Gerrit Cole showed why he has a now league leading 14 wins after he led the Pirates to a 3-1 win over the Washington Nationals Sunday afternoon at PNC Park.
Cole looked sharp during the 7 2/3 innings he tossed for the Pirates. He allowed one run, on seven hits, while striking out eight.
The only blip on the radar for Cole was a 3rd inning solo home run to Nationals leadoff man Michael Taylor. Cole responded by retiring the next 11 batters he faced.
Cole worked into the 8th inning and recorded two outs before surrendering back-to-back hits. Cole was pulled in favor of Tony Watson who was charged with the task of retiring Nationals star Bryce Harper. Harper ripped one down to first base, but a spectacular play by defensive sub Sean Rodriguez retired Harper to end the threat.
The Pirates saw offense from the top of the order in the bottom of the third, with a Gregory Polanco single that scored Chris Stewart and a Andrew McCutchen single that scored Polanco. Neil Walker added some insurance with a 437 foot home run into the Pirates bullpen in the bottom of the 4th to give the Pirates a 3-1 lead.
Mark Melancon shut the door in the top of the 9th to record his 31st save.
Gerrit Cole is the first player to record 14 wins and a sub 2.25 ERA in his first 20 starts since Rip Sewell did it in 1943.
Tomorrow is a travel day for the Bucs as they head to Minnesota to take on the Twins for a two game series starting Tuesday.
—————————
NEWS AND NOTES
– Johnny Cueto is officially out of the NL Central. Cueto was acquired by the Kansas City Royals Sunday in exchange for top tier prospects.
– The Texas Rangers are rumored to be the top dog in the quest for Cole Hamels. The Rangers are currently in 3rd place in the AL West.
– Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune Review said the Pirates have looked into Mike Napoli and Shane Victorino of the Boston Red Sox. Napoli has struggled at the plate this year batting only .205 but does have 11 home runs. Meanwhile Victorino has been battling the injury bug for the past few years. In 106 at bats this year he is hitting .245 with no home runs.
– The Major League Baseball Trade Deadline is now less than a week away. It ends on Friday, July 31st at 4:00 p.m.
The post Cole Cools Nats Bats in Series Win appeared first on Inside Butler County – Butler, PA.