Pirates commit 4 errors, bullpen struggles again as Cubs roll to series win

The Pittsburgh Pirates gave a glimpse of their future with a starting lineup that featured seven players age 25 years or younger and six rookies in their final Sunday home game of the season.

A player from their past spoiled Fan Appreciation Day.

Adrian Sampson, a former Pirates farmhand traded to Seattle in 2015 for J.A. Happ, held the Pirates to one run in six innings as the Chicago Cubs rolled to an 8-3 win Sunday afternoon before an announced crowd of 16,192 at PNC Park to win the four-game series.

The Pirates committed four errors — two throwing by catcher Jason Delay and two fielding by shortstop Oneil Cruz — and the bullpen surrendered seven runs to spoil another solid start by Luis Ortiz.

Ortiz continues to make a case to earn a spot in the starting rotation. The rookie right-hander allowed one run on one hit and two walks with seven strikeouts in 4 2/3 innings. Ortiz touched 99 mph seven times, including a 100 mph fastball to P.J. Higgins in the second inning. Of the 44 four-seamers Ortiz threw, 18 went for called strikes or whiffs.

“Just executing good pitches and attacking the zone,” Ortiz said through translator Mike Gonzalez. “That’s my mindset. That’s my character.”

By contrast, Sampson’s fastball averaged 91.8 mph, and he drew only 11 called strikes and whiffs on 67 pitches. Yet the 30-year-old right-hander allowed only one run on four hits, on a Bryan Reynolds solo homer.

Sampson fared well against a Pirates lineup that started an all-rookie outfield, with Jack Suwinski in left, Ji Hwan Bae in center and Cal Mitchell in right, as well as Cruz, Delay and Ortiz.

Ortiz was impressive in his third start. He struck out five consecutive batters, missing an immaculate inning by one pitch in the second whenHiggins fouled off an 0-2 slider. Cubs rookie Hayden Wesneski threw one in the fifth inning Thursday against the Pirates.

“I think our entire fan base realized it. They were right on top of it,” Pirates manager Derek Shelton said. “The foul ball, I was very aware of it. I thought we were going to see two in (four) days.”

After Michael Hermosillo reached on an error by Delay, who collided with Ortiz in fielding a short chopper, Esteban Quiroz drew a two-out walk to put runners on first and second in the third inning. Ortiz recovered, getting Patrick Wisdom to ground into a forceout.

“He continues to throw the ball well,” Shelton said. “He did a nice job, limited hard damage, hard contact and continues to impress.”

Cruz continues to make errors at shortstop. Before the game, Pirates general manager Ben Cherington discussed Cruz staying at short on his weekly radio show on 93.7 FM, saying it would require “hard work, focus and the right kind of practice.”

“I see no reason why he can’t play shortstop at high level at the major-league level,” Cherington said. “I believe he can do it. Time will tell. And he’ll tell us.”

Cruz, however, committed his 14th and 15th errors in 73 games. One play after he ranged left to snare a line drive by Nico Hoerner, Cruz fumbled a Franmil Reyes grounder for his first error. Ortiz got past the two-out error by getting Higgins looking at a called third strike on a 99.6 mph fastball to end the fourth.

Zach McKinstry drew a two-out walk in the fifth inning, and the Pirates pulled Ortiz because he reached his 80-pitch limit. Manny Banuelos walked Quiroz before Wisdom drilled a first-pitch sinker 445 feet into the home bullpen in left-center for his 25th home run and a 3-0 Cubs lead.

Reynolds smacked Sampson’s 1-2 fastball 396 feet over the right-center fence for his 26th home run to cut it to 3-1 in the sixth.

After Duane Underwood Jr. gave up a leadoff single to Quiroz and hit Wisdom with a pitch, Ian Happ followed with an RBI single to stretch the Cubs lead to 4-1 in the seventh. With runners on second and third and the infield playing in, a Nelson Velazquez one-out grounder rolled under Cruz’s glove for his second error and allowed two runs to score.

“I honestly don’t view that as an error,” Shelton said. “That’s a do-or-die play. He’s got to go to his backhand side. If he comes around and fields it, he’s got no shot at the plate. It’s something we train our guys: If you’re going to the backhand side, you’re living and dying on trying to get an out. That’s what he did, and the ball gets underneath and it’s two runs. That’s what happens when you’re in.”

The Cubs added two more runs in the eighth to make it 8-1. Quiroz singled to score Alfonso Rivas. McKinstry scored when a Miguel Yajure wild pitch bounced off the backstop, and Delay made his second error when he rushed his throw to third and it sailed over the outstretched glove of Ke’Bryan Hayes.

Shelton was impressed with how the Pirates rookies reacted in the ninth inning, trailing by seven runs. They scored on sacrifice flies by Rodolfo Castro and Suwinski to cut it to 8-3, and Erich Uelemen gave up a single to Hayes and walked Mitchell and Zack Collins to load the bases.

That forced the Cubs to bring in lefty Brandon Hughes. The Pirates turned to another rookie, Diego Castillo, to pinch hit for Delay with two outs but Castillo flew out to center to end the game.

“We’re seeing encouraging signs,” Shelton said. “If you look at that core group of young players, all of them had good at-bats in the ninth inning. … Those guys didn’t give in. They grinded through at-bats, and we put ourselves in a situation where we’re one swing away from it being an 8-7 game. … We’re getting a really good opportunity to get eyes on a lot of these guys.”