Cardinals Beat Paul Skenes Again; Pirates Lose Sixth Straight

Paul Skenes has taken the loss seven times in his career. Four of those have now come against the St. Louis Cardinals.

Despite a strong start from Skenes (3-4), the Pittsburgh Pirates were defeated 2-1 at Busch Stadium on Tuesday night for their sixth-straight loss.

How We Got There

Ke’Bryan Hayes broke a scoreless tie with a two-out double in the top of the sixth inning to plate Oneil Cruz. Outisde of Hayes, who went 2 for 4, the rest of the Pirates’ lineup combined to go 2 for 27 with nine strikeouts. 

In the bottom of the inning, Alec Burleson put the Cardinals (18-19) up 2-1 with a two-out double down the left field line with two outs. 

Gordon Graceffo sealed the deal in the ninth for his first big-league save. 

Key Moment

Derek Shelton opted to leave Skenes in to face Burleson despite the Pirates’ starter hitting the century mark in the prior at-bat. Skenes issued a two-out walk to Willson Contreras to extend the inning.

Star of the Game

Matthew Liberatore (3-3) held the Pirates (12-25) to one run on three hits with three walks and eight strikeouts in 7.0 innings.

Notable Pirates Performances

• Paul Skenes: 6.0 innings, three hits, two runs, four walks, six strikeouts, 102 pitches/60 strikes
• Ke’Bryan Hayes: 2 for 4, one double, one RBI

Stat to Know

Matthew Liberatore’s eight strikeouts matched a career-high. He also struck out eight in the second game of a doubleheader against the Atlanta Braves last season on June 26.

Noteworthy

• KeBryan Hayes’ sixth-inning double was the 500th hit of his career.
• Liover Peguero played his first game after getting recalled on Friday and finished 1 for 3.
• 1B Spencer Horwitz and RHP Dauri Moreta had their rehab assignments transferred to Triple-A Indianapolis on Tuesday.

Up Next

The Pirates will look to avoid the series sweep and their seventh-straight loss against the Cardinals on Wednesday afternoon. RHP Mitch Keller (1-3, 4.38 ERA) will face off with RHP Sonny Gray (3-1, 4.12 ERA). First pitch: 1:15 p.m. ET.