Pirates, Cardinals Split First Two Games

The Pittsburgh Pirates and St. Louis Cardinals split the first two games of their final six-game series, with Pittsburgh winning 2-0 Tuesday and St. Louis responding with a 5-1 victory Wednesday. Jared Jones allowed one hit and struck out nine over seven innings Tuesday as the Pirates won their fifth straight, while Ryan O’Hearn delivered an RBI single and Gregory Soto recorded the save. Matthew Liberatore ended an 11-start winless stretch Wednesday by allowing one run over 5 2/3 innings, and Alec Burleson drove in his major league-leading 112th run as St. Louis pulled away with a three-run third inning. Pittsburgh is 80-78 and needs to split the final four games to secure its first winning season since 2018, while St. Louis must win all four to avoid consecutive losing seasons for the first time since 1958-59. Neither team is in playoff contention, leaving the series focused on finishing the season strongly and individual milestones.