The Pirates completely shut down the St. Louis Cardinals offense again to complete a homestand sweep, and Mitch Keller became the all-time PNC Park strikeout king. Joe Block recaps another big win for the Bucs.
Keller’s seven strikeouts gives him 389 K’s at PNC Park, passing Paul Maholm’s record of 383. Manager Don Kelly says Keller got stronger as the game went on, outdueling Cardinals starter Sonny Gray.
The strikeout record means a lot to Keller.
The Pirates scratched out a run in the second inning and it was still only 1-0 before they scored four in the seventh. Shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa is enjoying being on the winning end of tight games.
The Bucs are off today and will start a nine-game road trip tomorrow before the All-Star break. They will play three games each at Seattle, Kansas City, and Minnesota.
The weekly injury report from senior director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk includes the first game action for pitcher Johan Oviedo since having Tommy John surgery in 2023. He started and gave up three hits and two runs in two-thirds of an inning on Monday. Tomczyk said Oviedo “came out of it good.”
Colin Holderman “feels great” after a rehab outing at Indianapolis. Tomczyk said his injured thumb is a recurring injury going back about 18 months and he will be re-examined after the season to see if surgery is required.
Injured pitcher Ryan Borucki threw a side session yesterday and pitchers Tim Mayza, Justin Lawrence, and Jared Jones are all making progress, while catcher Endy Rodriguez has regained full range of motion on his injured elbow.
