Escobar Homer, Bases-Loaded Walks Sink Pirates in 5-1 Loss to Mets

The Mets defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates 5-1 on Saturday night at Citi Field in New York.

Pirates’ starter Bryse Wilson (3-9, 5.98 ERA) nearly went blow-for-blow with the Mets’ Chris Bassitt over 5.1 innings, but a middle-middle fastball to third baseman Eduardo Escobar charged him with three runs and the loss. Bassitt flirted with disaster throughout his start, but made it out unscathed with timely strikeouts. Pirate second baseman Rodolfo Castro came within a triple of hitting for the cycle.

Mets first baseman Pete Alonso led off the second with a bloop double that trickled into no man’s land down the first baseline. Wilson tried to pitch around former Pirate Daniel Vogelbach with two outs, serving up a four-pitch walk, but Escobar made him pay a pitch later with a blast to right-center and a 3-0 lead. 

The Pirates had a chance to strike back with a runner on and Oneil Cruz up against the right-handed Bassitt in the third, but Bassitt escaped with a foul-tip strikeout.

Castro and right fielder Ben Gamel doubled and walked with one out in the fourth. A Ke’Bryan Hayes flyout put runners at the corners, but Bassitt ended the inning by retiring Cal Mitchell with a swinging strikeout. 

Escobar lofted another fly ball to right-center with two on in the bottom of the frame, but it fell harmlessly into Gamel’s glove at the fence.

PIttsburgh began a two-out rally in the sixth. Castro singled and Gamel walked before a Bassitt wild pitch moved them into scoring position. Bassitt fought back to finish his night with a strikeout of Hayes, giving him a final line of six innings and eight strikeouts. 

Lefty Eric Stout relieved Wilson with one on and one out in the bottom of the sixth and promptly walked the bases loaded. A four-pitch walk to center fielder Brandon Nimmo made it 4-0. 

After three punchouts at the hands of Bassitt, Cruz struck out in the eighth for the ignominious distinction of a golden sombrero.

Chase DeJong issued another bases-loaded walk, this one to Alonso, to make it 5-0 in the eighth.

Batting right-handed, Castro led off the ninth with a home run to the opposite field, the only run Pittsburgh managed.

Johan Oviedo (3-2, 3.34 ERA) will get the ball against Mets’ ace Jacob DeGrom (5-2, 2.01 ERA) as the Pirates (55-91) play to avoid a three-game series sweep by New York (92-55) beginning at 1:40 p.m. Sunday.