In Jared Jones’ return to action Wednesday at PNC Park after a start canceled due to load management concerns, the Pittsburgh Pirates edged the St. Louis Cardinals 5-4 in 10 innings.
Oneil Cruz’s hit off JoJo Romero was the difference, with Bryan Reynolds also getting an RBI single in the 10th that tied the game at four.
Jones’ start ended after five innings and 78 pitches, the 22-year-old rookie’s lighter workload making sense given the Pirates’ well-documented goal of preserving his arm.
But after the game, manager Derek Shelton revealed that Jones’ departure was due to a tightness in his right lat, leading to Kyle Nicolas taking over in the sixth.
Shelton pulled Jones out of an “abundance of caution,” he said, with details of the injury still unknown.
Jones said he was not concerned and that further medical evaluations were scheduled for Thursday.
“I felt it later in the game,” Jones said. “I got really roughed up in the fifth inning. I told (the coaches), so yeah, we’re in. … Nothing to worry about.”
Jones (5-6, 3.56 ERA) allowed one run on four hits with a pair of walks and five strikeouts in a no-decision.
Cardinals starter Miles Mikolas (6-7, 5.19) lasted six innings and allowed two runs.
Jones was on pace to win with the Pirates leading 3-1 in the eighth, but Colin Holderman allowed a two-run home run to Willson Contreras to tie the game.
After the Pirates (41-44) failed in the eighth and ninth innings, extra innings were needed.
Aroldis Chapman pitched a quick, easy ninth inning, but stayed on the field in the 10th and allowed an infield single to Masyn Winn that advanced automatic runner Dylan Carlson to third.
Winn’s grounder hit to Rowdy Tellez at first, but Chapman failed to cover the bag, resulting in the single.
Alec Burleson then sent Carlson into center field with a deep sacrifice fly, putting St. Louis up 4-3.
The Pirates proved they were capable of finding the necessary answer in their half of the 10th period.
With automatic man Jared Triolo (a backup runner for Joey Bart) on second base, Michael A. Taylor was thrown out on a failed sacrifice fly.
After Andrew McCutchen drew a walk, Reynolds hit a tying single to center field off Andrew Kittredge.
The Cardinals replaced Kittredge with Romero to face Cruz, but to no avail, as the Pirates shortstop hit the game-winning walk, his third career walk and second of the year, after an RBI single in the 11th inning of a 5-4 home win over Baltimore on April 6.
“It was a good feeling, for sure, but it was a team effort,” Cruz said after the game through Pirates assistant coach and translator Stephen Morales. “Everybody played their part, and that’s why we came back at the end and were able to win this game.”
Tellez’s performance, hitting 3 for 4 with an opposite-field solo home run in the seventh, personified Cruz’s point.
Tellez also made a great defensive play at first base in the top of the ninth inning, getting in on one out to deny Carlson a hit.
In the fifth, after singled, he rushed from first to third base on a hit by Nick Gonzales, then scored on Ke’Bryan Hayes’ hit.
Like Cruz, Tellez, who raised his batting average to .243, doled out praise in the locker room.
“It was pretty good,” Tellez said. “Jones had a good game. He kept it up and came out on top. He had some really good at-bats late in the game. Key at-bats. When everybody’s got each other’s back, it’s always good. It’s always comforting. I always say that. When other guys are playing well, it’s easier to play well.”
St. Louis opened the scoring first, taking a 1-0 lead in the fifth inning when Winn singled to bring home Brandon Crawford.
After Jones left, the Pirates took a 2-1 lead on Hayes’ groundout and Bart’s sacrifice fly.
Chapman (1-3, 3.66) was the winning pitcher Wednesday, with Nicolas and Carmen Mlodzinski pitching scoreless innings in relief of Jones.
Cruz and Reynolds both went 2-for-5 with an RBI, while Hayes (2-for-4, RBI) also had a multi-hit night.
Justin Guerriero is a TribLive reporter covering the Penguins, Pirates and college sports. A Pittsburgh native, he is a graduate of Central Catholic and the University of Colorado. He joined the Trib in 2022 after covering the Colorado Buffaloes for Rivals and freelancing for the Denver Post. He can be reached at [email protected].
