The host Detroit Tigers took advantage of two Pittsburgh errors in the fifth inning to score all of their runs as they edged the Pirates 3-2 in the first game of a doubleheader on Wednesday.
The scheduled opener of the series Tuesday was postponed due to inclement weather and rescheduled as the second game of the doubleheader.
Detroit, which had just three hits, won for just the second time in the last nine games.
Tigers starter Michael Pineda was charged with two runs on four hits in 4 1/3 innings. Alex Lange (1-1) pitched 2/3 of an inning and was credited with the win.
Jacob Barnes, Andrew Chafin and Michael Fulmer each tossed an inning of scoreless relief. Gregory Soto got the last three outs to notch his fourth save.
Dillon Peters opened for the Pirates and tossed 3 1/3 scoreless innings. He hasn’t allowed a run in 16 2/3 innings this season. Peters allowed just one hit and one walk while striking out four batters.
Bryse Wilson (0-1) gave up only two hits and struck out six in 3 2/3 innings of relief but wound up with the loss.
Ben Gamel had two hits, including a two-run triple, but Pittsburgh lost for the sixth time in its last seven games.
Back-to-back, one-out singles by Cole Tucker and Andrew Knapp ended Pineda’s day in the fifth. Gamel then ripped a two-run triple to right-center off Lange to give Pittsburgh a 2-0 lead. Lange struck out the next two batters to leave Gamel stranded.
Detroit grabbed a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the inning, thanks to Pittsburgh’s sloppy fielding. Jeimer Candelario led off with a double and Willi Castro reached on an error by shortstop Tucker. A one-out walk to Akil Baddoo loaded the bases.
Robbie Grossman hit a sacrifice fly to bring in the first run. Castro and Baddoo scored when third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes booted Javier Baez’s bouncer.
The Tigers had a runner on third with two out in the seventh but Wilson struck out Grossman to end the threat.
–Field Level Media
