Strong offense from Cooper, Castro spoiled as Pirates walk off on Marlins
Garrett Cooper almost did it again.
With the Miami Marlins locked in a tie ballgame late against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Cooper turned on a slider and sent it over the center field wall at PNC Park for a go-ahead home run.
But the cushion from Cooper’s seventh-inning long ball was only temporary, as the Pirates capped a three-run ninth-inning with a Bryan Reynolds walk-off, two-run single against Jose Urena.
Final score on Wednesday: Pirates 6, Marlins 5. It evened the three-game series after the Marlins took the opener 5-4 in 10 innings on Tuesday.
Elias Diaz led off the decisive bottom of the ninth with a solo home run. Urena then walked Kevin Kramer and gave up a double to Adam Frazier to put runners on second and third. One pitch later, Reynolds lofted a blooper into shallow left center field to seal the game.
Four batters. Thirteen pitches.
Perfect execution to spoil the Marlins’ chance to clinch the series.
“That didn’t take long,” Marlins manager Don Mattingly said.
It spoiled a terrific offensive night for Cooper and Starlin Castro, who combined for seven hits — including four doubles and two home runs — and drove in all five Marlins (49-89) runs.
“Coop and Star put on a show all day,” Mattingly said. “Kind of a dynamic duo.”
They hit back-to-back two-out doubles in the first to open scoring. Castro and Cooper each proceeded to hit a two-run homer in the fifth before Cooper’s go-ahead home run in the seventh.
The past two days have been a welcomed power return for Cooper, who had hit just one home run over his past 42 games before the Marlins arrived in Pittsburgh.
As for Castro, Wednesday was the latest stellar offensive performance down the stretch this season. The 29-year-old infielder is hitting .337 since July 23. Wednesday was Castro’s third four-hit game in that span — and the first of his career in which all four went for extra bases (three doubles, one home run).
Only three other players in Marlins history have had a game with four extra-base hits: Gary Sheffield (1994), Miguel Cabrera (2003 and 2005) and Christian Yelich (2017).
The duo’s performance also temporarily preserved a quality start for rookie Robert Dugger.
Dugger, obtained as part of the Dee Gordon trade in December 2017, gave up just three runs (two earned) on seven hits and two walks in six innings.
He got himself out of a few jams, too.
The 24-year-old right-hander induced a pair of double plays in the first and second. He left the Pirates (61-78) empty handed after they loaded the bases with one out in the third by getting Jose Osuna to flyout to shallow right field and Melky Cabrera to hit a line drive to shortstop Miguel Rojas.
Dugger has held opponents to just five runs (two earned) over 13 innings in his last two starts.
“The more starts you get, of course you’re going to get more comfortable and acclimated,” Dugger said. “But you have to go out there every single day. You still have a job to do.”
Adam Conley and Ryne Stanek threw scoreless seventh and eighth innings before Urena — looking for his second save in as many nights — gave up the game before he could record an out.
Wednesday marked the first time Urena has pitched in back-to-back games since pitching three consecutive games from May 23-25, 2016. Urena has been part of the Marlins’ rotation for the past three seasons.
The Marlins are using Urena, their Opening Day starter, as a closer down the stretch after he spent almost three months on the injured list with a herniated disc in his lower back. Since Urena didn’t have enough time to properly build up his arm strength to go five-plus innings, coming out of the bullpen was his only option to pitch in the majors again this season.
“I’m trying to get back comfortable,” Urena said. “and see if I can make it back-to-back and see how my arm reacts.”
Heineman’s debut
Marlins catcher Tyler Heineman made his MLB debut as a pinch-hitter in the eighth inning.
This story was originally published September 4, 2019 at 10:08 PM.
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