Christian Bethancourt capped a career day with a go-ahead two-run single in the top of the ninth, lifting the Chicago Cubs to an improbable 14-10 win over the host Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday.
Bethancourt finished with seven RBIs, six coming in the final three innings.
Pittsburgh held a commanding 10-3 advantage after six innings, but Bethancourt then took over. He clubbed a two-run homer in the seventh and drove in two more runs with a double an inning later, pulling Chicago within 10-7.
Ian Happ added an RBI single in the eighth to put even more pressure on the Pirates.
The Cubs then proceeded to load the bases with one out in the ninth against Pittsburgh closer David Bednar (3-7). Cody Bellinger scored when Dansby Swanson grounded into a forceout, making it a one-run game. After Bednar intentionally walked Pete Crow-Armstrong to load the bases again, Bethancourt delivered his two-run single.
Happ, Mike Tauchman and Seiya Suzuki followed with RBI singles to put the finishing touches on the Cubs’ six-run ninth.
Porter Hodge (3-1) got the win thanks to Chicago’s stunning rally.
Bethancourt finished with three hits and scored three runs. Crow-Armstrong went 4-for-4 with four runs and an RBI for the Cubs, who won for the sixth time in seven games.
Bryan Reynolds, Connor Joe and Rowdy Tellez each collected three hits as the Pirates got swept in the three-game series. Reynolds and Joe both homered.
The Pirates struck for a five-run second that was headlined by a two-run single from Tellez. He later scored on Billy McKinney’s ground-rule double to put the Pirates up 6-3.
McKinney’s double chased Chicago starter Kyle Hendricks from the game. The right-hander threw 70 pitches across 1 2/3 innings, giving up the six runs on eight hits.
Joe led off the fourth with a solo home run to make it 7-3. Four batters later, Alika Williams plated McKinney with a sacrifice bunt. Two more runs scored on Joe’s double in the fifth, with Joe getting credited with only one RBI on the play because of left fielder Happ’s error.
Bellinger singled home a run and Reynolds ripped a solo shot as the teams traded runs in the first.
An RBI single from Crow-Armstrong and a run-scoring groundout from Bethancourt provided the Cubs with a 3-1 edge in the top of the second.
Pittsburgh starter Paul Skenes yielded three runs (two earned) on five hits in five innings.
–Field Level Media
