Sean Rodriguez didn’t let Tony Watson stew for long. Shortly after Watson blew his first save as Pirates closer, Rodriguez ripped a fastball from Cincinnati Reds right-hander Ross Ohlendorf into the left-field bleachers at PNC Park for a no-doubt, walk-off home run.
The Pirates, whose charter flight from Atlanta to Pittsburgh touched down at 2:24 a.m. Friday, bounced back from a miserable one-win road trip by bouncing the Cincinnati Reds, 3-2, in a series opener at PNC Park. They climbed again to one game over .500, at 54-53.
Steadied by another strong start from right-hander Jameson Taillon, who threw six innings of one-run baseball, the Pirates pulled into the lead two runs in the fifth inning on a replay review, a sacrifice fly and a Jordy Mercer’s perfectly executed squeeze play.