PITTSBURGH — Chris Taylor ruined what was a great vibe day for the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday that lasted well into the evening.
Taylor’s three-run home run in the eighth inning off Colin Holderman rallied the Los Angeles Dodgers from a five-run deficit to beat the streaking Pirates 8-7 in the opener of a three-game series at PNC Park.
The loss snapped the Pirates’ seven-game winning streak, their longest since 2017. That came after the Pirates agreed to an eight-year, $106.75-million contract with outfielder Bryan Reynolds – the largest in franchise history – earlier in the day. The Pirates also entered the day with the best record in the National League at 16-7.
Andrew McCutchen hit a three-run home run in the fourth inning to put the Pirates ahead 7-2. However, the Dodgers rallied for their third straight win.
Taylor’s blast came with one out off Colin Holderman (0-1), who entered the eighth with a 7-5 lead. Miguel Vargas singled and Michael Busch, making his major-league debut, walked ahead of the homer.
The Dodgers started their comeback in the sixth inning against starter Jose Oviedo. Taylor singled in a run to knock out Oviedo and Austin Barnes greeted Robert Stephenson with a sacrifice fly to get the Dodgers with 7-5.
Oviedo allowed five runs (four earned) on six hits in 5.1 innings. He struck out four, walked two and threw just 36 of his 65 pitches for strikes.
Taylor finished with three hits and three RBIs.
Los Angeles nearly took the lead later in the sixth, but the Pirates’ Jack Suwinski leaped above the left-field fence to rob Mookie Betts of a three-run homer to end the inning.
Down a run in the eighth, the Pirates left the bases loaded when McCutchen fouled out to the catcher with two outs. Former Pirates pitcher Shelby Miller then pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his first career save.
Ke’Bryan Hayes had two hits and two RBIs for the Pirates. Carlos Santana, Suwinski and Ji Hwan Bae also had two hits apiece.
The Dodgers took a 2-0 lead in the first inning on rookie Miguel Vargas’ two-run bloop double down the right-field line.
The Pirates bounced back to take a 3-2 lead after two innings. Santana singled in a run in the first and Hayes hit a two-run double into the left-field corner an inning later.
The series continues Wednesday night with Roansy Contreras (2-1, 4.57) scheduled to start for the Pirates against Tony Gonsolin, who is expected to be activated from the injured list and make his season debut.
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