The Pittsburgh Pirates completed a three-game series sweep of the World Champion Chicago Cubs with a 6-1 win Sunday at Wrigley Field. Adam Frazier had three hits including a three-run home run. Jon Jaso came off the bench and scored two runs. Jameson Taillon picked up his first win of the season. He did not allow an earned run over seven innings. He walked three and struck out six. His ERA through three games this season is 0.90. It was the first time the Pirates have swept a series in Chicago since 2014.The Bucs open a three-game series with the St. Louis Cardinals tonight. First pitch is 7:05pm. Pre-game on WISR 680am is 6:40pm. Ivan Nova will start for the Pirates against Lance Lynn of the Cards. The Bucs are 6-6 and 1-1/2 games behind first-place Cincinnati. The Cardinals are off to a 3-9 start and were swept by the New York Yankees.
The Pirates played the past two games without left fielder Gregory Polanco, who is battling a groin injury. Polanco has also missed time with a shoulder injury.
The Slippery Rock University baseball team traded doubleheader sweeps over the weekend. The Rock swept the Crimson Hawks at Jack Critchfield Park Friday, then fell 12-11 and 13-8 Saturday at IUP. The teams combined for 44 runs and 49 hits in the Sunday DH. The Rock is now 17-12 overall and 9-7 in league-play.
The Rock won the Saturday games 7-1 and 4-3.
Slippery Rock softball split a DH with California Saturday.
