Kansas City Royals vs Pittsburgh Pirates Match Player Stats On Sep 19, 2018

Adam Frazier hit a go-ahead solo home run in the fifth inning Wednesday to give the Pittsburgh Pirates a 2-1 win and a three-game series sweep of the visiting Kansas City Royals.

The Pirates (77-74) won each game in the series by one run. They have won five straight games and six of seven in their quest to finish above .500. They also have an eight-game home winning streak.

Adalberto Mondesi hit a solo homer for Kansas City (52-100), which reached 100 losses for the fifth time this century. The Royals have lost four straight.

Both starters had strong outings, each going seven innings.

Pirates right-hander Chris Archer (5-8), in his longest outing since coming over in a trade in late July, gave up one run and six hits, with eight strikeouts and one walk. It was his first win since Aug. 8, going 0-3 in six starts in the interim.

Felipe Vazquez pitched a scoreless ninth, giving up a two-out walk, for his 35th save.

Royals right-hander Heath Fillmyer (3-2) allowed two runs and eight hits with five strikeouts. That came on the heels of pitching a career-high 7 1/3 innings.

The Pirates came close to scoring in the first. With two outs, Josh Bell doubled on a ball that bounced over the fence in left. Francisco Cervelli singled up the middle, but Bell was thrown out at home on a strong throw by Royals center fielder Whit Merrifield.

In the second, Pittsburgh finished off a scoring chance. Corey Dickerson doubled to the corner in right and moved to third on Pablo Reyes' groundout. Colin Moran drove in Dickerson with a sacrifice fly to left for a 1-0 lead.

Kansas City tied it with one out in the third when Mondesi cranked his 10th homer 421 feet to right-center, making it 1-1.

The Pirates took back the lead in the fifth. Frazier's ninth homer, to right-center with two outs, made it 2-1.

--Field Level Media