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Pirates keep line moving in seven-run second inning

Originally posted on DK Pittsburgh Sports | Last updated Jun 6, 2024 2:08 AM ET

One big inning set the tone in the Pirates' 10-6 win over the Dodgers Wednesday at PNC Park. There was an assembly line of players delivering with either patient at-bats that turned in to walks, or clutch, timely hits that resulted in a seven-run second inning and an early advantage the Pirates wouldn't relinquish.

In total, they scored seven runs on six hits and sent 11 batters to the plate, setting a season high for any inning this year. It was the best offensive output in a single inning since Sept. 20, 2023.

"The main thing there was we all did our job to get on base and drive runs in," Edward Olivares said via interpreter and major-league coach Stephen Morales. "That was important that inning."

Olivares was the spark that started it all against Dodgers starter James Paxton in the second. His leadoff walk was followed by a four straight hits -- including a two-run double by Nick Gonzales and an RBI single by Yasmani Grandal that made it 3-0. Bryan Reynolds added a two-run single and later scored on a passed ball before Olivares took advantage of a second at-bat in the inning by lining a run-scoring single into right to cap the early run support for starting pitcher Paul Skenes:

A recap of the Pirates scoring 7 runs in the 2nd inning pic.twitter.com/0Ol1eydzof
— Platinum Ke’Bryan (@PlatinumKey13) June 5, 2024

"We did a couple things. We saw the ball well, we did a good job on Paxton and we hit situationally," Derek Shelton said. "We had second and third, we moved a guy. We had a bunt. Grandal comes up, runner on second, nobody out. Base hit to right field. We did a really good job with situational hitting to continue to keep the line moving."

While the Dodgers continued to chip away with a two-run home run from Shohei Ohtani in the third inning and runs in four of the final five innings, the Pirates managed to add on to their lead with three runs in the fifth and seventh innings. Gonzales, who matched a career high with four RBIs and improved his season total to 20 in 23 games since being recalled from Class AAA Indianapolis on May 10, drove in a run on a sacrifice fly in the fifth and had back-to-back RBI singles with Hayes in the seventh.

"We continued to go. Key had a couple big at-bats there. He had a walk in the one. Base hit in the other one," Shelton said. "We continued to add on, which was really important. Because you see against this lineup, it can get hairy really quickly."

This article first appeared on DK Pittsburgh Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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