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Pirates Josh Harrison pretends to wipe his brow in relief to the Nationals dugout after getting into second base safely on a double in the sixth inning Tuesday night at PNC Park.
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Nationals survive Pirates’ late rally for 8-4 win

Matt Freed/Post-Gazette

Nationals survive Pirates’ late rally for 8-4 win

The Nationals must have felt confident entering Tuesday night’s series opener against the Pirates.

Surging into Pittsburgh with the league's best offense and starting Stephen Strasburg – who has owned the Pirates through the years to the tune of a 2.51 ERA and 10-strikeout average in six starts – the Nationals survived the Pirates’ seventh-inning rally en route to an 8-4 win Tuesday at PNC Park.

The Nationals wasted no time against Pirates starter Chad Kuhl, with Jayson Werth’s RBI single giving them a 1-0 lead in the first. Kuhl has now surrendered at least one first-inning run in four of his first eight starts this season.

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“A lot of stuff was down and hard but it was over the plate, so it got hit,” said Kuhl, who admitted to overthrowing pitches at times Tuesday. “I hate losing, hate falling behind hitters, so it’s definitely a really big challenge for me to stay the course and not try to do too much.”

Pirates outfielder Gregory Polanco was out of lineup Tuesday night against the Nationals.
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Josh Harrison got the Pirates (16-23) on the scoreboard in the bottom of the first by blasting his sixth home run of the season into the ground level of the left-field rotunda. The long ball was just the fourth allowed by Strasburg this season.

After both teams traded zeroes in the second, the Nationals (25-13) reclaimed the lead in the third when Ryan Zimmerman smacked a two-out, two-run double down the right-field line, scoring Strasburg and Werth, who both reached base via opposite field singles.

The Nationals doubled their two-run lead in the fourth thanks to some pop at the bottom of the lineup. Michael Taylor smacked a triple down the right-field line and scored on Wilmer Difo’s second career home run, a line shot into the right-field seats.

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Kuhl allowed the first two batters of the fifth to reach and was promptly replaced by Daniel Hudson, who allowed one of the two baserunners he inherited – Bryce Harper – to reach home plate on a long Matt Wieters single off the right-field wall.

Kuhl, who moves to 1-4 on the season with the loss, was hit sharply Tuesday night, giving up six runs on ten hits, five of which were extra-base hits, in four-plus innings. His ERA moves to 6.69. He called the Nationals lineup one of the “top-three” he’s ever faced.

“They have guys that can put the ball in play,” he said. “Then the heart of the order can do damage. They’re really solid.”

After allowing a John Jaso double in the first, Strasburg, the 2009 draft's No. 1 overall pick, retired 13 of the next 15 batters he faced, not allowing another hit until Harrison led off the sixth with a double into the left-center-field gap.

But in the seventh, Strasburg and the Nationals were greeted by a three-run Pirates rally, aided by Zimmerman’s fifth error of the season – a short-armed throw to second base that skipped past shortstop Trea Turner into shallow left field and allowed two runs to score. Adam Frazier then singled in the Pirates’ fourth run of the game, cutting the deficit to two runs at 6-4.

“The guys are going up there fighting,” Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said. “We just keep playing the game. That’s the one thing we’ll always hold onto is you’ve gotta just keep playing the game. Good things can happen when you maximize every at-bat. Every swing counts, every pitch counts.”

The Pirates couldn’t do any more damage in the inning despite having two runners on and no outs, as Harrison grounded into a double play and McCutchen struck out to end the frame.

In the ninth, Harper crushed his 13th home run of the season into the top row of the right-field bleachers, giving the Nationals two runs of insurance and eliminating much of the game's remaining suspense.

The Pirates mounted a two-out, ninth-inning rally, getting two into scoring position, but Harrison struck out swinging to end the game.

Strasburg earned his fourth win of the season, allowing three runs and four hits over six-plus innings, striking out three and walking three. The Pirates active roster is now 10 for 63 (.159) all-time against Strasburg.

The Pirates and Nationals will resume their three-game series Tuesday night at PNC Park, with first pitch scheduled for 7:05 p.m. Gerrit Cole will start for the Pirates, while the Nationals starter is yet to be announced.

First Published: May 17, 2017, 3:19 a.m.
Updated: May 17, 2017, 3:29 a.m.

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Pirates Josh Harrison pretends to wipe his brow in relief to the Nationals dugout after getting into second base safely on a double in the sixth inning Tuesday night at PNC Park.  (Matt Freed/Post-Gazette)
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