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GAME LOG
PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- The Pittsburgh Pirates were shut down by Randy Wolf and the Philadelphia Phillies for seven innings.
Then, their offense finally got to work.
Limited to just three hits in the first seven innings, the
Pirates got 10 hits and seven runs in the final two innings in an
8-3 comeback victory over the Phillies on Friday night.
Wil Cordero hit a two-run triple, highlighting a five-run eighth inning, and hit a two-run single in the ninth. He finished 3-for-4 with four RBI and was a home run shy of hitting for the cycle for
the Pirates.
"It wasn't looking good there for a while but we strung some
big hits together," Pirates coach Gene Lamont said.
Kris Benson (7-6), who left trailing 3-1, scattered 10 hits,
allowed three runs, struck out three and walked one in seven
innings.
"Kris kept us in the ballgame even though he didn't have his
best stuff," Lamont said.
Wolf (7-5) kept the Pirates off-balance for most of the game but
still managed to be the tough-luck loser in a matchup of two of the
National League's most promising young pitchers. He allowed only
three hits through seven innings before the Pirates sent nine the
plate.
The unlikely hero of the rally was Aramis Ramirez. The third
baseman, recalled from Triple-A Nashville on June 19, never had a
pinch-hit at any level of professional baseball when he stepped to
the plate for Tike Redman.
Ramirez hit a 1-2 changeup for a two-run double to left, tying
it at 3-3.
"That's the first one ever," Ramirez said. "I've had about 20
pinch-hit at-bats as a pro and never got one. It feels good."
Phillies manager Terry Francona agreed it was a crucial at-bat.
"That pitch to Ramirez was the ballgame," Francona said. "He
left a pitch up and the whole game turned around. It's a shame - he
pitched his butt off."
Ramirez improved to 1-for-4 as a pinch-hitter this season and
finished the game at third base. He has hit safely in eight of 10
games with a .352 average since his recall.
After the hit, things quickly unraveled for Wolf.
Jason Kendall followed with a single, and Cordero hit the
go-ahead, two-run triple. Brian Giles added an RBI single to make
it 6-3.
"We weren't doing anything against him but we still continued
to battle. That was a good sign," said Giles, who raised his
team-high RBI total to 68.
"I kinda just fell apart," said Wolf, who appeared to lose
some of his velocity on his fastball later in the game. "A couple
of mistakes and a couple of balls just fell in. It just happened
pretty quickly."
Cordero hit a two-run single in the ninth to give the Pirates an
8-3 lead.
Wolf left with just one out in the eighth and lost for the
second time in three starts. He struck out seven and walked one.
Wolf retired the first 12 batters he faced, five by strikeout,
before Cordero hit a two-out double in the fourth. He faced just 24
batters through seven innings.
"For seven innings, he was good as I've ever seen him pitch,"
Francona said. "Good control, kept the ball down and had command
of all three pitches."
Philadelphia scored all its runs against Benson with two outs.
The Phillies opened the scoring in the third with Mike Lieberthal's
RBI double.
Scott Rolen made it 2-0 with an RBI double in the fifth.
In the sixth, Benson got the first two outs before Desi Relaford
singled and Wolf got an infield hit. Doug Glanville looped an RBI
double just inside the left-field line.
"I'm disappointed with my outing but happy that we won,"
Benson said. "The offense was the story tonight."
Benson escaped early trouble as Philadelphia stranded four
baserunners in the opening two innings. The Phillies had two
runners in scoring position in the second when Benson retired
Glanville on a soft liner to second to end the threat.
Game notes
Pittsburgh placed outfielder Bruce Aven on the 15-day
disabled list and recalled Redman from Triple-A Nashville. Aven
strained his left hamstring in Thursday's 5-4 win against Chicago.
Redman started in center field and collected his first major league
hit with a single in the sixth. ... The meeting between interstate
rivals was the first since July 1, 1999. The Pirates won the season
series 4-3 last year. ... Glanville broke an 0-for-20 slump with a
fifth-inning single. ... Rolen extended his team-high hitting
streak to nine games with his double in the fifth. ... Giles has
reached base in 76 of 78 games this season.<
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