Greinke pitched six scoreless innings, Paul Goldschmidt homered and the Diamondbacks beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 7-2 on Saturday for their third consecutive win.
r1;We were having debates in here whether we should send Zack out or not,r1; Lovullo said. r1;He said he felt great and he wanted to keep pitching. Just felt like we had to do the right thing and take him off the mound, but he saved us today. He did a great job.r1;
David Peralta had two hits and two RBIs for NL West-leading Arizona. Goldschmidt also walked twice and scored three times.
Greinke (7-5) allowed two hits, struck out seven and walked none. He also doubled and scored on Jon Jayr17;s double in the fourth.
The Pirates hit just four balls out of the infield against Greinke, who had never before stayed in through two rain delays. They combined to halt play for 1 hour, 21 minutes.
r1;Didnr17;t really know how to respond,r1; he said. r1;Told Torey if it feels terrible, Ir17;d let them know. It wasnr17;t too bad.r1;
Greinker17;s extra-slow curveball was especially effective. Sitting around 69 mph at a big separation from his 89 mph fastball, it accounted for four of his strikeouts.
r1;Itr17;s obviously a weapon that slows the hitters down because itr17;s such a slow pitch,r1; Arizona catcher Jeff Mathis said. r0;He has a good feel for it too. Her17;s always looking for an opportunity to drop it in there.r1;
Arizona grabbed control with five runs in the first four innings against Joe Musgrove (2-3).
Goldschmidt walked and scored on Peraltar17;s triple in the first. Peralta then scored when Sean Rodriguezr17;s relay throw landed in the Piratesr17; dugout.
The duo combined for another run in the third when Goldschmidt walked again and scored on Peraltar17;s double. Chris Owings singled in Jake Lamb to make it 4-0.
Goldschmidt hit his 17th homer in the seventh, and Lamb added an RBI single in the ninth.
Musgrover17;s day ended with the second rain stoppage. He allowed seven hits, struck out two and walked three.
ROUGH DAY
Rodriguez went 0 for 4 with two strikeouts in addition to his error on his bobblehead day. He is hitting .149 on the season.
TRAINERr17;S ROOM
Diamondbacks: LHP Robbie Ray (strained right oblique) will make his third rehab start on Monday.
Pirates: C Francisco Cervelli, already on the seven-day disabled list, has been diagnosed with a concussion. There is no timeframe for his return. r30; LF Corey Dickerson returned from the Family Medical Emergency Leave List and started. INF/OF Adam Frazier was optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis.
UP NEXT
Diamondbacks: RHP Clay Buchholz (1-1, 2.94 ERA) is expected to start the series finale on Sunday. In three starts on the road, he has a 2.12 ERA and is holding opponents to a .180 batting average.
Pirates: RHP Trevor Williams (6-4, 4.00 ERA) is coming off one of his best outings of the season, when he struck out seven over seven one-hit innings Monday against Milwaukee.
In line for his first win in more than two months, Zack Wheeler had to watch as the New York Mets bullpen turned a five-run lead into a two-run deficit.
Lourdes Gurriel Jr. hit a tiebreaking two-run home run in the eighth inning and the Toronto Blue Jays rallied to beat the struggling Mets 8-6 on Tuesday night.
Yangervis Solarte hit a game-tying three-run home run off Robert Gsellman in the seventh before Gurriel Jr. went deep off Tim Peterson (1-1) in the eighth as the Blue Jays won for the 11th time in 14 home games.
r1;A couple of pitches that we didnr17;t quite execute, and they put them out of the park,r1; New York manager Mickey Callaway said.
The Mets have lost 11 of 13.
John Axford (2-1) pitched 1 2/3 innings to earn the win. Tyler Clippard got the final out for his sixth save in 10 opportunities, stranding runners at first and second.
Wheeler allowed two runs and three hits in 6 1/3 innings but was denied his first victory since April 29 at San Diego.
r1;He did great job tonight,r1; Callaway said. r1;Obviously deserved a better fate than he got.r1;
Wheeler pitched seven scoreless innings against Pittsburgh in his previous start but the Mets lost 5-3.
r1;This is a good little stretch right now and hopefully I can keep it going,r1; Wheeler said.
Asdrubal Cabrera and Devin Mesoraco each hit two-run home runs for the Mets. Wilmer Flores added a solo shot.
Cabrera connected against Blue Jays right-hander Marco Estrada in the first and Mesoraco homered off Jake Petricka in the second.
Estrada was removed after 12 pitches because of a sore left hip. He faced three batters and got one out. Estrada allowed two runs and one hit.
r1;His left hip has been bothering him a little bit,r1; Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said. r1;It was bothering him in his last start but it was worse tonight.r1;
X-rays were negative. Estrada was undergoing an MRI following the game.
Petricka replaced Estrada and pitched 2 2/3 innings.
Mets outfielder Jose Bautista went 1 for 2 with a single and three walks in his first game in Toronto since leaving the Blue Jays at the end of last season, ending a 10-year run north of the border.
The crowd of 24,010 gave Bautista a standing ovation before his first at bat. The two-time home run champion took off his batting helmet and acknowledged both the fans and the Blue Jays dugout before drawing a five-pitch walk and scoring on Cabrerar17;s 15th homer.
r1;Great to be recognized, great to acknowledge the fans and great to know they feel good Ir17;m back and wanted to recognize me,r1; Bautista said.
Bautista made a diving catch to retire Russell Martin for the final out of the second but was charged with a two-base error in the seventh when Randal Grichukr17;s single skipped past him and rolled to the wall.
Kevin Plawecki replaced Mesoraco at catcher in the seventh. Mesoraco was struck on the helmet by the carom when Travis was hit by a pitch in the fifth. Mesoraco was hit again by a swing in the sixth.
Callaway said Mesoraco passed concussion tests but would be monitored overnight.
TUNED IN
The Blue Jays played Bautistar17;s old walk-up music, Usherr17;s r1;OMG,r1; before his first at bat. r1;That caught me by surprise,r1; Bautista said.
TRAINERr17;S ROOM
Mets: OF Yoenis Cespedes (right hip) felt fine after running a series of sprints Monday, manager Mickey Callaway said. It was the first time Cespedes had run since leaving a minor league rehab game June 9. r30; RHP Noah Syndergaard (right index finger) and LHP Jason Vargas (right calf) faced each other in a simulated game at the Metsr17; spring training facility in Florida Tuesday. Syndergaard threw 50 pitches and Vargas threw 65.
Blue Jays: RHP Seunghawn Oh (flu-like symptoms) was not available. r30; Minor league 3B prospect Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (left knee) has resumed batting practice and is expected to participate in infield drills this weekend. Guerrero Jr. is working out at Torontor17;s spring training facility in Florida.
UP NEXT
Mets RHP Corey Oswalt (0-1, 9.82) faces Blue Jays RHP Marcus Stroman (1-5, 6.02) in Wednesdayr17;s series finale. Oswalt made his major league debut against Miami on June 29, allowing six runs in 2 2/3 innings. Stroman won for the first time this season in his previous outing, pitching seven innings against Detroit.
