Stellar pitching from Paul Skenes, Braxton Ashcraft lifts Pirates to sweep over Phillies

Noah Hiles, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on Jun 8, 2025

Published in Baseball

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PITTSBURGH — Paul Skenes delivered another dominant outing Sunday afternoon. And while the right-hander himself wasn’t able to earn himself a win, the Pirates ultimately made the most of his efforts, defeating the Phillies by a final of 2-1 at PNC Park. The win secured the Pirates’ first sweep of the season.

Braxton Ashcraft, who replaced Skenes with one out remaining in the top of the eighth inning and finished the contest, earned the win, his first as a major-leaguer. Phillies starter Cristopher Sanchez suffered the loss, despite also delivering a quality effort on the mound.

Jared Triolo put the Pirates ahead first in the bottom of the second inning with a double to right-center field. The hit scored Ke’Bryan Hayes, who hustled around the bases to beat a strong relay throw to the plate from Phillies second baseman Bryson Stott.

Philadelphia responded the following frame, thanks to a big hit followed by a costly mistake. With Brandon Marsh on first base and only one out, Rafael Marchan doubled to right field. Pirates second baseman Nick Gonzales was unable to cleanly field Reynolds’ throw to second, creating an error that allowed

Skenes continued his dominant tear, allowing the one run, which was unearned, on two hits and a walk while striking out seven over 7 2/3 innings. The outing marked his seventh straight quality start. Sanchez matched Skenes’ pace for seven innings, allowing just one run over that stretch on six hits and a pair of walks while striking out nine. But unlike Skenes, Sanchez’s luck ran out in the eighth inning.

The Phillies’ southpaw started his final frame by walking Oneil Cruz. He was then replaced by Orion Kerkering, who allowed Cruz to steal second and then score a few pitches later on a single to right field from Andrew McCutchen. That knock was enough to lift the Pirates to victory.

It was over when ...

McCutchen singled home Cruz. The knock marked his second of the day.

On the mound

Ashcraft’s first big-league win came thanks to a gutsy effort out of the bullpen. He replaced Skenes with one out remaining in the top of the eighth. After walking Marsh, he concluded the frame by getting Marchan to ground out to second. He then returned for the ninth, where plenty of drama ensued.

After retiring Stott to start the frame, Ashcraft allowed Trae Turner to double to left field. That at-bat was followed by an intentional walk for Kyle Schwarber, putting the tying and go-ahead runs on base. As the rain started to fall, Ashcraft locked back in. With the game on the line, he forced Alec Bohm to bounce into a game-ending double play.

At the plate

McCutchen’s first hit of the day marked No. 2,200 in his career. He is the 190th player in MLB history to reach that milestone.

Most valuable player

Ashcraft, who finished Skenes’ gem to secure the win and series sweep.

Up next

The Pirates will begin a three-game series against the Miami Marlins on Monday at PNC Park. First pitch for 6:40 p.m. ET. Mike Burrows and Eury Perez are the projected starters on the mound.

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