PITTSBURGH -- For the first time since 2011, Andrew McCutchen did not come to bat in the first inning of a Pirates game. When he did get into the batter's box, he was sure to make the most of it.
McCutchen batted cleanup for the Bucs for the second time in four years. When he last did so in 2013, he still got his first-inning ups amidst a rally.
Not Friday night. Jimmy Nelson continued toying with the Bucs, retiring them in order in the first. Six days earlier, he had pitched seven innings of two-hit shutout ball against the Bucs -- minus McCutchen, who had sat out that game with a sore left knee.