Bubba Chandler tossed six scoreless innings and the host Pirates’ bats came alive as Pittsburgh blanked the New York Mets 9-0 on Saturday night.
Jake Mangum had three hits, including a pair of doubles, and Nick Gonzales drove in three runs to lead the Pirates, who snapped a four-game losing streak and the Mets’ four-game winning streak.
Pittsburgh struck quickly for three runs in the first and another four runs in the fourth off Mets starter Robert Stock (0-2), who allowed eight runs overall on nine hits and five walks, and struck out four in three innings.
Chandler (5-8) struck out five, walked one and allowed only three hits — all singles. It was the Pirates’ seventh shutout of the season and the 12th time the Mets were blanked this season.
The Mets had catcher Luis Torrens pitch the seventh and eighth innings. Brandon Lowe smacked the third pitch Torrens threw over the right field wall for his 25th home run of the season. Lowe has now hit 25 home runs in a season three times in his career, including each of the past two seasons. Torrens didn’t allow another run, however.
Ronny Simon had two hits, including a two-run double in the first inning to put the Pirates ahead 3-0. Simon scored Pittsburgh’s fourth run in the third inning on an RBI single by Jacob Gonzalez.
Mangum’s RBI double in the fourth extended the lead to 5-0. Four batters later, Gonzales smacked a two-run double to right that scored Lowe and Bryan Reynolds and ended right-hander Stock’s outing.
Luis Robert Jr. singled in the second inning but was then thrown out trying to steal second by Henry Davis, who also finished with two hits.
The Mets did not have a runner reach second base and Pirates pitchers retired 18 of the final 19 batters they faced.
Right-handers Lake Bachar and Kirby Yates, two of the relievers the Pirates acquired at the trade deadline last Monday, combined for the final three scoreless innings. Bachar struck out four.
