Charlie Morton shines as Pittsburgh Pirates defeat Cincinnati Reds 2-0 - MLB Recap
Pittsburgh Pirates’ starter, Charlie Morton had a remarkable day with his pitching as he threw five score-less innings with an ERA of 3.62 in the Pirates’ 2-0 win against the Cincinnati Reds at PNC Park, Pittsburgh on July 18.
First three innings of the game were under the pitchers’ control as they tossed fast and curveballs to stop the scoring shots of the batters. Zack Cozart singled off left-field but Brandon Phillips struck-out swinging and Jay Bruce got out at second base
during the first inning. Similarly, the Pirates’ batters also got out at the bottom of the second inning as Lyle Overbay was struck-out swinging and Brandon Wood also struck-out swinging.
During the third inning, Mike McKenry was grounded out to short-stop position, Morton struck-out looking and Alex Presley struck-out swinging. The Pirates scored their first two runs at the bottom of the fourth inning to take a 2-0 lead. Andrew McCutchen
was grounded out to short-stop and Chase D’Arnaud added the first run for the Pirates. The second run for the Pirates was taken by Neil Walker on the sacrifice fly of Matt Diaz towards right-field.
The last five innings of the game were score-less as the batters failed to connect the ball accurately and got out at their sluggish shots. Morton presented just three hits, walked two and struck-out three batters on his 87 pitches. Morton commented on the
game and said, "I could kind of reflect on what I was doing out on the mound and kick myself a little bit to get it going.”
The Pirates’ manager, Clint Hurdle had a huge ovation for Morton and said, “It was a well-pitched gutsy effort by (Morton).”
The Reds’ utility player, Miguel Cairo did not give any run to his team and went 0-for-3 with his bat. Speaking to reporters, Cairo said, "I wanted to make contact with the ball and I put the ball in play and the shortstop made a great play and they got
out of the inning.”
Dontrelle Willis was little bit shaky as he pitched just over four innings with an ERA of 3.38 and gave up just two runs on five hits. He had five strike-outs on his 69 pitches. However, the Pirates led off the three-game series 1-0 at Pittsburgh.
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