PITTSBURGH (AP) – David Freese hit a long two-run home run to cap a four-run fifth inning, Sean Rodriguez also homered and the Pittsburgh Pirates rallied for a 5-4 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Wednesday night.
Freese hit a 451-foot blast into the Pirates’ bullpen in center field off Rubby De La Rosa (4-5) to put the Pirates ahead 5-4. They trailed 4-1 coming into the fifth but then Gregory Polanco hit an RBI double and Starling Marte drove in a run with a groundout.
Rodriguez, subbing for an ill Josh Harrison at second base, hit a solo homer in the fourth. It was Rodriguez’s fifth, one more than he had last season.
Polanco stayed hot with three hits. He is batting .343 with 14 RBIs in 16 games since being moved to the No. 3 spot in the batting order and also has multiple hits in five of his last eight games. Polanco raised his career batting average against the Diamondbacks to .354 in 18 games.
Andrew McCutchen added two hits while the Pirates won for the eighth time in 10 games overall and 11th time in their last 14 games against the Diamondbacks.
Jeff Locke (3-3) gave up four runs and seven hits in 6 1/3 innings for his first career victory against the Diamondbacks. He walked one and struck out one.
Mark Melancon worked around Chris Owings’ second double of the game with two outs to pitch a scoreless ninth and get his 16th save in 17 opportunities.
De La Rosa, pitching for the first time since May 15, was tagged for five runs and nine hits in 4 1/3 innings. He had his last turn in the rotation skipped because of tightness in his groin and triceps.
Yasmany Tomas and Rickie Weeks Jr. both had a home run among two hits for the Diamondbacks.
Tomas hit a two-run blast into the left field rotunda, his sixth, to cap a three-run second inning that included an RBI double by Owings that opened the scoring. Weeks hit a solo shot, his second, in the fifth to put the Diamondbacks ahead 4-1.
Weeks started in right field, his first appearance at the position in his 13-year career.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Diamondbacks: 2B Jean Segura and SS Nick Ahmed passed concussion tests and were cleared to play after both were hit in the head by pitches Tuesday night. Ahmed went 1 for 4 but Segura, who is hitting a team-best .316, was held out as a precaution as he still felt some dizziness after Tuesday’s game.
Pirates: Arquimedes Caminero (strained right quadriceps) was placed on the 15-day disabled list a day after hitting Segura and Ahmed.
UP NEXT
Patrick Corbin (2-3, 3.99 ERA) will start today in the finale of the three-game series against Gerrit Cole (5-3, 2.79), who has won his last three starts with a 1.29 ERA.
