The finale of the three-game series, and the end of the last road trip of the season took place today as the Athletics faced off against the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park in Pittsburgh. Mitch Spence (3-5) got the start for the A’s and Mike Burrows (2-4) took the mound for the Pirates.
The A’s doubled their hit total from yesterday in the first inning today but failed to score. The Pirates, unfortunately, got on the board first. Spence got two quick outs and then Bryan Reynolds singled, Spencer Horwitz
walked, and then Andrew McCutcheon singled to drive in Reynolds. Horwitz moved to third on the play. Nick Gonzales doubled to drive in Horwitz and moved Cutch to third. A diving catch by Nick Kurtz at first saved two runs to end the inning.
With two outs in the bottom of the second and Nick Yorke on first, Jared Triolo homered to left field against Spence giving the Pirates a 4-0 lead.
While the A’s futility continued, the Pirates continued their hot hitting. With one down in the fourth, Joey Bart singled and Nick Yorke doubled. Oneil Cruz singled to drive in Bart and Yorke, and scored on a Jared Triolo single, bringing the score to 7-0 in favor of the Pirates. Bryan Reynolds walked and that was enough for Kotsay. Osvaldo Bido replaced Spence, whose final line was far from impressive: 3.1 innings, seven earned runs on nine hits and two walks.
In the bottom of the fifth, the scoring continued. McCutcheon walked, Jack Suwinski hit a ground rule double and Joey Bart hit a three-run homer. That gave the Bucs a 10-0 lead headed to the top of the sixth.
Scott McGough replaced Osvaldo Bido in the bottom of the eighth. He was just called up yesterday from AAA Las Vegas. The Pirates kept hitting off McGough. Triolo doubled, Alexander Canario singled, moving Triolo to third. Spencer Horwitz grounded out to first, but Triolo scored making the score 11-0.
The A’s couldn’t muster a run against the Pirates in twenty-two straight innings. No way to win a series. They head home with a day off on Monday and finish the 2025 season next weekend.
