PITTSBURGH (AP) — Endy Rodriguez had two hits and drove in a pair of runs in his return to the majors and breezed past 7-2 on Thursday.
Rodriguez, a catcher once considered among the top prospects in Pittsburgh’s farm system before and most of 2025 due to a pair of , doubled off Chase Dollander (3-3) in the second and added a two-run single in the third in his first big league appearance since June 6, 2025.
Ryan O’Hearn had three hits for Pittsburgh, including a two-run homer in the first as the Pirates raced to an early lead and cruised. Rookie shortstop Konnor Griffin and Jared Triolo added two hits each as Pittsburgh began a six-game homestand by taking two of three from the Rockies.
Carmen Mlodzinski (3-3) allowed two runs in five innings after coming on after left-handed relievers Mason Montgomery and Evan Sisk. Pittsburgh manager Don Kelly opted to use Montgomery and Sisk early to offset the lefty-heavy portion of Colorado’s lineup. The right-handed Mlodzinski has struggled at times this year against lefties, but by the time he came on in the third, he’d been staked to a comfortable 6-0 lead.
Dollander, a first-round pick by the Rockies in 2023 who has been solid early in the season, struggled in the first and was removed just two batters into the second with what the club described as right arm tightness.
Troy Johnston hit a two-run double for Colorado, but the Rockies lost for the sixth time in their last seven games at PNC Park after the Pirates took quick command.
Pittsburgh’s Oneil Cruz started with a double to left that Rockies left fielder Jordan Beck appeared to lose in the lights. The ball fell for a hit, Cruz jogged to second, then scored on an RBI single by Bryan Reynolds. O’Hearn followed with his eighth homer of the season, and the rout was on.
Up next
Rockies: return home for a three-game set against Arizona beginning Friday.
Pirates: host cross-state rival Philadelphia for a three-game series starting Friday.
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