Wilyer Abreu drives in a pair of runs as Red Sox complete sweep of reeling Pirates with 6-1 victory
PITTSBURGH - Wilyer Abreu had three hits and drove in two runs and the Boston Red Sox beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 6-1 on Sunday to complete a three-game sweep.
Abreu's RBI single off Martín Pérez (1-1) in the third gave the Red Sox the lead for good. He added another RBI single in the sixth as Boston continued its strong play away from Fenway Park.
Reese McGuire added a pinch-hit two-run single for the Red Sox, who improved to 10-3 on the road so far this season. Justin Slaten (1-0) worked two scoreless innings in relief to earn the victory as the Red Sox's road ERA dropped to 1.45.
Ke'Bryan Hayes had two of Pittsburgh's seven hits and drove in the Pirates' only run with a first-inning sacrifice fly. Pittsburgh has dropped six straight to fall to .500 (11-11) for the first time this season.
The Pirates have scored just nine runs during their slide and did little against five Red Sox pitchers. Pittsburgh didn't help itself with a couple of baserunning mistakes to take away scoring opportunities. Hayes and Jack Suwinski were both thrown out at second - Hayes in the fourth, Suwinski in the sixth - trying to grab an extra base in hopes of sparking a struggling offense.
Pérez, labored through four-plus innings. The veteran left-hander, who had been sharp in his first four starts with the Pirates, gave up four runs in four-plus innings, with four walks and seven strikeouts. Pérez left in the fifth after Abreu led off with a double and Connor Wong walked.
Pittsburgh reliever Ryder Ryan came on and gave up a flare to center by McGuire, a former Pirates prospect, that made it 4-1, more than enough considering Pittsburgh's current issues at the plate.
Josh Winckowski, a reliever these days, made his first start since last August and just his second since the end of the 2022 season for Boston. The right-hander worked 3 1/3 innings, giving up one run and three hits with a strikeout before being removed after 46 pitches.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Red Sox: Placed 1B Triston Casas on the 10-day injured list with a left rib strain. Casas injured the rib while fouling off a pitch in the first inning on Saturday. Boston called up C Tyler Heineman from Triple-A Worcester to take Casas' spot on the roster.
Pirates: C Yasmani Grandal (left foot), who is rehabbing at Triple-A Indianapolis, will be evaluated by the team early in the week. Grandal general manager Ben Cherington said Sunday that Grandal could come off the injured list "not too long from now."
UP NEXT
Red Sox: Are off Monday before beginning a three-game series in Cleveland on Tuesday. The Guardians took 3 of 4 from Boston at Fenway Park last week.
Pirates: Welcome NL Central rival Milwaukee to PNC Park on Monday to start a four-game set. Rookie Jared Jones (1-2, 3.13 ERA) starts for Pittsburgh. Joe Ross (1-1, 4.91) is scheduled to start for the Brewers.