TLDR: Pittsburgh trailed after seven innings and had no business feeling good about this one — then the 8th happened, and the Pirates walked away with their 4th straight win.
Michael Wacha took the ball for Kansas City carrying a 9-9 record and a 3.33 ERA, coming off a 6-inning, 4-run loss to Houston in his last time out. Lake Bachar started for Pittsburgh at 1-4 with a 3.56 ERA, and his previous outing was a short one — 2 innings, 3 hits, 2 walks against Milwaukee before Pittsburgh's bullpen had to cover the rest.
Pittsburgh trailed Kansas City 3-2 into the bottom of the 8th before scoring twice to win 4-3, its 4th straight win and 3rd in this series. Kansas City's bullpen had already been stretched thin by injuries and bereavement, and it couldn't hold a late lead against a Pirates team that's been finding ways to win all week.
+Answered right back with 2 in the bottom of the 8th
+Shut Kansas City out in the top 9th to close it
+Extended the winning streak to 4
−Scored just 2 runs through the first 7 innings
−Committed an error
−Needed a late rally to avoid a 4th straight series loss to KC
Kansas City's already-thin roster is down to bare wires in relief, with Craig Kimbrel away from the team on bereavement and both Connor Seabold and James McArthur on the 60-day list. Pittsburgh's own attrition runs deeper for the season — Braxton Ashcraft isn't expected to pitch again — but neither injury report figured much into a game that came down to two bullpens trading zeros for six innings before Saturday's finish.
Noah Cameron
(9-8)·3.92 ERA
Sep 13 @ Red Sox
ND
6.0IP
1ER
4K
1BB
85P
09/19 Lineup
Bubba Chandler
(8-9)·4.34 ERA
Sep 13 @ Cubs
W
5.1IP
3ER
3K
4BB
90P
09/19 Lineup
The Polymarket chat pulled in 9,851 members for this one, about 24% above the season's median room, and it stayed loud into the night as both sides traded the lead late.
Kansas City grabbed an early run in the 1st and looked to have this one in hand after a 2-run 7th put the Royals up 3-2 — one poster in the room posted "Welp goodnight guys we got the W" while holding KC. It didn't hold. Pittsburgh answered right back with 2 runs in the bottom of the 8th to go up 4-3, and the room's busiest 5-minute stretch of the night hit right as that rally unfolded. The Royals went quiet in the 9th, and Pittsburgh closed it out 4-3.
Pittsburgh has now won 4 straight and 3 of the last 3 against Kansas City in this set, a stretch that's dragged a .500-hunting club back to relevance in September. The Royals, meanwhile, dropped their 4th in a row and remain a game further under water on a season that was decided a long time ago.
