nolan Arenado’s second inning single cut the lead in half, and D.J. LeMahieu singled in Chris Iannetta to tie things up in the second inning. Matt Holliday’s bases-loaded double staked the Rockies to a 4-2 lead, although LeMahieu was thrown out at home on a nifty tag from Pirates catcher Jason Kendall.
Pittsburgh’s offensive attack continued in the middle innings – McCutchen led off the third inning with a booming home run to center field, and Bill Mazeroski’s sacrifice fly in the fourth tied the game 4-4. Pie Traynor’s two-run homer in the sixth inning gave the Pirates a lead they would not relinquish. Pitcher Ed Morris even got in on the fun, lifting a sacrifice fly to score Jason Kendall and make it 7-4. Traynor hit a sacrifice fly off Colorado reliever Huston Street to score Paul Waner in the seventh, and Roberto Clemente finished things off with a two-run homer off Curt Leskanic in the ninth inning. The Rockies scored once in the ninth inning, as Troy Tulowitzki tripled and came around on Matt Holliday’s grounder to third.
Ed Morris (1-0) earned the win for Pittsburgh (7 IP, 4 R, 3 ER, 6 BB, 4 K) and Jhoulys Chacin (0-1) took the loss for Colorado (5.1 IP, 11 H, 7 ER, 1 BB, 3 K). Doug Drabek pitched the last two innings for the Pirates.
The Pirates will try to make it two straight wins tomorrow night, sending right-hander Babe Adams to the mound to face Rockies right-hander Jon Gray. First pitch from Coors Field is at 7:05 PM MST.
Photo Credit: Coors Field by Max and Dee Bernt
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