Pirates Pummeled by Athletics, Drop Below .500 for 1st Time Since March

Danny Demilio |

Jun 16, 2026

Jared Jones, Pittsburgh Pirates — Photo provided by Matt Lynch

Jared Jones and Carmen Mlodzinski were knocked around, and the Pirates fell below .500 for the first time since March after being pummeled 11-2 by the Athletics on Monday night at Sutter Health Park.

Scoring Plays

Bottom 2nd, 3-0 ATH: Jared Jones (1-1) escaped a jam in the first, but the Athletics (36-36) tagged him for three runs in the second. Jeff McNeil plated a run with a single to left field, and Nick Kurtz hit an opposite-field two-run home run to left.

Top 4th, 3-1 ATH: With runners on second and third and one out, Jake Mangum got the Pirates (36-37) on the board with a single to left field off J.T. Ginn (5-3).

Bottom 4th, 5-1 ATH: McNeil delivered again for the Athletics by lining a two-run home run to right field. It was only his third homer of the season.

Bottom 5th, 6-1 ATH: Zack Gelof lined a one-out single up the middle off Carmen Mlodzinski with runners on second and third to tack on another run for the A’s.

Bottom 7th, 11-1 ATH: Lawrence Butler doubled home a run before McNeil delivered an RBI single to right field. Kurtz followed with his second homer of the game, a three-run shot to left field.

Top 8th, 11-2 ATH: Endy Rodríguez hit his third homer of the season. The Pirates catcher lined a solo home run to left-center field off Athletics reliever Mason Barnett.

Key Moments

Trailing by two runs in the fourth, the Pirates had runners on the corners with one out, but J.T. Ginn got Esmerlyn Valdez to bounce into an inning-ending double play. Jeff McNeil’s homer in the bottom of the inning added insult to injury.

Player of the Game

Nick Kurtz had his second two-homer game this month and matched a season-high five RBI for the Athletics. He finished with three hits, drew a walk and scored two runs.

Stat to Know

Jeff McNeil had been hitless in his last 20 at-bats entering play prior to finishing 3 for 4 with a home run, four RBI and three runs scored against the Pirates. His homer was his first since May 20.

Notable Performances

Jared Jones: 4.0 innings, eight hits, five runs, one walk, four strikeouts, 75 pitches/43 strikes
Carmen Mlodzinski: 3.0 innings, seven hits, six runs (one earned), one walk, two strikeouts, 75 pitches/53 strikes
Endy Rodríguez: 3 for 3, one home run, one walk, one RBI, one run

Noteworthy

The last time the Pirates were below .500 was when they fell to 2-3 with a loss to the Mets on March 31. Pittsburgh has now lost eight of their past 10 games.
Bryan Reynolds extended his hitting streak to seven games and his on-base streak to 22 games with a first-inning single.
The Pirates had won seven of Jared Jones’ last eight starts dating back to Sep. 2, 2024.

Up Next

RHP Mitch Keller (5-4, 5.14 ERA) will look to get back on track for the Pirates on Tuesday night. RHP Jack Perkins (2-3, 6.25 ERA) will start for the Athletics. First pitch: 9:40 p.m. ET on SportsNet Pittsburgh, MLB Network/93.7 The Fan.