ATLANTA (Reuters) – Andrew McCutchen‘s two-run home run in the ninth inning secured a 5-2 win for the Pittsburgh Pirates over the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field on Thursday.

The win moves the surprising Pirates into a second place tie with the St. Louis Cardinals, 1- games behind the National League Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers.

Following a 47-minute rain delay, McCutchen’s RBI double in the fifth inning broke a 1-1 tie and Pedro Alvarez also drove in a run to stretch the Pirates’ lead to 3-1.

“I changed something simple,” said McCutchen, who had struggled with an average of .156 since the All-Star break.

“The thing about me is, when I am not feeling too well, if it feels like something is off, I can always figure it out pretty quick just by looking at film.

“It is nothing really difficult, so we looked at some video and said ‘all right, make that adjustment,’ and I was able to do it and I had a pretty good game.”

The Braves narrowed the Pirates’ lead to 3-2 in the sixth inning on a throwing error by Pirates shortstop Ronny Cedeno.

Cedeno’s throw to first base on a ground ball sailed wide allowing Freddie Freeman, who doubled to lead-off the inning, to score from second base.

Both teams squandered opportunities as the Braves hit into four double plays and the Pirates stranded 10 runners on base, including leaving the bases loaded in the seventh inning.

“Even early on tonight we didn’t get a guy in from third with less than two outs,” Braves catcher David Ross said. “Like I said yesterday, we’ve got to do that stuff now.”

Pirates starter Kevin Correia won his 12th game of the season allowing two runs on nine hits while striking out three in 6-1/3 innings. Joel Hanrahan secured the final four outs for Pittsburgh for his 30th save of the season

(Reporting by Mike Mouat in Windsor, Ontario; Editing by Ossian Shine/Ian Ransom)

ATLANTA (AP) — Julio Lugo scored from third base on a contested play at the plate, giving the Atlanta Braves a 4-3 win in 19 innings over the Pittsburgh Pirates early Wednesday morning.

The game, which ended at 1:50 2 a.m., was the longest in Turner Field history and matched the longest in the major leagues this season. At 6 hours, 39 minutes, it was the longest by time for both teams.

Lugo took on Scott Proctor’s grounder to third baseman Pedro Alvarez, whose throw to catcher Michael McKenry easily beat Lugo to the plate.

Lugo tried to avoid McKenry’s tag with a pop-up slide. Replays indicated McKenry made the tag, but home plate umpire Jerry Meals called Lugo safe.

Pirates manager Clint Hurdle argued the call vigorously, following Meals off the field as the Braves celebrated.

With one out in the 19th, Daniel McCutchen walked Lugo. Jordan Schafer followed with a single to center, moving Lugo to third.

With their bench and bullpen depleted, the Braves had to let Proctor (2-3), their eighth pitcher of the game, hit for himself. Schafer advanced to second without a throw before Proctor’s grounder led to the final play.

The Phillies and Reds played 19 innings on May 25.

The Pirates’ previous longest game was 6:12 at San Diego on Aug. 25, 1979. The Braves’ previous longest game by time was 6:10 against the Mets on July 4, 1985, at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium.

The Pirates scored two runs in the first and pushed their lead to 3-0 in the second on McKenry’s homer. The Braves answered with three runs in the third, and the score remained 3-3 through the next 15 innings.

Several thousand fans from the announced crowd of 22,036 were still in the stands in the 19th inning, many standing and chanting.

The Braves lost catcher Brian McCann in the 10th inning when he strained his left oblique. He will be placed on the 15-day disabled list on Wednesday.

McCutchen (3-2) gave up one run in 5 1-3 innings.

The Pirates fell one game behind first-place St. Louis in the NL Central.

The Pirates had a chance to avoid extra innings but wasted a scoring chance in the ninth. McKenry had an infield single off Craig Kimbrel and moved to third on pinch-hitter Brandon Wood’s single.

The Braves called a pitchout as Xavier Paul was squaring to bunt and McKenry was running toward the plate. McKenry stopped too late and was thrown out at third. Kimbrel struck out Paul to end the inning.

Atlanta’s Chipper Jones, who strained his right quadriceps in Monday night’s game, hit a groundout as a pinch-hitter in the eighth.

Jones, 39, came off the 15-day disabled list on Monday following arthroscopic surgery on July 9 to repair torn cartilage in his right knee.

Nate McLouth and manager Fredi Gonzalez were ejected by Meals in the ninth. McLouth struck out swinging and then remained at the plate, apparently to argue a called strike two by Meals. Gonzalez ran onto the field too late to intervene and keep McLouth in the game.

NOTES: It was the Pirates’ longest game since May 27, 2006, when they beat Houston 8-7 in 18 innings. It was the Braves’ longest since Oct. 5, 2006, when they won 7-6 at Houston in 18 innings…. McKenry ended the Pirates’ streak of 77 innings without a homer since a shot by Brandon Wood at Houston on July 16. … Schafer, still bothered by his jammed left middle finger he hurt Wednesday in Colorado, was scratched from the Braves’ lineup. He entered the game in the ninth as a defensive replacement in center. … Pirates C Ryan Doumit (left ankle sprain) began a rehab assignment with Triple-A Indianapolis.

The Associated Press

PITTSBURGH – Chipper Jones was concerned when he saw Brooks Conrad take to the on-deck circle in the seventh inning.

“I was like, ‘That’s a mistake,’” the Atlanta Braves’ veteran leader said. “‘We need to keep him for later.’”

Conrad came through once again after manager Fredi Gonzalez waited for a bigger stage to insert him into the game.

Conrad hit a pinch-hit two-run homer in the 11th inning and Atlanta topped the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-2 on Wednesday.

The homer, into a sliver of seats in right-center and with pinch-runner Wilkin Ramirez on first and one out, was Conrad’s fifth career pinch-hit homer.

“He came up in the perfect spot and did what we all know he can,” Jones said.

Eric Hinske also had a solo homer for the Braves, who have won three of four and got a strong outing from rookie Mike Minor in a spot start for Tim Hudson.

Steve Pearce homered for the first time in 20 months and went 3-for-5 with two RBIs for Pittsburgh, which has lost three straight.

Five of Conrad’s 11 career home runs have been on pinch-hits, including three – two of them grand slams – last season. He had a walk-off single against St. Louis on May 1, and his only hit since then drove in the tying run with him scoring the go-ahead run in the seventh inning May 18.

“It’s just so much fun, especially in the pinch-hit role, getting up there with the game on the line and you’ve got a chance to drive in the winning run for your team,” Conrad said.

Before Conrad hit a 1-2 pitch from Jeff Karstens (3-3) for his first home run of the season, he had been hitting only .130 with one extra-base hit this season.

“He’s been squaring some balls up all year and he hasn’t had much to show for it,” Braves catcher Brian McCann said. “But man, that’s what he does. He gets big hits and drives in big runs and helps us win a lot of games.”

Minor allowed one run in 5 2/3 innings, Jonny Venters got Pearce to ground into a double play with the bases loaded and one out in the ninth inning and George Sherrill (1-0) pitched a perfect 10th for the Braves.

Craig Kimbrel retired the Pirates in order in the 11th for his 14th save.

Hinske, whose .370 batting average in May ranked second in the National League entering the game, gave Atlanta the lead in the sixth with his homer deep to right, his fifth of the season.

Pearce’s homer down the left-field line in the seventh off Eric O’Flaherty prevented Minor from getting his first win of the season.

Minor, recalled Tuesday night to start in place of Hudson (stiff back), was making his second start of the season. Minor, the No. 7 overall draft pick in 2009, allowed seven hits and two walks with five strikeouts.

“The deeper he got into the game, the better he got, really, with his command,” Gonzalez said. “And that’s good to see.”

The start was Minor’s 10th in the majors and second this season. He allowed five runs and seven hits and four walks in 4 1/3 innings April 6, but was ranked second in the Triple-A International League in strikeouts.

“I didn’t put as much pressure on myself this time,” Minor said.

“I knew I had the stuff. I was getting guys out in Triple-A and I’d done it before here last year.”

Pittsburgh’s James McDonald gave up hits to the first three batters of the game – including Jones’ RBI single that scored Jordan Schafer – but retired 11 of the next 12.

“You don’t want game to let the game get out of hand,” McDonald said. “It’s my job to compete and allow the team to stay in the game.”

McDonald, who hadn’t allowed a run in either of his previous two home starts, allowed two runs and six hits and a walk with six strikeouts. Twenty of the 32 runs McDonald has allowed this season have come via the home run.

After watching his team having not scored a run since Saturday, Pittsburgh manager Clint Hurdle shuffled his lineup, dropping Andrew McCutchen from leadoff to No. 3 in the order, bumping Jose Tabata to leadoff and inserting Pearce into the No. 2 spot.

Pearce drove in Pittsburgh’s first run in 22 innings in the third with a single to left after Tabata had led off with a single and stole second.

But he didn’t come through when he could have ended the game in the ninth.

“I rolled over on a pitch,” he said. “It was frustrating. We were all set up to win the game and I did the last thing you’d want to do in that situation. The tough part is that I’d been swinging the bat well all day, but I couldn’t come through when I needed to the most.”

? NOTES: Atlanta has four pinch-hit home runs this season. … Normally Pittsburgh’s fifth starter, Karstens was in the game because the Pirates pushed his next scheduled start back two days to Sunday. … A day after 2B Dan Uggla was not in the Braves’ lineup for the first time this season, teammate OF Martin Prado did not start for the first time. Similar to Uggla the day before, Prado entered the game in the eighth inning. Prado struck out in the 10th. … The struggling Uggla had a rough game, going 0-for-5 with three strikeouts, an error and being part of a miscommunication that was called an error on SS Alex Gonzalez in the ninth.

Peter Diana/Post_Gazette

Sometimes, results naturally overshadow events that led to them.

For example, Brooks Conrad’s pinch-hit home run in the 11th inning Wednesday gave the Atlanta Braves a 4-2 victory against the Pirates at PNC Park and masked the Pirates’ inability to score.

Manager Clint Hurdle shuffled the lineup before the game, placing Jose Tabata in the leadoff spot and batting Andrew McCutchen third in an attempt to create some consistency on offense. The Pirates tied the score twice, but could not capitalize on enough opportunities to take the lead.

With the score tied, 2-2, in the 11th, Braves catcher Brian McCann singled with one out against Jeff Karstens, who came out of the bullpen, and Wilkin Ramirez pinch-ran for him. Conrad then hit a 1-2 pitch over the right-center field wall to gave the Braves the lead.

Braves closer Craig Kimbrel retired the Pirates in order in the bottom of the inning and earned his 14th save.

The third, fourth and fifth hitters, McCutchen, Neil Walker and Ryan Doumit, combined to go 0 for 14. The offense has scored two runs in the past three games — all losses, including two shutouts. The Pirates were 1 for 6 with runners in scoring position and stranded nine Wednesday.

“We’ve got to find a way to pick up our pitchers more than we have seven weeks into the season,” Hurdle said.

The Pirates offensive deficiencies came into stark relief in the ninth, when Steve Pearce came to the plate with the score tied, 2-2.

Pearce, who started at third and was hitting second for the second time in his career, already had driven in both Pirates runs, one on a homer that curled around the left-field foul pole.

Lyle Overbay had worked a leadoff walk, and Pedro Ciriaco ran for him. Ronny Cedeno grounded back to pitcher Jonny Venters, who turned to throw to second and start a double play, but shortstop Alex Gonzalez and second baseman Dan Uggla ran into each other and dropped the throw, putting Pirates on first and second.

Pinch-hitter Chris Snyder’s sacrifice bunt advanced the runners to second and third, and Venters intentionally walked Tabata to load the bases for Pearce. But Pearce grounded into an inning-ending, third-to-catcher-to-first double play.

“We had a big chance to win in the ninth inning, and I rolled over,” Pearce said. “He made a great pitch.”

The Braves recalled Mike Minor from the minors to start in place of Tim Hudson, who has a stiff back. Minor held the Pirates to one run in 5 2/3 innings.

“He was keeping us off balance,” Pearce said. “If you took a good hack on something, he’d immediately change.”

It did not look like the game would need extra innings after the Braves opened the first inning with three consecutive hits against Pirates starter James McDonald. Center fielder Jordan Schafer doubled, Gonzalez hit a bloop single and third baseman Chipper Jones singled through the infield to score Schafer from third. McDonald escaped with only one run allowed, thanks to a popup and double play.

“You don’t want a game getting out of hand in the first two innings,” McDonald said. “I feel like it’s my job to stay in there and compete and keep my team in the game as long as possible.”

Tabata reached first on an infield single in the third, stole second and scored on Pearce’s single to tie the score, 1-1.

McDonald struck out two batters in the second, two in the third and one in the fourth, allowing only one base-runner in those three innings. He allowed two runs in six innings, walking one and striking out six.

Left fielder Eric Hinske hit a long home run over the Clemente Wall in right field in the sixth, giving the Braves a 2-1 lead.

Matt Diaz and Overbay hit two-out singles in the sixth to force Minor from the game, but Cedeno grounded out to end the inning.

Pearce hit his first home run of the season to tie the score at 2-2 in the seventh and finished 3 for 5 with two RBIs.

“I felt great at the plate today,” he said. “I was looking for something in my zone to hit and I turned on it.”

The rest of the offense did not feel as well, and the Pirate will follow an off day Thursday with a three-game series that starts Friday in Chicago against the Cubs.

First published on May 26, 2011 at 12:00 am

CBSSports.com wire reports
May 25, 2011

PITTSBURGH — Chipper Jones was concerned when saw Brooks Conrad take to the on-deck circle in the seventh inning.

“I was like, ‘That’s a mistake,”‘ the 19-year Atlanta Braves veteran said. “‘We need to keep him for later.”‘

Conrad came through once again after manager Fredi Gonzalez waited for a bigger stage to insert him into the game.

Conrad hit a pinch-hit two-run homer in the 11th inning and Atlanta topped the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-2 on Wednesday.

The homer, into a sliver of seats in right-center with pinch-runner Wilkin Ramirez on first and one out, was Conrad’s fifth career pinch-hit homer.

“He came up in the perfect spot and did what we all know he can,” Jones said.

Eric Hinske also had a solo homer for the Braves, who have won three of four and got a strong outing from rookie Mike Minor in a spot start for Tim Hudson.

Steve Pearce homered for the first time in 20 months and went 3 for 5 with two RBI for Pittsburgh, which has lost three straight.

Five of Conrad’s 11 career home runs have been on pinch hits, including three — two of them grand slams — last season. He had a walk-off single against St. Louis on May 1, and his only hit since then drove in the tying run with him scoring the go-ahead run in the seventh inning May 18.

“It’s just so much fun, especially in the pinch-hit role, getting up there with the game on the line and you’ve got a chance to drive in the winning run for your team,” Conrad said.

Before Conrad hit a 1-2 pitch from Jeff Karstens (3-3) for his first home run of the season, he had been hitting only .130 with one extra-base hit this season.

“He’s been squaring some balls up all year and he hasn’t had much to show for it,” Braves catcher Brian McCann said. “But man, that’s what he does. He gets big hits and drives in big runs and helps us win a lot of games.”

Minor allowed one run in 5 2/3 innings, Jonny Venters got Pearce to ground into a double play with the bases loaded and one out in the ninth inning and George Sherrill (1-0) pitched a perfect 10th for the Braves.

Craig Kimbrel retired the Pirates in order in the 11th for his 14th save.

Hinske, whose .370 batting average in May ranked second in the National League entering the game, gave Atlanta the lead in the sixth with his homer deep to right, his fifth of the season.

Pearce’s homer down the left-field line in the seventh off Eric O’Flaherty prevented Minor from getting his first win of the season.

Minor, recalled Tuesday night to start in place of Hudson (stiff back), was making his second start of the season. Minor, the No. 7 overall draft pick in 2009, allowed seven hits and two walks with five strikeouts.

“The deeper he got into the game, the better he got, really, with his command,” Gonzalez said. “And that’s good to see.”

The start was Minor’s 10th in the majors and second this season. He allowed five runs and seven hits and four walks in 4 1/3 innings April 6, but was ranked second in the Triple-A International League in strikeouts.

“I didn’t put as much pressure on myself this time,” Minor said.

“I knew I had the stuff; I was getting guys out in Triple-A and I’d done it before here last year.”

Pittsburgh’s James McDonald gave up hits to the first three batters of the game — including Jones’ RBI single that scored Jordan Schafer — but retired 11 of the next 12.

“You don’t want game to let the game get out of hand,” McDonald said. “It’s my job to compete and allow the team to stay in the game.”

McDonald, who hadn’t allowed a run in either of his previous two home starts, allowed two runs and six hits and a walk with six strikeouts. Twenty of the 32 runs McDonald has allowed this season have come via the home run.

After watching his team having not scored a run since Saturday, Pittsburgh manager Clint Hurdle shuffled his lineup, dropping Andrew McCutchen from leadoff to No. 3 in the order, bumping Jose Tabata to leadoff and inserting Pearce into the No. 2 spot.

Pearce drove in Pittsburgh’s first run in 22 innings in the third with a single to left after Tabata had led off with a single and stole second.

But he didn’t come through when he could have ended the game in the ninth.

“I rolled over on a pitch,” he said. “It was frustrating. We were all set up to win the game and I did the last thing you’d want to do in that situation. The tough part is that I’d been swinging the bat well all day, but I couldn’t come through when I needed to the most.”

Notes

• Atlanta has four pinch-hit home runs this season.
• Normally Pittsburgh’s fifth starter, Karstens was in the game because the Pirates pushed his next scheduled start back two days to Sunday.
• A day after 2B Dan Uggla was not in the Braves’ lineup for the first time this season, teammate OF Martin Prado did not start for the first time. Similar to Uggla the day before, Prado entered the game in the eighth inning. Prado struck out in the 10th.
• The struggling Uggla had a rough game, going 0 for 5 with three strikeouts, an error and being part of a miscommunication that was called an error on SS Alex Gonzalez in the ninth.

PITTSBURGH, May 25 (UPI) — Brooks Conrad socked a pinch-hit homer in the 11th inning Wednesday, boosting the Atlanta Braves to a 4-2 decision over Pittsburgh.

Brian McCann got a one-out single off Jeff Karstens (3-3) in the top of the 11th. Wilkin Ramirez came in to run for him and Conrad then golfed a 1-2 pitch over the right-center field fence for a two-run Braves lead.

Craig Kimbrel made the advantage hold up in the bottom of the frame, retiring the Pirates in order, and George Sherrill (1-0) earned the win thanks to a scoreless 10th for Atlanta, which swept a two-game series in Pittsburgh.

Eric Hinkse hit a solo homer and Chipper Jones added an RBI for the Braves.

Steve Pearce went 3-for-5 with a pair of RBI, including a game-tying solo homer in the seventh, in Pittsburgh’s loss.