Giants, Pirates look for strong pitching performances after slugfest

Sep 1, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates catcher Rafael Flores Jr. (43) is doused with liquids after putting the ball in play and hustling to first base forcing a San Francisco Giants error to win the game during the ninth inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images One pitcher seeking to repeat a winning effort and another attempting to end a losing streak will attempt to return things to normalcy when the San Francisco Giants and host Pittsburgh Pirates continue a three-game series Wednesday night. San Francisco's Landen Roupp and fellow right-hander Jared Jones will attempt to give exhausted bullpens a break in the rematch of the Pirates' 13-12, walk-off win in the series opener on Tuesday. That result wasn't expected with Logan Webb and Paul Skenes having started the game, and the teams combined to use 12 relievers. Roupp (8-13, 4.25) had started six Giants losses in a row -- he was saddled with the loss in five of them -- before throwing five one-run innings in a 6-1 home triumph over the Arizona Diamondbacks last Thursday. The 27-year-old started a 13-3 home loss to the Pirates in May, allowing one run in four-plus innings while laboring through 94 pitches. He left a scoreless game after serving up an inning-opening single by Joey Bart in the fifth, then watched the visitors rattle off 17 hits against six Giants relievers. It was his first career matchup with Pittsburgh. Roupp will have to hope his teammates are able to put a crazy loss in the rear-view mirror, with the Giants having blown an early three-run lead before rallying from six down to take a 12-12 tie into the ninth. A game that featured 35 hits ended on a pair of miscues by the Giants (57-82) -- pitcher Carson Seymour dropped a relay throw at first base that could have sent the game to extra innings, before Osleivis Basabe threw wildly to first on a Rafael Flores Jr. groundball, allowing the game-ending run to score. "You get (upset) when it doesn't work out the way you want and the way you fought for," Giants manager Tony Vitello told the media, addressing the state of the team after the loss. "But the thing about this (is) we're coming right back around the corner (Wednesday). Got an opportunity to vent any of those frustrations or pick up where we left off, however you want to look at it." The win was the Pirates' third in a row, a 27-inning stretch in which they've recorded 24 runs and 38 hits. Oneil Cruz has accounted for seven of the hits, four of the runs and four RBIs in that span. Cruz missed 58 games bridging June to August with a broken left hand and since has hit safely in nine of his 12 games while being moved around the lineup. "There's a lot of ways that Oneil can help us win," Pirates manager Don Kelly said. "We all know he's got the power, the arm strength in the outfield, the speed on the bases. ... Just excited to have him back to help us win." The Pirates (68-71) would like nothing better than to get Jones (2-6, 4.83) back in the win column. The 25-year-old has taken the ball for seven straight defeats, dinged with the loss in five of them. The native Californian has made two previous starts against the Giants, going 0-1 with a 4.91 ERA. --Field Level Media