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PHILADELPHIA — Jared Jones was blunt in assessing his outings since his return from right elbow surgery.
“I’m getting lit up,” Jones said. “That’s not a good spot to be in.”
Jones was right at the time, producing a 5.76 ERA through his first six starts. But amid the scorching hot temperatures on Thursday, Jones allowed only two hits and one run through four innings while striking out six.
His performance, mixed with Carmen Mlodzinski’s three scoreless innings, held the Pirates in a gridlock until their offense could break through. Brandon Lowe stole his first bag of the year in the seventh inning, eventually scoring the winning run on an Esmerlyn Valdez triple. Pittsburgh went on to split the series with a 6-1 victory.
Philadelphia tagged Jones for his only earned run in the third, taking advantage of two Jones walks with a double from Bryce Harper. Pittsburgh answered back in the fifth with a single from Valdez to score Jake Mangum.
Pittsburgh’s offense heavily outhit the Phillies’ (14 hits to four) but couldn’t produce runs, leaving 12 runners on base. That was until Valdez drove in Lowe, and Nick Gonzales added another run with a single to center field. Endy Rodríguez added insurance in the eighth with a solo shot and Valdez notched his third RBI with a sacrifice fly, plenty to give the Pirates a comfortable victory.
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