Pirates Flip Script, Blank Astros Behind Burrows’ Gem

PITTSBURGH — A day after getting shut out by the Houston Astros, Mike Burrows and the Pittsburgh Pirates returned the favor for a 3-0 win at PNC Park on Wednesday night. 

How We Got There

After leading the bases loaded in the first inning, the Pirates (23-39) manufactured a pair of runs in the second.

Tommy Pham legged out an infield single which was followed by an Endy Rodríguez double. With two in scoring position, Isiah Kiner-Falefa brought home a run with a groundout to short, and two batters later, Andrew McCutchen plated Rodríguez with a sacrifice fly to left.

With runners on the corners and nobody out in the fifth, the Astros (33-28) traded a run for two outs on Adam Frazier’s double play ball. 

The run support was more than enough for Burrows (1-1), who threw a career-high 5.1 innings. Chase Shugart, Braxton Ashcraft and David Bednar combined for 3.2-scoreless innings of relief to preserve the shutout. Bednar recorded his seventh save of the season.

Key Moment

The Astros had the tying run at the plate with one out in the sixth after Chase Shugart, who relieved Burrows, started his outing by issuing a walk to Jose Altuve. Shugart rebounded to retire the next two batters he faced and preserve the shutout. 

Star of the Game

Mike Burrows earned his second big-league win and first as a starting pitcher. 

Notable Performances

• Mike Burrows: 5.1 innings, five hits, no runs, no walks, six strikeouts, 70 pitches/42 strikes
• Braxton Ashcraft: 2.0 innings, one hit, no runs, no walks, three strikeouts, 32 pitches/21 strikes
• Oneil Cruz: 2 for 4, one double, two steals
• Spencer Horwitz: 2 for 3, one walk, one run

Stat to Know

Mike Burrows set a career-high with six strikeouts. Entering play, he had recorded seven strikeouts in 11.2 innings combined between the first three outings of his career. 

Noteworthy

• The Pirates snapped a stretch of 15-straight scoreless innings by scoring a pair of runs in the second inning.
• INF Nick Solak elected free agency in lieu of an outright assignment to Triple-A Indianapolis.

Up Next

RHP Mitch Keller (1-7, 3.73 ERA) will start for the Pirates in the series finale on Thursday night. He’ll be opposed by Astros LHP Framber Valdez (5-4, 3.12 ERA). First pitch: 6:40 p.m. ET.