Vance Worley Delivers As Pittsburgh Pirates Turn Away Brewers In Home Finale
By Matt Gajtka
Sep 21, 2014; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Vance Worley (46) delivers a pitch against the Milwaukee Brewers during the first inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
In the midst of a rebound season, Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Vance Worley was skipped over in favor of Charlie Morton last Tuesday.
However, because of Morton’s recurring sports hernia, Worley was back in the rotation Sunday against the Milwaukee Brewers for what was arguably the most important game of the season.
Worley, who handled getting passed over as well as anyone could expect, showed his professionalism even more in the Pirates’ final regular-season home game, throwing eight shutout innings in Pittsburgh’s tight 1-0 victory over Milwaukee at PNC Park.
There were just a few hard-hit balls all day against the right-handed Worley as he leaned on a fastball-cutter-slider combination to befuddle the Brewers. The Pirates, who won two out of three this weekend and have taken 13 of 16 overall, lead Milwaukee (80-76) by 4 1/2 games for the National League’s second wild card with one week to go.
The Pirates lost 12 of 19 in the season series, but winning Sunday likely doomed the Brewers to an early offseason. The Bucs’ magic number to clinch a playoff spot fell to three as they hit the road for the season’s final week.
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For all of Worley’s brilliance Sunday – he threw 63 of 82 pitches for strikes and fanned five against zero walks – the Pirates struggled offensively for the fourth consecutive game. Milwaukee’s Wily Peralta allowed just two infield singles through six innings, as he recovered from getting bombed by the Bucs last month at Miller Park.
As it turned out, one run was all the Pirates needed. Andrew McCutchen led off with a swinging bunt that went for a hit, then he advanced to second on a passed ball and sprinted to third on a wild pitch. After Neil Walker struck out, Russell Martin delivered again in the clutch, driving a run-scoring single to center field.
Pirates manager Clint Hurdle decided to pull Worley in favor of a pinch hitter in the bottom of the eighth, but the margin remained one heading for the ninth. With Mark Melancon unavailable, Tony Watson was tasked with facing the heart of the Milwaukee order in search of his third MLB save.
It got interesting right away, with Carlos Gomez singling to start the frame and Rickie Weeks chopping an infield hit over the mound. However, Gomez was picked off rounding second base on Weeks’ hit, a key error that somewhat squelched the rally. After Jonathan Lucroy popped out, Ryan Braun represented the visitors’ last chance.
Braun lifted Watson’s first-pitch fastball to left-center, but it hung up in the breeze long enough for McCutchen to grab it comfortably. He raised his arms to the sky as the Pirates won for the 51st time at home this season, a PNC Park record and the most for the franchise since 1992.
Josh Harrison went 2 for 4 in his chase for the NL batting title, tying him with Justin Morneau for the league lead at .318. There were no extra-base hits in the game, which zoomed along in 2 hours, 25 minutes.
The Pirates start a four-game series in Atlanta on Monday night, with Francisco Liriano going against Aaron Harang.