Pirates Break Up Near No-Hitter, Top Cardinals 4-2 in Ninth

This post recaps a wild MLB matchup between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the St. Louis Cardinals in Pittsburgh. The focus lands on a near no-hitter from Pittsburgh’s bullpen, a late Cardinals rally, and a homecoming blast from rookie JJ Wetherholt.

The early dominance faded fast in the ninth, and a few big swings tipped the game to the Cardinals.

Bulpen’s near-perfect frames and early Pirates lead

Pittsburgh’s relievers—Mason Montgomery, Justin Lawrence, and Wilber Dotel—put together six perfect innings. They kept the Pirates in control until Evan Sisk finally gave up a one-out infield single in the seventh.

Dustin May started for the Cardinals and kept things close, holding Pittsburgh to two runs on seven hits through six. The Cardinals didn’t give him much run support early.

Pittsburgh jumped ahead 2-0. Mangum’s RBI single in the first brought home Nick Gonzales, and O’Hearn added another RBI in the second. That early cushion felt like it might hold up.

Late in the game, the cards shift as the ninth turns the tide

St. Louis barely made noise for eight innings. Then the ninth happened.

Pedro Pagés smashed a one-out homer to cut the lead to 2-1. That woke up the Cardinals’ dugout.

Rookie JJ Wetherholt, back near his hometown with a crowd of family and friends, followed with a go-ahead solo shot to tie things at 2-2. The place went nuts.

The Cardinals kept pushing. Iván Herrera walked, Victor Scott II came in to run, and Burleson beat out an infield single. Jordan Walker drew a walk to load the bases.

José Fermín ripped a two-run double down the left-field line, suddenly putting St. Louis up 4-2. Pittsburgh’s bullpen, so good all night, just couldn’t stop the bleeding.

Ryan Fernandez shut the Pirates down in the eighth and ninth. George Soriano allowed a ninth-inning single, but Konnor Griffin finished it off for the save. That comeback felt like it came out of nowhere, honestly.

Wetherholt’s homecoming moment anchors the narrative

Wetherholt’s homer wasn’t just huge for the scoreboard—it meant something extra in Pittsburgh. The rookie’s blast, with family and friends watching, gave the Cardinals a jolt at exactly the right moment.

His return to the region made the story pop. Sometimes, the baseball gods just love a good narrative.

What this game tells us about the teams

The Pirates showed off some real bullpen depth, stringing together six flawless innings. But even the best relief arms can’t always hold off a late rally, and momentum can swing fast.

For St. Louis, this win is all about resilience. A couple timely hits, a little belief, and suddenly the game flipped. That’s baseball—never really over until the last out.

Key takeaways from the showdown

• Six perfect innings—Montgomery, Lawrence, and Dotel each took a turn on the mound, and Pittsburgh’s bullpen really flexed its depth early on.
• Dustin May gave St. Louis a solid start, grinding out some length even though the Cardinals’ bats stayed mostly quiet at first.
• Pedro Pagés’ homer kicked off a two-run burst that lit the fuse for the Cardinals’ ninth-inning rally.
• JJ Wetherholt’s homecoming—his tying homer brought some real drama and emotion to the night.
• Kyle Leahy is set to start Tuesday’s game at PNC Park, so there’s another division matchup on deck.

The Cardinals roll into Tuesday’s game at PNC Park with Leahy set to pitch at 5:40 p.m. CT. They’re hoping to ride the wave from that wild comeback. Meanwhile, the Pirates want to bounce back and count on their bullpen to lock things down a bit better next time.

 
Here is the source article for this story: Cardinals Nearly No-Hit by Pirates-Shock Pittsburgh in 9th Winning 4-2