PITTSBURGH — Trent Grisham can’t be the hero every day, though he tried his best to make it two straight on Sunday.
After Grisham delivered a game-tying, two-out, two-strike single in the ninth inning, the Yankees still could not finish off the sweep as the Pirates walked off on them for a 5-4 win on Sunday afternoon at a raw PNC Park.
Tommy Pham delivered the game-winner, battling for a nine-pitch at-bat off Devin Williams that ended with a bullet of a single to the warning track in left field that scored automatic runner Jack Suwinski from third base in the 11th inning.
Jazz Chisholm Jr. #13 of the New York Yankees walks back to the dugout after striking out in the sixth inning during the game against the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park on April 6, 2025 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.Getty Images
The Yankees looked headed for a loss for most of the afternoon until the ninth inning, when Anthony Volpe started the rally with a one-out single against lefty Ryan Borucki. Austin Wells came up next and tried to bunt for a hit, with third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes playing deep and well off the bag, but he was still thrown out at first on the play.
Still, Jasson Dominguez followed with a walk before Oswald Peraza smoked an RBI double down the third-base line to pull the Yankees within 4-2.
Grisham, who led Saturday’s outburst with a pair of home runs, was then down to his last strike before roping a two-run single through the right side to tie it.
Luke Weaver then tossed an easy bottom of the ninth to send the game to extras. He came back out for the bottom of the 10th and after getting two quick outs, walked Oneill Cruz intentionally and Joey Bart unintentionally to load the bases. But he struck out Suwinski to keep the game alive.
Yankees starting pitcher Will Warren (98) gets a visit from pitching coach Matt Blake during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates in Pittsburgh, Sunday, April 6, 2025.AP
For most of the day, it looked like the Yankees were going to succumb to their former trade bust. Andrew Heaney, an ill-fated acquisition at the 2021 deadline, shoved for seven innings of one-run ball against them while striking out 10.
The Yankees’ high-scoring offense has typically given their pitchers a margin for error, but that was not the case on Sunday for Will Warren, who did not help himself either.
Warren retired the first eight batters he faced before getting burned by walking No. 9 hitter Isiah Kiner-Falefa on a full count. The equivalent of a cardinal sin in baseball, that came back to haunt Warren as the lineup flipped over and Hayes singled before Bryan Reynolds roped a two-run double off the center-field wall for the 2-1 lead.
Yankees center fielder Trent Grisham (12) hits a two-run single against the Pittsburgh Pirates ninth inning at PNC Park.IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
With one out in the fourth inning, Enmanuel Valdez drilled a triple to the gap and came in to score on Pham’s sacrifice fly.
Two batters later, the Pirates made it 4-1 when Kiner-Falefa delivered an RBI double.
After throwing 30 pitches over the first two innings, Warren needed 37 in the third and 20 in the fourth as he fell into too many deep counts that limited him to a four-inning start.
But in relief of Warren, Brent Headrick and Yoendrys Gomez both tossed a pair of scoreless innings to keep the Yankees within striking distance entering the ninth.
