Bucs' walk-off win: 'A lot of guys stepped up'

In an 11-inning showdown, the Pirates recorded their first walk-off win of the season, defeating the Giants, 3-2, on Friday night at PNC Park.

“That was a heck of a game,” said manager Derek Shelton. “Our guys continue to battle, come back. A lot of guys stepped up.”

A leadoff triple from Adam Frazier in the 11th inning scored the tying run. The Giants then loaded the bases, intentionally walking Bryan Reynolds and Will Craig.

With one out, Gregory Polanco knocked in his second career walk-off RBI, a sacrifice fly to center field.

“Oh yeah, that felt great,” said Polanco of the walk-off RBI.

Before his 11th-inning at-bat, the right fielder asked Frazier for advice. The second baseman told him to aim for the center of the field, right at the shortstop.

“[Frazier] said … 'Don't try to do too much.' I went in with that mindset, and we won again,” said Polanco.

Until the ninth inning, Giants ace Kevin Gausman held the Pirates offense to just five hits. Three consecutive singles from the top of the Pirates order were enough to force extra innings for the third time this season.

The Pirates did not have a lead until they walked off. However, their starting pitcher held the Giants offense to one hit through five innings, turning in not only a dominant performance, but also setting the Bucs up for a win.

Pirates No. 12 prospect Miguel Yajure was on the mound, tossing just 57 pitches through five scoreless innings.

His low pitch count was the fewest tossed by a starter through five innings all season, and tied Chad Kuhl for the fewest since the start of last season.

“The fact that he was as efficient as he was [is] extremely impressive,” said Shelton. “I mean, [the Giants have] a good lineup. We've talked about, you know, the best record in the National League, and he went through that lineup and executed pitches in an outstanding outing for him.”

The plan for the righty was to attack the plate by using a mix of all five of his pitches. His four-seam fastball accounted for two of his four total strikeouts -- his cutter and changeup notching the other two.

“This is something I've been working on for a while,” said Yajure. “Just mastering and getting more comfortable and confident with my fastball. Going into the game, I felt very confident, and just seeing it do its work gave me even more of a boost of confidence as well.”

Yajure’s increased confidence comes from dominant performances in Triple-A and having games where everything flows smoothly. He showcased improvement from his first career start (game two of the doubleheader on April 21) where he allowed four runs in 4 1/3 innings.

Late Thursday night, the Pirates announced Yajure’s start, pushing Tyler Anderson and the rest of the starting rotation back a day. The move was explained by general manager Ben Cherington as a way to give Yajure an opportunity, while also giving the starters a rest day.

“Even if they give me short notice or anything like that, there's not much difference,” said Yajure on his preparation for his start. “The only difference that I can tell you [is] that I prepare for [the start by] studying and evaluating the hitters up here in the big leagues. It's very important to make sure to do my homework.”

His skipper was more than confident in the homework and prep his starter put in on short notice before Friday’s game.

“He dominates. Yeah, I'm all in on that. Like, sign me up,” Shelton said with a laugh.