Chicago Cubs at Pittsburgh Pirates

Dansby Swanson hit the go-ahead single in the 10th inning, and second baseman Nico Hoerner and left fielder Ian Happ made pivotal defensive plays, but none of the three could be considered the backbone of Friday night’s victory. Left-hander Matthew Boyd pitched one-run ball over seven innings. Though the veteran did not factor in the decision, he set the tone as the Cubs defeated the Pirates, 3-2, in 10 innings to open a three-game series at PNC Park. Boyd allowed seven hits and three walks but yielded only one run. He was able to navigate traffic throughout the game and also got help from a pair of Gold Glove winners. “He did a wonderful job,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said, “especially in the fifth inning when everything was going wrong.” The Pirates scored the game’s first run in the fifth when Marcell Ozuna and Brandon Lowe walked to start the inning, and Jared Triolo and Henry Davis followed with consecutive infield singles. Yet Boyd escaped the jam, allowing only that one run as he got Jake Mangum and Nick Gonzales to fly out, then struck out Bryan Reynolds. “Not only did he get out of it, but he gave us two more innings,” Counsell said. Boyd has not lost since Opening Day when he was beaten by the Nationals. He has not lost in his last 10 starts and has won his last six decisions. Though Boyd was injured early in the season, he is now a steadying force in the Cubs’ battered rotation. Since returning from the injured list on June 25 after missing seven weeks while recovering from knee surgery, Boyd has gone 4-0 with a 2.31 ERA in six starts. “He’s just so impressive with his persistence to just keep improving his career even with all the injuries he has had in his career,” Hoerner said of the 35-year-old Boyd. “He is in a great spot right now, and he’s helping us in a huge, huge way.”