Detroit TigersvsPittsburgh Pirates
DET 8/PIT 5
Things to say
The Detroit Tigers beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 8-5 on the road at PNC Park.
01
opener
Tigers took it 8-5 over in Pittsburgh. Bats were alive early and the Pirates just couldn't crawl back. Road win on a Sunday, I'll take it.
02
key player
Heart of Detroit's order did the damage — five runs is a lot to hang on that Pittsburgh staff. Somebody in that lineup left the yard, you could feel it.
03
hot take
Pirates hung five and still lost. Their bullpen's the problem, not the offense — manager went to the pen too early again.
04
deep cut
Eight runs on the road at PNC is no joke, that park plays big. Detroit strung together the two-out hits, that's the quiet stat nobody talks about.
05
exit
Anyway, Tigers are scrappy for a .500 club — I want to see if they carry it into the next series.
The recap
The Tigers went into PNC Park and put up eight, riding the bats to an 8-5 win over the Pirates on a getaway-day matinee. Pittsburgh hung around and made it a game, but every time they clawed back Detroit answered, and the bullpen couldn't slam the door late.
Give it up for the top of the Detroit order doing the heavy lifting, keeping the line moving all afternoon. Pirates fall to 61-66 and this one just felt like it slipped away in the middle innings.