Pirates Walk Off Giants 13-12 on Error

The Pittsburgh Pirates walked off the San Francisco Giants 13-12 on Tuesday night at PNC Park when Brandon Lowe scored from third on a throwing error by third baseman Oseilvis Basabe with two outs in the ninth. Lowe's fourth hit of the night set the table. Rafael Flores Jr.'s grounder to third looked like an inning ender until Basabe's throw short-hopped first baseman Rafael Devers and skipped away.

It was that kind of game. Nine runs in the third. A five-run Giants eighth that tied it. A bullpen finish that barely held. And a walk-off that never needed a clean hit.

Lowe and Cruz carried the lineup

Lowe finished with four hits, including his 29th home run of the season. Oneil Cruz also had four hits and drove in four runs. Nick Gonzales added three hits and lifted his average to .310. Spencer Horwitz and Jacob Gonzalez each had two hits for Pittsburgh.

The Pirates erupted for nine in the third against Logan Webb and reliever Braxton Roxy, a 34-minute inning built on eight singles, two walks, and a hit batter after Bryan Reynolds led off with a single. That cushion should have been enough. It was not.

How San Francisco tied it

Paul Skenes lasted 4 2/3 innings and allowed five runs on eight hits with three walks and four strikeouts. His ERA sat at 3.97 after the outing. The Giants kept chipping, then exploded for five in the eighth. Drew Cavanaugh's double scored the final two runs of that rally and knotted the game at 12.

Turner Hill had four hits for San Francisco. Cavanaugh finished with three. Christian Koss added two. The Giants fell to an NL-worst 24-46 on the road and 57-82 overall after the loss.

Ninth-inning chaos

Mason Montgomery (6-3) worked around two hits in the top of the ninth to keep it tied. Carson Seymour (0-1) inherited the bottom half. Lowe led off with his fourth hit, moved to third on a Gonzales single and a Cruz fielder's choice, then scored when Basabe's throw got away on Flores Jr.'s grounder.

Pittsburgh has won five of seven. The series continues Wednesday with Landen Roupp (8-13, 4.25) lined up for the Giants against Bubba Chandler (6-9, 4.26). For another late MLB finish already on the board, see Trevor Story's walk-off for Boston and Alex Bregman's three-homer night. Tuesday in Pittsburgh needed an error, not a hero swing, and that was plenty.