Wainwright shuts down Pirates again in 13-0 St. Louis win

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Adam Wainwright baffled the Pittsburgh Pirates yet again, allowing three hits over seven innings as the St. Louis Cardinals cruised to a 13-0 victory on Saturday night.

Wainwright (13-7), who turns 40 on Monday, improved to 4-0 with a 0.30 ERA against the Pirates this season. He is unbeaten against Pittsburgh in his last 17 starts dating to 2016.

Masterfully mixing a fastball that never touched 90 mph with a curveball that remains one of the best in the game, Wainwright struck out five and walked one while confounding the Pirates for the third time in 17 days.

He tossed a complete-game two-hit shutout at PNC Park on Aug. 11, followed it up with eight scoreless innings in St. Louis last Sunday and came back with another brilliantly efficient performance as the Cardinals won their second straight as they try to stay on the fringe of the NL playoff race.

Edmundo Sosa tripled twice and drove in five runs against Pittsburgh starter Steven Brault (0-3). He hit a shot to the notch in left-center in the second to score Yadier Molina and Dylan Carlson and cleared the bases with a liner to the gap in right-center in the third to give Wainwright all the support he would need and then some.

Sosa finished 4 for 6, Tommy Edman also went 4 for 6 and Paul Goldschmidt had two hits and three RBIs for the Cardinals, who have won 12 of their 18 meetings with Pittsburgh this season.

Bryan Reynolds doubled for the Pirates but Pittsburgh failed to get a runner to third base while losing by double digits for the seventh time this season and third time this month. The defeat came on the same day the team released longtime right fielder Gregory Polanco, the last remaining member of the group that reached the playoffs three straight times from 2013-15.

Any return to the...

source https://www.chron.com/sports/article/Wainwright-shuts-down-Pirates-again-in-13-0-St-16419198.php