Jared Jones Earns First Win, Strikes Out 10 in Debut as Pirates Beat Marlins 9-3

Jared Jones did nothing but impress during spring training and he continued to open eyes during his first-career start for the Pittsburgh Pirates on Saturday.  

The 22-year-old dazzled on the mound and earned the win for the Pirates (3-0) in their 9-3 win over the Miami Marlins (0-3) at loanDepot Park. 

Jones (1-0) was an Oneil Cruz throwing error away from carrying a perfect game through his first three innings. The right-hander struck out five of the first 10 batters he faced.

Jones didn’t face any adversity on the mound until the fourth inning, when Jake Burger doubled home a run and later scored on a Jesús Sánchez base hit to left field. Jones struck out Tim Anderson looking to prevent any further damage.

After issuing a two-out walk to Burger in the sixth inning, Jones was lifted by manager Derek Shelton in favor of Ryan Borucki. Borucki allowed an RBI-single to Sánchez but retired Anderson for the final out of the inning.

Jones allowed three runs on three hits across 5.2 innings. He walked a pair and sat down 10 Marlins’ hitters on strikes. 

He generated 22 whiffs, tied for the fifth-most in a game by a Pirates’ starter since 2008. Jones’ 10 strikeouts were tied for second-most in franchise history for a starting pitcher in his debut and he became the 31st pitcher league-wide since 1900 with at least 10 strikeouts in his debut. 

10 STRIKEOUTS FOR JARED JONES pic.twitter.com/EOzyShVey0

— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) March 30, 2024

With one out in the top of the third, Connor Joe legged out an infield single. His hustle paid off as he later scored the first run of the game on Edward Olivares’ single to left off of Ryan Weathers (0-1). 

Joe would put the Pirates ahead 2-0 with an RBI-double down the left field line in the fourth. Ke’Bryan Hayes continued his torrid start to the season with an RBI-single to plate 

Leading by a run in the fifth, the Pirates scored a pair to pad their lead. Cruz reached on a single and Jared Triolo followed with a double to left-center to give the Pirates two runners in scoring position for Michael A. Taylor. Taylor grounded one to first and Cruz beat Josh Bell’s throw home. Bell’s throw eluded catcher Christian Bethancourt, which allowed Triolo to score all the way from second. 

The Pirates, wanting to ensure their young starter was rewarded for his efforts, blew the game open with four runs in the seventh inning. Jack Suwinski collected his first hit of the season, an RBI-single off left-hander Andrew Nardi. Joe followed with a run-scoring double and Bryan Reynolds brought home two with a double of his own. 

Joe finished the game with three hits including a pair of doubles. Hayes turned in his third-straight two-hit game to start the year. Reynolds, Cruz, Triolo and Taylor chipped in two hits apiece. 

David Bednar made his first appearance of the season and pitched a scoreless ninth inning.

Up Next

The Pirates will go for the four-game sweep against the Marlins in the series finale on Easter Sunday. It’ll be a battle of the southpaws as Bailey Falter will square off with Trevor Rogers. First pitch: 1:40 ET.