Player of the gameTomoyuki SuganoCOL6.0ip 4h 1er 5k
Jake McCarthy was determined to give the Rockies a first-inning lead, even if it was going to cost him his pregame meal. Leading off the bottom of the first on Saturday, McCarthy lined Pirates ace Paul Skenes’ pitch into right-center field. When center fielder Jake Magnum dove for it but came up empty, McCarthy sped around the bases for his first inside-the-park home run at any level of baseball. “I was tired -- I was trying not to throw up,” he said. In the third inning, McCarthy used his speed for the deciding run. Seeing his grounder go past diving second baseman Brandon Lowe, McCarthy beat Mangum’s throw to second base. Then he scored the deciding run of the 2-1 victory on TJ Rumfield’s single. Between offensive plays, McCarthy had another stomach-churning run. It took him a while to have the presence of mind to remove the furry home run jacket that served as a heat trap. While he was playing center field in the top of the second, he had to chase the play when Mangum doubled into the right-field corner.
