Pittsburgh Pirates at Texas Rangers

It takes less than a tank of gas to drive from Robinson, Texas, to Arlington -- and even with higher prices at the pump, Pirates right-hander Braxton Ashcraft’s many friends and family who made it to Globe Life Field on Wednesday night got their money’s worth. Ashcraft was a star pitcher and wide receiver at Robinson High School near Waco, about 110 miles away from Arlington, graduating in 2018. On Wednesday, in an 8-4 win over the Rangers, Ashcraft was as sharp as he’s been since leaving home, going deeper into a Major League game than ever (seven innings pitched), throwing more pitches than ever (94) and wriggling out of a jam at the end to complete his final inning. “It is great to be able to go about my work and have all the people that I grew up around and with in the stands,” Ashcraft said. “Everybody says it takes a village to raise people, and it rings true ... A lot of people messaged me saying they were going to be here in support. “I put a lot of work in from a very young age and a lot of the people that were here got to see that while I was a kid. To be able to see it come to fruition, pitching in the big leagues against a team that I grew up watching, and come out with a win here -- it’s really cool.” The Pirates righty’s velocity ticked up a bit on all five of the pitch types he threw Wednesday, especially on a crisp slider that he deployed far more than usual (31 percent of his pitches compared with a career usage of only 18.5 percent). He was efficient, too. Through five innings, the 26-year-old had thrown only 68 pitches; a 10-pitch sixth inning bought him more time, and he got a called strikeout and a double play to end a 16-pitch seventh frame. “It was such a gutsy performance by Braxton for so many reasons,” Pirates manager Don Kelly said. “It looked like he was able to make an adjustment early on in the game, I don’t know if it was third inning, fourth inning, but to be able to get back in the zone and be as efficient as he was ... he got in a pretty good rhythm.” Although Gregory Soto allowed two earned runs in the eighth to relegate Ashcraft to a no-decision, the Bucs put runners on the corners with singles by Nick Gonzales and Spencer Horwitz in the top of the ninth. Gonzales scored on a swinging bunt fielder’s choice by pinch-hitter Jake Mangum.