PITTSBURGH (AP) — Tyler O’Neill capped another St. Louis rally by driving in Kolten Wong for the go-ahead run in the 10th inning as the Cardinals surged past the Pirates 5-4 on Wednesday night.
Two days after coming back from four runs down to beat the Pirates in Pittsburgh’s home opener, St. Louis again took advantage of another wobbly performance by the Pirates’ bullpen.
Harrison Bader hit a two-run homer off Keone Kela in the eighth to tie the game at 3. Wong led off the 10th with a triple against Nick Burdi (0-1) and scored when O’Neill followed two batters later with a sharp single to right. Bader pushed the lead two when he scored on a wild pitch by Francisco Liriano.
John Gant (2-0) worked a scoreless ninth to pick up the win. Dakota Hudson collected his first major league save when he stranded the tying run at third in the 10th. Paul DeJong added a solo home run for St. Louis, which finished 3-3 on a season-opening six-game road trip.
Adam Frazier had three hits and drove in a run for the Pirates. Jung Ho Kang hit his first home run in 2½ years for Pittsburgh. The Pirates went 1 for 14 with runners in scoring position and left 11 men on base.
Jameson Taillon dominated the Cardinals for seven innings, allowing one run on three hits with five strikeouts.
Taillon spent 87 pitches keeping the Cardinals off balance. St. Louis needed to see just six pitches from Kela to tie it.
Kela, who walked in the tying run on Monday, inherited a 3-1 lead in the top of the eighth. He threw four straight balls to Wong, then saw his second offering to Bader end up in the St. Louis bullpen beyond the wall in center field.
St. Louis starter Miles Mikolas slogged through five innings. He retired the Pirates in order just once and spent most his night working in and out of trouble. The allowed three runs on seven hits with two walks and two strikeouts.
Taillon, expected to be the anchor of a starting staff the Pirates will rely on heavily in an attempt to be a factor in the wide-open NL Central, certainly looked the part. He retired 11 straight at one point before his lone mistake, a fastball over the middle that DeJong sent into the seats in left-center for his second home run of the season.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Cardinals: LF Marcell Ozuna was scratched shortly before the game with tightness in his right side. Jose Martinez filled in. … RF Dexter Fowler started and went 0 for 3 two days after taking a foul ball off his left foot that required x-rays afterward.
Pirates: LF Corey Dickerson did not start due to soreness in his right (throwing) shoulder. He grounded out as a pinch hitter in the eighth. … C Elias Diaz (illness) will begin a rehab assignment with Class A Bradenton on Thursday.
UP NEXT
Cardinals: Head home for the first time this season and welcome San Diego for a three-game series at Busch Stadium starting Friday. The game was originally scheduled for Thursday before being pushed back due to weather concerns. Jack Flaherty (0-0, 8.31 ERA) starts for the Cardinals against Nick Margevicius (0-1, 1.80).
Pirates: Begin a four-game home set with Cincinnati on Thursday. Jordan Lyles makes his first start for the Pirates against Tyler Mahle. The teams split a two-game series in Cincinnati last weekend.
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