Pirates own best record in MLB after earning 7th straight win
PITTSBURGH — Look who has the best record in the major leagues.
Gerrit Cole overcame a rocky start to become the first Pirates pitcher to win his first four career starts in more than a century and the Pirates won their seventh straight, 10-3 over the Milwaukee Brewers.
The Pirates moved a game up in the NL Central when the St. Louis Cardinals lost later at Oakland. At 49-30, Pittsburgh has the best record in baseball.
Cole (4-0) gave up three runs in the first inning but no more as he made it through six innings, allowing eight hits with three walks and three strikeouts. Nick Maddox started 4-0 in his first four starts in 1907.
“It's really a team effort,” Cole said. “I've pitched pretty well but I've gotten a lot of support defensively and our offense has been very opportunistic. It feels good to say I'm 4-0 but it feels even better because the team is playing well.”
The Pirates are on their longest winning streak since running off 10 in a row in 2004.
The Pirates haven't had a winning season since 1992 and the 20-year stretch of futility is the longest in major North American professional team sports history. However, they are not getting caught up in being in the rarified air of being 19 games over .500 in June.
“We're just focused on winning that day,” Pittsburgh manager Clint Hurdle said. “Our guys our very focused on taking it pitch to pitch.”
Johnny Hellweg (0-1) failed to get out of the second inning in his major league debut, giving up seven runs — five earned — in 1 2-3 innings.
“He didn't come out with very good stuff,” Milwaukee manager Ron Roenicke said. “He was trying to aim the ball instead of throw it. That happens a lot of times when it's a guy's first time out.”
Starling Marte had a double and triple among his three hits, and just missed a homer in the eighth when he flied out to deep center field.
McCutchen had three hits, including his ninth home run, and three RBIs for Pittsburgh. Pedro Alvarez added two hits and Neil Walker hit a two-run double to start a seven-run second inning in which the Pirates sent 12 batters to the plate.Alvarez extended his hitting streak to 11 gamesRyan Reid pitched three scoreless innings for his first career save. He was called up from Triple-A Indianapolis on June 3 after spending seven seasons in the minor leagues.“It's really nice to get a save but it's even better to help the team win,” said Reid, who has a 1.00 ERA in six games. “I feel good about being able to come up here and help the team keep winning.”
