Two of the Pittsburgh Pirates’ most maligned players on the season – Mitch Keller and Gregory Polanco – played key roles in the club’s 4-0 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals Friday night at Busch Stadium in St. Louis.
Keller, who entered the game with a disappointing 3-10 record and a 6.86 ERA, blanked St. Louis on six hits over five innings, and Polanco contributed a pair of sacrifice flies as the Bucs took the first game of the three-game set.
Keller and Cardinals starter Miles Mikolas, who was making just his second start of the season after missing time with a forearm injury, matched zeroes through the first three innings before the Pirates struck for two runs in the top of the fourth inning.