Nick Gonzales hits walk-off single in Pirates 8-7 win over the Phillies

PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) - Pirates return from the All Star break with an 8-7 thriller over the Phillies.

Philadelphia took a 7-6 lead into the top of the 9th inning. The Phillies had runners on first and second with nobody out, trying to extend their lead. Carmen Mlodzinski was able to escape the jam without giving up any runs, keeping the score 7-6.

In the bottom of the 9th, Connor Joe led off the inning with a single. He was pinch ran for by Michael A. Taylor. Andrew McCutchen drew a walk, making it first and second with nobody out.

Taylor and McCutchen took off on a double steal, putting them both in scoring position with nobody out.

"That's T-Brock doing a really good job at paying attention and watching," said Derek Shelton on the Fan Reaction show. "He's flashing that sign to Michael knowing that in that situation we had the ability to run. We took advantage of what we thought of a pitcher that was really focused on our best hitter. That was where all his focus was and we had the right two runners on base to be able to execute it."

After Bryan Reynolds struck out, Oneil Cruz hit a groundball to second base and the throw home was late, as the Pirates tied the game. Nick Gonzales ripped an RBI single to left field to bring home the game winning run.

"The big part is Oneil put the ball in play. Nick moved the ball forward with the infield in," said Shelton.

It was a great day for the Pirates offense, they had 13 hits in the game. Cruz went 3-5 with 3 RBI's and 2 runs scored. Rowdy Tellez drove in 3 runs on 3 sac flies to the outfield, he's the first Pirate in franchise history to do that. Bryan Reynolds continues his hot month of July with a 3 hit game and 2 runs scored. Andrew McCutchen scored 3 times and had 2 hits.

Martín Pérez struggled in the game, as he allowed 6 earned runs on 7 hits. He pitched just 3 2/3 innings. The bullpen pitched lights out, only allowing one run the rest of the game. Mlodzinski earned the win, he improves to 2-3 on the season.

"We played well into the break. This is a tough test coming out of the break. We're playing the best team in baseball with a really dynamic lineup and then the back end of their bullpen is probably about as good as it gets. Really proud of our group. We played a solid baseball game today. The fact that we were able to jump back after giving up three, get three of Nola, one of the better pitchers in the game. I was just proud of the way we were able to play throughout the entire game," said Shelton.

The Pirates are 49-48 on the season and have won five straight games. They host the Phillies at 6:40 Saturday on 93.7 The Fan. Our coverage starts at 5:40 with the North Shore Tavern Leadoff Show presented by Pella Windows.