White Sox hit 4 more homers, rip Pirates 10-3
MATT CARLSON Associated Press
CHICAGO (AP) — José Abreu hit his seventh homer in five games, Dallas Keuchel pitched six dominant innings, and the surging Chicago White Sox pounded the Pittsburgh Pirates 10-3 for their ninth win in 10 games. Abreu’s 12th home run was Chicago’s fourth of the game and broke it open. Eloy Jiménez, Danny Mendick and Edwin Encarnacion also homered for Chicago, which leads the AL with 60 home runs. Keuchel (5-2) allowed two runs on four hits and struck out seven in his third straight win. Trevor Williams (1-5) took the loss and Jacob Stallings had a two-run single and Erik González hit a solo homer for Pittsburgh.

Polanco’s home run lifts Pirates to sweep of Brewers
JOHN PERROTTO Associated Press
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Slumping Gregory Polanco’s bat showed signs of life for a second straight day as his two-run home run in the eighth inning lifted the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 5-4 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers and a three-game series sweep. Polanco connected off David Phelps for his fourth homer of the season and finished 2 for 3 with a walk. It was Polanco’s second two-hit game in as many days, lifting his batting average from .085 to .151. The Pirates nearly doubled their season win total in one weekend. They entered the series with a 4-17 record, worst in the major leagues.

Offense breaks out as Pirates rip Brewers 12-5
By WILL GRAVES AP Sports Writer
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Adam Frazier and Jacob Stallings homered and drove in three runs apiece as the Pittsburgh Pirates slammed the Milwaukee Brewers 12-5. Struggling outfielder Gregory Polanco added a home run and a double for his first two-hit game in 15 months. Colin Moran doubled three times for Pittsburgh. Erik Gonzalez hit a two-run double in the seventh as the Pirates batted around against Milwaukee’s suddenly vulnerable bullpen. Pittsburgh’s nine extra-base hits were a season high and its run total matched the most surrendered by the Brewers this year.

Kuhl earns first win in 2 years as Pirates top Brewers 7-2
By WILL GRAVES AP Sports Writer
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Chad Kuhl allowed one run in five innings to pick up his first win in more than two years as the Pittsburgh Pirates rolled by the Milwaukee Brewers 7-2. Kuhl (1-1) gave up a long solo home run to Ben Gamel in the second but otherwise kept the Brewers at bay to pick up his first victory since June 15, 2018. Kuhl, who missed the second half of 2018 and all of 2019 after undergoing Tommy John surgery on his right elbow, walked three and struck out just one as the Pirates snapped a four-game losing streak.

Brain games; Steelers want LB Bush to take mental leap
By WILL GRAVES AP Sports Writer
PITTSBURGH (AP) — The Pittsburgh Steelers liked what they saw from inside linebacker Devin Bush in 2019. They believe they need to see him do more than just chase down opposing ballcarriers in Year 2. The Steelers are giving Bush more responsibility in terms of helping set up the defense between plays. Head coach Mike Tomlin says he wants to see Bush make “dramatic improvement” in terms of being a communicator. Bush led the team in tackles last season but says he is more comfortable with the defense now and feels the game is slowing down for him.

Bieber strikes out 11 as streaking Indians shut out Pirates
By JOHN PERROTTO Associated Press
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Unbeaten Shane Bieber racked up 11 more strikeouts and combined with four relievers on a seven-hitter Thursday night as the Cleveland Indians blanked the Pittsburgh Pirates 2-0 to win their sixth in a row and sweep the three-game series. The right-hander scattered six hits and did not walk a batter in six innings before being lifted after his pitch count reached 99. Beiber raised his season strikeout total to a major league-best 65 in 40 2/3 innings, an average of 14.4 per nine innings. Oliver Perez, Nick Wittgren, James Karinchak and Brad Hand finished the shutout.

Civale’s complete-game gem lifts Indians past Pirates 6-1
By WILL GRAVES AP Sports Writer
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Cleveland’s Aaron Civale struck out six and didn’t issue a walk while picking up the first complete game of his young career as the Indians pushed their winning streak to five with a 6-1 win over Pittsburgh. Civale allowed just five hits and narrowly missed a shutout when Pittsburgh pushed across a run with a sacrifice fly in the ninth. Carlos Santana hit his second three-run home run in as many games for the Indians. Domingo Santana added a bases-clearing triple as the Indians improved to a season-best six games over .500.