Jared Triolo, who entered with a .152 batting average, had two of Pittsburgh’s five hits against him. Triolo drove a leadoff double in the third inning and scored on two groundouts. Valdez’s only other blip came in the fifth, when Triolo had the first of three straight two-out singles against him.

The Pirates dropped 2 of 3 games at the San Diego Padres, losing 6-4 as +133 underdogs in the Sunday finale with the Over (8.5) hitting. Pittsburgh held an 83.9% win probability, according to ESPN Analytics, leading 4-1 with 1 out in the bottom of the sixth inning Sunday -- but was outscored 5-0 the rest of the way.

Lance McCullers Jr. pitched six sparkling innings for his first win since 2022, and Christian Walker and Isaac Paredes hit late home runs as the Houston Astros beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 3-0