Rookie Pitchers Roll Pirates Past Athletics; Chandler, Ashcraft Dazzle

Danny Demilio   |  

Sep 20, 2025

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PITTSBURGH — Bubba Chandler and Braxton Ashcraft combined to allow just one hit in eight innings and the Pittsburgh Pirates belted a pair of home runs to defeat the Oakland A’s 2-0 at PNC Park on Saturday night. 

How We Got There

Nick Yorke opened the scoring with a solo home run to left field off Luis Morales in the bottom of the second. The following inning, Bryan Reynolds put the Pirates (66-89) ahead 2-0 with a solo homer to right-center. 

Chandler (3-1) covered the first five innings and retired 15 of the 17 batters he faced. Jacob Wilson hit a two-out double off him in the second but was left stranded and Brett Harris was hit by a pitch with one out in the third. 

Ashcraft followed with three-perfect innings and six strikeouts before handing the ball to Dennis Santana, who converted his 14th save of the season and first since Sep. 3. Pirates’ pitching retired the final 20 A’s batters of the game. 

Key Moment

Nick Yorke’s first home run of the year was all the Pirates needed. 

Player of the Game

Bubba Chandler struck out six across his five innings. After allowing nine runs in 2.2 innings against the Milwaukee Brewers on Sep. 7, Chandler has allowed just one run over his last two starts. 

Stat to Know

Bryan Reynolds hit the 138th home run of his career, tying him with Hall of Famer Bill Mazeroski for 10th all-time in Pirates’ franchise history. 

Notable Performances

• Bubba Chandler: 5.0 innings, one hit, no runs, no walks, six strikeouts, 68 pitches/47 strikes
• Braxton Ashcraft: 3.0 innings, no hits, no runs, no walks, six strikeouts, 33 pitches/25 strikes
• Nick Yorke: 2 for 3, one home run, one RBI, one run
• Bryan Reynolds: 1 for 3, one home run, one RBI, one walk

Noteworthy

• The Pirates were 1-12 over their last 13 games entering play. They’ll go for their first series win on Sunday since sweeping the Los Angeles Dodgers in three games at PNC Park to begin the month.
• Oneil Cruz batted leadoff for the first time since June 24.

Up Next

The Pirates will conclude their 2025 home slate on Sunday afternoon with RHP Mike Burrows (2-4, 4.10 ERA). The Athletics have yet to announce a starting pitcher. First pitch: 1:35 p.m. ET.