Diamondbacks at Pirates
Gregory Polanco's return to the heart of the Pittsburgh Pirates' lineup figured to spark what has been a lackluster offense and put it more on par with a pitching staff that arguably has been the best in the majors nearly a month into the season. The latter failed to hold up its end of the bargain late in Monday's loss in Arizona, but the Pirates will get another shot to tame the Diamondbacks when the teams meet for the second contest of their four-game series on Tuesday.
Pittsburgh entered the series opener with a major league-best 2.54 ERA and appeared ready to hold an opponent to three runs or fewer for an 11th straight game after taking a 4-1 lead into the seventh inning, but Arizona scored 11 unanswered runs to cruise to a 12-4 victory. The Pirates had to be pleased with Polanco, however, as he finished 2-for-4 and scored twice in his season debut after completing his recovery from shoulder surgery in September. Eduardo Escobar and David Peralta did the bulk of the heavy lifting in Monday's triumph, driving in three runs apiece to help the Diamondbacks improve to 5-2 on their 10-game road trip. Arizona also has had the Pirates' number in Pittsburgh lately, winning seven straight at PNC Park.
TV: 7:05 p.m. ET, FS Arizona, AT&T SportsNet-Pittsburgh
PITCHING MATCHUP: Diamondbacks RH Luke Weaver (1-1, 3.92 ERA) vs. Pirates RH Trevor Williams (1-0, 2.59)
Weaver needed 93 pitches to get through five scoreless innings Thursday in Atlanta, but he yielded only four hits and walked one while registering a season-high nine strikeouts en route to his first victory since coming over from St. Louis in the trade involving Paul Goldschmidt. The 25-year-old has gotten better in each outing and owns a 24:5 strikeout-to-walk ratio through 20 2/3 frames. Josh Bell is 3-for-10 with a walk against Weaver, who is 1-1 with a 4.18 ERA in seven career appearances (four starts) versus the Pirates.
Williams posted his fourth quality start in as many tries but did not factor in the decision for the third straight time Wednesday in Detroit despite permitting two runs over six innings. The Arizona State product has been exceptional in 16 outings since last year's All-Star break, going 8-3 with a 1.68 ERA while allowing more than three runs only once. Peralta (4-for-10, three extra-base hits) has fared well against Williams, who is 1-1 with a 3.60 ERA in four career starts versus the Diamondbacks.
WALK-OFFS
1. Diamondbacks 1B Christian Walker hit a two-run homer in the series opener to extend his hitting streak to seven games - a run during which he is batting .552 with four home runs.
2. Pittsburgh RHP Nick Burdi left the field in tears Monday after suffering a potentially serious arm injury, which the team described as pain in his biceps and right elbow.
3. Arizona UTIL Blake Swihart, who was acquired from Boston on Friday, drove in a run on a swinging bunt in his only at-bat in the seventh inning and later scored in his team debut.