Pirates Hold on to Take Series With Rubber Match Win vs. Cardinals

The Pittsburgh Pirates wrapped up a nine-game road trip with a series win, securing a 5-4 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium on Sunday. Esmerlyn Valdez launched a two-run homer off Matthew Liberatore to put the Pirates ahead in the second inning. A critical error by third baseman Ramón Urías allowed a run to score in the third when Brandon Lowe misplayed a pop-up with two outs, enabling Oneil Cruz to score from second.

Jared Triolo hit a solo home run in the fifth to extend the Pirates' lead to four runs. The Cardinals attempted a rally in the bottom of the fifth, but managed to score only two runs. In the seventh inning, a two-out rally saw Iván Herrera score from first on a single, followed by Alec Burleson's RBI hit. The Pirates extended their lead to five when Brandon Lowe added an insurance run with a base hit in the seventh.

A pair of runs scored for the Cardinals in the bottom of the seventh, trimming the deficit to four. The game came down to Brandon Lowe's two-out RBI single in the seventh, which proved to be the decisive moment. Oneil Cruz led the Pirates with two doubles, a walk, two steals, and two runs scored. Braxton Ashcraft became the first Pirate to record 14 wins in a season since Jameson Taillon and Trevor Williams in 2018.

Mason Montgomery recorded his seventh save of the season. The Pirates will take a brief break on Monday and return to PNC Park on Tuesday for a matchup against the Giants.