CARDINALS:
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Yoshi Tsutsugo hit a three-run homer off Alex Reyes in the ninth inning, sending the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 4-3 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Sunday.
Bryan Reynolds started the game-ending rally with a leadoff walk. After Colin Moran struck out swinging, Jacob Stallings walked and Tsutsugo drove Reyes’ next pitch deep to right.
“I was really only thinking about hitting a hard ball,” said Tsutsugo, who has homered five times on nine hits since signing with the Pirates on Aug. 16. “It’s really comfortable for me. The manager, the staff, my teammates. We joke around a lot and make it a really nice environment for me. It was really easy for me to transition in this team.”
Reyes (5-7) has allowed at least one run in four of his last six appearances.
Chris Stratton (5-0) got the win, striking out the side in the top half of the inning. Stratton and fellow relievers Chad Kuhl and David Bednar combined to allow one hit over four innings.
“Our bullpen was outstanding, really kept us in the game,” manager Derek Shelton said. “Our guys don’t give up. To win that game today and come back against a team like that, that’s big steps for us. Those are important.”
Pittsburgh earned a split of the four-game series, bouncing back from a 13-0 loss Saturday.
St. Louis remains 3 1/2 games back of Cincinnati for the second NL wild card. The Reds lost 2-1 to the Miami Marlins on Sunday.
“It hurts like crazy,” Cardinals manager Mike Shildt said. “It hurts everybody that’s invested in our team. It hurts our team. It’s tough. We’re fighting our tails off. We don’t have a lot of margin for error is probably a big part of this. We do all these little things right, but we don’t create a lot of margin for error.”
The game was tied at 1 before Tommy Edman hit a two-run homer for St. Louis in the fifth, sending a 418-foot drive into the seats in right-center. Edman’s ninth homer of the season gave him nine RBIs in his past four games.
Edman also doubled and scored on Tyler O’Neill’s first major league triple in the third.
The Pirates opened the fourth with three consecutive singles, and Tsutsugo got his team on the board with a sacrifice fly.
Pittsburgh right-hander Wil Crowe, who allowed five hits in five innings, had left for the clubhouse by the time Tsutsugo homered.
“I think Chad (Kuhl) said, ‘How about a Yoshi bomb here?’” Crowe said. “We were all like, ‘Yeah, we would love that, wouldn’t we? That’d be awesome.’ Sure enough, he hit it and we started hearing the broadcast yelling. I ran over. Wow, that was awesome. Yoshi’s awesome.”
Kwang Hyun Kim pitched four innings of one-run ball for St. Louis in his return to the rotation. Kim, who made his last appearance out of the bullpen, got the start after Jack Flaherty was placed on the 10-day injured list with a right shoulder strain.
“Before the game, my mindset was being aggressive, attacking the zone,” Kim said. “That was before I was on the mound. But after I was on the mound, I gave up a walk and it just didn’t happen the way I wanted to. I wanted to pitch five innings. … I know I have to be better next time as an inning-eater.”
PAIR OF GEMS
With two out in the third, a line drive by Pittsburgh’s Kevin Newman appeared to be headed for the gap in left-center. But center fielder Harrison Bader made a diving grab at the end of a full sprint, robbing Newman of Pittsburgh’s first hit.
Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado took a hit away from Wilmer Difo in the eighth, diving to his right to make a snag on the hop. He threw to first from one knee for the out.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Pirates: 3B Ke’Bryan Hayes left after the sixth inning with a right hand contusion. He is considered day to day after initial X-rays came back negative, Shelton said. … OF Michael Chavis did not play after leaving Saturday’s game with right elbow discomfort.
UP NEXT
Cardinals: LHP Jon Lester (4-6, 5.27 ERA) will take the mound Monday for the first of a three-game series at Cincinnati. After allowing 11 runs in his first two starts for St. Louis, the 37-year-old has surrendered six runs in three starts since.
Pirates: A starting pitcher has not been announced for Tuesday, when Pittsburgh begins a two-game set at the Chicago White Sox.
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ROYALS:
SEATTLE (AP) — Salvador Perez homered for the fifth consecutive game, but Kyle Seager connected for a two-run drive to help the Seattle Mariners beat the Kansas City Royals 4-3 on Sunday.
Seager hit his career-high 31st homer in the seventh inning, lifting the Mariners to a 4-2 lead and helping them avoid a four-game series sweep at home.
“Getting his career high with 31 homers, it’s something special,” teammate Marco Gonzales said. “I hope he plays for 10 more years.”
Perez nearly recorded another homer, lasering an RBI single off the top of the wall in right-center in the eighth. Nicky Lopez scored from first to cut Seattle’s lead to 4-3, but Drew Steckenrider worked a perfect ninth for his seventh save.
Asked if he thought it was a home run off the bat, Perez smiled and said: “100 percent.”
Perez’s solo shot off Gonzales (6-5) in the sixth was his fifth in five games. He started the series with grand slams in consecutive games, provided the deciding margin with a two-run homer Saturday, and then tied the game at 1 on Sunday.
The catcher matched Mike Sweeney’s team record of five consecutive games with a homer, set in 2002. The major league record for consecutive games with a homer is eight.
Perez also moved into a tie for fourth with Alex Gordon on the franchise list with 190 career homers, a former teammate who Perez said taught him a lot about being a professional.
“So I appreciate everything he did for us when he was here,” he said. “It’s amazing, though.”
He has 38 homers this year, tied with Mike Moustakas (2017) for second on Kansas City’s single-season list. Jorge Soler holds the record with 48 in 2019.
His 12 homers in August tied Chili Davis and John Mayberry for Kansas City’s most homers in a month.
Perez has 17 homers since the All-Star break, tied for the major league lead. Seager has 15 since the break, playing in every game.
“Kyle’s been huge,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said. “And certainly after the All-Star break he’s found that home-run swing, and we’ve needed it.”
Michael A. Taylor of Kansas City and Seattle’s Jarred Kelenic also went deep.
Gonzales pitched seven innings of five-hit ball to improve to 5-0 in his last 10 starts dating to July 9.
“He can really execute pitches when he gets on a roll,” Servais said. “The fastball truly was awesome, the way he located it.”
Royals starter Brady Singer permitted two runs, one earned, and three hits in six innings. Tyler Zuber (0-1) took the loss after giving up Seager’s home run.
MOUND VISIT
Perez is the first player to hit eight home runs on a road trip since Ryan Zimmerman in September 2013.
Servais took the unusual measure to make a mound visit in the eighth inning before Perez’s at-bat so reliever Paul Sewald would be clear on his instructions.
“I will never forget that mound visit for as long as I manage the game,” Servais said. “Certainly he is the hottest hitter on the planet the last four days. … I wanted to make sure we execute pitches. Paul assured me that he was not going to throw him anything he could hit. Unfortunately, we did not execute. And we were actually very fortunate that ball did hit the wall.”
TRAINER’S ROOM
Royals: LHP Richard Lovelady was placed on the 10-day injured list with a strained ligament in his left elbow. Manager Mike Matheny said Lovelady is scheduled for tests on Monday morning.
Mariners: CF Kyle Lewis (right meniscus surgery) could make a rehab appearance at Triple-A Tacoma on Monday or Tuesday after completing a workout in the outfield, Servais said. Servais met with Lewis recently to discuss the possibilities for the rest of the season, including a return to the lineup if his rehab assignment goes well. He’ll start out in a designated hitter role in Tacoma.
UP NEXT
Royals: After an off day, Kansas City hosts Cleveland on Tuesday night in the opener of a three-game series. The Royals did not announced a starter. RHP Zach Plesac (8-4, 4.78 ERA) pitches for the Indians.
Mariners: RHP Chris Flexen (11-5, 3.54 ERA) starts Monday night in the opener of a three-game set against AL West-leading Houston. Seattle is 17-7 when Flexen starts.
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