Pirates Defeat Phillies With Walk-Off Home Run
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PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates trailed for most of the game, but a strong finish in the bottom of the ninth inning pushed them over the Philadelphia Phillies, 3-2 at LECOM Park in Bradenton, Fla.
The win for the Pirates makes it four out of their last five, as they demolished the Baltimore Orioles, 15-5 on March 15 at home, defeated the New York Yankees 4-3 at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, Fla. on March 16 and split their games on March 17, a 4-2 victory over the Minnesota Twins at home and an 8-6 loss to the Detroit Tigers on the road.
Pittsburgh (14-10) also improves to 9-4 at LECOM Park and 2-0 over Philadelphia in Spring Training, also winning 3-2 at home on March 7.
Right-handed pitcher Thomas Harrington, who ranks No. 3 in the Pirates system and No. 79 prospect overall according to MLB Pipeline, got the start vs. the Phillies.
He did allow a solo home run to Phillies designated hitter Nick Castellanos in the top of the first inning, but that served as the only hit he allowed in 3.2 innings of work, with just one walk and three strikeouts on the day.
Right-handed pitchers Eddy Yean and David Bednar did well in relief, with Yean getting the Pirates out of the fourth inning and Bednar striking out two batters in the fifth inning.
Castellanos struck again for the Phillies in the top of the sixth inning, as he singled off of Pirates' right-handed pitcher Kyle Nicholas and scored third baseman Carson DeMartini from second base.
Nicholas faced a bases loaded jam after allowing a single to left fielder Max Kepler, but would strikeout shorstop Edmundo Sosa and got first baseman Kody Clemens to hit into a double-play, keeping the lead at just 2-0.
The Pirates would continue struggling from the plate, as they scored no runs through the bottom of the eighth inning, but their bullpen performed well. Right-handed pitchers in Burch Smith and Wilkin Ramos kept it scoreless for seventh innning and both the eighth and ninth innings, respectively.
Pittsburgh finally got something going at the plate in the bottom of the ninth inning, as second baseman Nick Solak singled and pinch hitter DJ Stewart hit a ground-rule double, moving Solak to third base.
First baseman Nick Yorke hit a sacrifice fly, scoring Solak and trimming the deficit to 2-1, while also moving Stewart to third base. Right fielder Bryce Johnson then hit a sacrifice fly himself, scoring Stewart and tying the game at 2-2.
Javier Rivas, who was playing third base, faced Phillies right-handed pitcher Josh Hejka and blasted a changeup over the middle of the plate for a solo, walk-off home run for the Pirates.
JAVIER RIVAS WITH A WALK-OFF HOME RUN!! 💣 pic.twitter.com/OsTTl1edJd
— Young Bucs (@YoungBucsPIT) March 18, 2025
The Pirates will travel for their next Grapefruit League game, as they face the Tampa Bay Rays at Charlotte Sports Park in Port Charlotte, Fla. on March 19 with 1:05 p.m. time for first pitch.
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.