Pirates Come Up Short Against Cubs on Wednesday, Lose 10-4

After taking the first two games of their NL Central rivalry series, the Pittsburgh Pirates came up short against the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday night. They lost by a final score of 10-4.

For the Cubs, it was a huge win. They had lost 10 straight games heading into Wednesday. As for the Pirates, it was a disappointing lost opportunity.

With the loss, Pittsburgh moved to 29-27. Chicago improved to 30-26 with the win and slid ahead of the Pirates in the standings.

Things started off bad for Pittsburgh in the top of the first. Ian Happ hit a two RBI single to begin the scoring. In the second inning, Nico Hoerner extended the lead to 3-0 with a single that scored Carson Kelly.

In the bottom of the third inning, the Pirates started showing signs of life. Brandon Lowe hit a three-run home run to tie the game at 3-3. Then, in the top of the fourth, Pete Crow-Armstrong drove in a run to retake the lead at 4-3.

Pittsburgh once again clawed back in the bottom of the fourth on a solo homer from Konnor Griffin.

Unfortunately, after that home run, the Pirates were done scoring. 

Happ hit a home run that scored both Michael Bush and Alex Bregman in the top of the seventh. Michael Conforto followed that up with a two-run home run and Busch singled to score Dansby Swanson to close out the scoring.

Despite the loss, Pittsburgh has to be feeling good about the start of the season. The Pirates have shown signs of being a contending baseball team. There is still a lot of work to do, but they are on the right track.

Next up for Pittsburgh will be the fourth game of its series against the Cubs on Thursday. The two teams will face off at Wrigley Field and first pitch is scheduled to be thrown at 6:40 p.m. ET.

Hopefully, the Pirates are able to bounce back from the unfortunate loss on Wednesday night. They will have a chance to win the series against Chicago and further prove that they're a force to be reckoned with in the National League.