Right out of the box, Gregory Polanco thought he had it. He almost did – his hard line drive to left field smacked right off the Highmark banner above the Clemente Wall, just shy of clearing the railing for a home run. As it was, it was a long single, meaning Travis Ishikawa had work to do.
Ishikawa scored ahead of the relay throw, spinning and pumping his left fist. He represented the winning run. For the second consecutive night, Polanco’s eighth-inning hit broke a tie and the Pirates won again, 5-2, to complete a series sweep against the San Diego Padres.