Pirates Finish Comeback With Walkoff vs. Orioles
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PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates struggled from the plate early on, but thanks to a great pitching performance, they did enough late on to get an important win.
The Pirates came from behind and defeated the Baltimore Orioles, 3-2 at PNC Park on April 4, with Nick Yorke the hero with a walk-off hit to win the game.
Yorke took a slider down and inside and hit it over Orioles left fielder Dylan Beavers, scoring the winning run and keeping the Pirates undefeated at home, after they won the home opener 5-4 on April 3.
The Pirates have now won five of their past six games and have won two straight series, as they also took two out of three games off the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park.
Carmen Mlodzinski Has Decent Start vs. Orioles
Pirates right-handed starting pitcher Carmen Mlodzinski made his second start of the season and despite one tough inning, had a solid outing overall.
Mlodzinski gave up five hits, three walks and two earned runs over 84 pitches, while posting five strikeouts over 4.2 innings pitched.
He had his issues in the top of the fourth inning, where he gave up four hits and a walk and both runs, but only gave up one hit and one walk in his first three innings with three strikeouts.
Mlodzinski would give up a walk but also get two outs in the fifth inning, before Pirates manager brought in left-handed pitcher Hunter Barco in relief.
He has struggled in the past in dealing with the second time facing the lineup and this start didn't necessarily dissuade those doubts, but he was effective on the mound, for the most part.
Mlodzinski relied on his splitter the most, but also mixed in his four-seam fastball and sinker, plus curveball and slider for the offspeed.
Pitch | Usage | Average Velocity |
|---|---|---|
Splitter | 29/84 (35%) | 85.4 mph |
Four-Seam Fastball | 22/84 (26%) | 95.6 mph |
Curveball | 15/84 (18%) | 85.0 mph |
Sinker | 12/84 (14%) | 95.2 mph |
Slider | 6/84 (7%) | 91.7 mph |
Pirates Offense Misses Chances to Really Contribute
The Pirates got two baserunners on in the top of the first inning, as center fielder Oneil Cruz walked, second baseman Brandon Lowe grounded out but made it to first base safely, then left fielder Bryan Reynolds singled.
Right fielder Ryan O'Hearn and designated hitter Marcell Ozuna both failed to take advantage of the scoring opportunity, as they each struck out, ending the inning
The Pirates didn't get anything going the next two innings, but Reynolds reached first base safely to leadoff the bottom of the fourth inning, coming from an error by Orioles right-handed starting pitcher Shane Baz.
O'Hearn singled and then both runners moved up a base on Ozuna's grounder, that Orioles third baseman Coby Mayo couldn't pick up for the double play.
Baz hit shortstop Konnor Griffin with a pitch and first baseman Spencer Horwitz hit a fly ball deep enough to score Reynolds on the sacrifice fly, cutting the deficit to 2-1, but third baseman Nick Gonzales grounded out to keep the Pirates trailing.
The Pirates missed two chances to score over the next two innings, as Lowe and O'Hearn walked with two outs in the bottom of the fifth inning, but O'Hearn flew out, and then after Horwitz hit a ground-rule double with two outs in the bottom of sixth inning, catcher Joey Bart grounded out.
Cruz ledoff the bottom of the seventh inning with a single, but Lowe and Reynolds struck out and Ryan O'Hearn grounded out to end the inning.
Pirates Keep Game Alive
Ozuna, who had just one hit in 26 at-bats, ledoff the bottom of the eighth inning with a slow dribbler down the third base line and got to first base safely for a single, with Nick Yorke taking his place as pinch-runner.
Griffin and Horwitz both grounded out, moving Yorke to third base, then Jake Mangum came in as a pinch-hitter for Bart to try and drive the run home.
Mangum hit a slow roller that Orioles right-handed pitcher Anthony Nunez failed to come up with, as he got to first base safely and Yorke scored to tie the game up at 2-2.
Right-handed pitcher Dennis Santana threw a scoreless ninth inning of relief, giving the Pirates a chance to win it in the bottom of the ninth inning.
Reynolds would hit a double that went off the left field wall with one out and then Orioles right-handed pitcher Ryan Helsley intentionally walked O'Hearn.
Yorke then took advantage of the intentional walk and gave the Pirates a win with his double.
WALKOFF!!#RAISEIT pic.twitter.com/cxugxqOFhz
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) April 4, 2026
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.