ST. LOUIS _ The baseball disappeared over the outfield wall, and Busch Stadium went silent. John Jaso had just smashed a two-out, go-ahead home run off St. Louis Cardinals closer Seung Hwan Oh, washing away the messes and mistakes that had pressed the Pirates' backs to the wall.
With two outs in the ninth inning of the Pirates' 4-3 win, Jaso clobbered the seventh offering from Oh for his fifth home run this season. Left-hander Felipe Rivero, whose entrance in the eighth had necessitated the double-switch which brought in Jaso, recorded the final five outs.
Jaso's swing was the difference in a meeting between teams limping through similar seasons. They each entered the series having recorded 15-15 records over their previous 30 games, sinking slowly behind the Milwaukee Brewers and Chicago Cubs, yet no so far back.
Right-hander Jameson Taillon calmed after allowing an early two-run home run. They were the only runs he surrendered over six innings. Taillon's third start since a five-week stay on the disabled list after surgery for testicular cancer was his best in some time. He gave up four hits and two walks, struck out seven and threw 104 pitches.
Right-hander Adam Wainwright threw seven two-hit innings, allowing two runs, one earned.
The Pirates (34-40) were uncertain what to expect from Wainwright. He had pitched against them 33 other times in his career, but at 35 years old he has been an inconsistent version of himself. Wainwright had a 6.37 ERA in his first seven starts this season, an 0.34 ERA in his next four and then a 17.42 ERA in his three starts prior to Friday _ including a pair of nine-run outings.
"The guy has been pitching a long time, man," manager Clint Hurdle said before the game. "He's been a great, great Cardinal pitcher. The game challenges all of us. He's getting challenged in some different areas. We'll plan on him pitching well against us, and (we'll) attack accordingly."
A five-pitch first inning was an early indication of Wainwright's aptitude.
The Pirates drew first blood. In the second inning, Josh Bell pulled an 84-mph cutter into the first row of seats in right field. Bell continues to climb the Pirates rookie power rankings. His 14 home runs so far this season are the second-most before the All-Star break in club history, less only than Ralph Kiner's 15 first-half home runs in 1946 en route to a 23-homer season.
For Taillon, a leadoff walk welcomed trouble in the home half of the second inning. After issuing a free pass to Jedd Gyorko, Taillon, whose walk rate has doubled from 1.47 walks per nine innings to 3.18 since last season, left a two-seamer over the plate for Jose Martinez. The Cardinals rookie scorched a two-run shot just over the left-field fence, his fifth homer this season.
With Wainwright in command, the Pirates found help in the shaky St. Louis defense in the fourth inning. David Freese, a hometown favorite at Busch Stadium, walked. Bell bounced a grounder to second baseman Paul DeJong, who hesitated and threw late to first base. The ball bounced past Matt Carpenter and into the home dugout, moving the runners in to scoring position. Once Andrew McCutchen grounded out to the right side, the score was tied.
For the seventh inning, Hurdle turned to reliever Daniel Hudson. The second batter Hudson saw, DeJong, ripped a full-count fastball into the Cardinals bullpen in right-center field. It was another lapse by Hudson, who has a 5.23 ERA and has been haunted by home runs. Over 15 appearances in the past month, he allowed nine hits, four of which were home runs.
Gregory Polanco, who drew fans' ire for getting out of the batter's box slowly on a grounder earlier in the game, made impressive inning-ending catches in the sixth (diving), seventh (diving) and eighth (sliding), saving runs and keeping the Pirates within striking distance.
The Pirates knotted the score on Freese's two-out RBI single in the eighth off reliever Trevor Rosenthal. The rally started with Adam Frazier singling, the Pirates' first hit since the third inning. With runners on the corners, Freese shot a tying single through the right side.
