Pirates Blown Out by Dodgers in Series Finale
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PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates took an early lead, but soon lost it and the game, 9-2 to the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodgers Stadium.
The Pirates make it back-to-back defeats to the Dodgers, as they lost 8-4 on April 26. This makes it a series defeat for the Pirates, which is the fourth series on the road they've lost this season out of five played.
Pittsburgh drops to 11-18 overall and 5-11 on the road in 2025 with this defeat to Los Angeles.
Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz opened the game with a walk, but right fielder Bryan Reynolds would ground into a double play.
Designated hitter Andrew McCutchen came up next and faced an old Pirates teammate in Dodgers right-handed pitcher Tyler Glasnow. He saw a fastball and smashed it 407 feet for a solo home run.
Andrew McCutchen sends this one 407 feet 😮💨 pic.twitter.com/3XZss5d35F
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) April 27, 2025
That marked McCutchen's third home run of the season and the No. 238th in his 12th season with the Pirates, just two shy of Hall of Famer Roberto Clemente in third place in franchise history with 240 home runs.
First baseman Enmanuel Valdez joined McCutchen, as he crushed a ball into the right field seats, as the Pirates led 2-0. This was also the first time the Pirates have hit back-to-back home runs this season.
And Enmanuel Valdez goes back-to-back 💥 pic.twitter.com/rTtHLVXbGW
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) April 27, 2025
Pirates starting left-handed pitcher Bailey Falter struggled right from the beginning vs. the Dodgers in the bottom of the first inning, walking designated hitter Shohei Ohtani and allowing a single to shortstop Mookie Betts.
He got right fielder Teoscar Hernández to ground out, but both Ohtani and Betts moved up one base. Falter then allowed a single to first baseman Freddie Freeman, as the Dodgers tied it up at 2-2.
Dodgers center fielder Tommy Edman grounded to Pirates third baseman Ke'Bryan Hayes, who just missed the ball when it bounced up. Freeman would score from first base and Edman made it to third base, as the Dodgers took a 3-2 lead.
Left fielder Andy Pages singled in the next at-bat, scoring Edman and Los Angeles finished the first inning up 4-2.
The Dodgers made a change at starting pitcher at the start of the second inning, as Glasnow left with shoulder discomfort. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts put right-handed relief pitcher Ben Casparius in for Glasnow, who would post five strikeouts and allow just two hits over 3.2 innings of work.
Falter walked Dodgers second baseman Enrique Hernández and allowed a double to Ohtani, putting two runners on with one out in the bottom of the second inning. Betts hit a sacrifice fly, scoring Enrique Hernández and extending their lead to 5-2.
He also allowed a solo home run to Teoscar Hernández to start the bottom of the fifth inning, and he would finish his day after allowing a single to Freeman and striking out Edman.
Pirates manager Derek Shelton brought in right-handed pitcher Kyle Nicolas, who would allow a two-run home to Pages on the first pitch he threw, putting the Dodgers up 8-2.
Pages got his fourth hit and fourth RBI of the game in the bottom of the sixth inning, which scored a runner and extended Los Angeles' lead to 9-2.
McCutchen would end up with four hits, the first time for him since he was with the Milwaukee Brewers, doing so vs. the Cincinnati Reds on May 4, 2022. It was also his first four-hit game with the Pirates since Sept. 26, 2017 vs. the Baltimore Orioles.
The Pirates travel back home and after a day off, they'll face the Chicago Cubs for the first time in 2025. First game takes place on April 29 with first pitch set for 6:40 p.m. at PNC Park.
Dominic writes for Pittsburgh Pirates On SI, Pittsburgh Panthers Pn SI and also, Pittsburgh Steelers On SI. A Pittsburgh native, Dominic grew up watching Pittsburgh Sports and wrote for The Pitt News as an undergraduate at the University of Pittsburgh, covering Pitt Athletics. He would write for Pittsburgh Sports Now after college and has years of experience covering sports across Pittsburgh.