Tucker Barnhart and Mike Tauchman homered, Marcus Stroman pitched seven scoreless innings and the visiting Chicago Cubs blanked the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-0 on Tuesday
Stroman (9-4) gave up five hits, struck out five and walked one. Mark Leiter Jr. pitched a 1-2-3 eighth, and Adbert Alzolay did the same in the ninth.
The Cubs are 9-2 in their past 11 games and have shut out the Pirates in back-to-back games to open a three-game series. They also have won five in a row against Pittsburgh in the past week, including a three-game sweep last week in Chicago
The Pirates have lost a season-worst eight in a row; they previously dropped seven straight from April 30 to May 7. Their scoreless drought has reached 24 innings, and they have scored a total of two runs in the past four games
Pittsburgh starter Johan Oviedo (3-7) allowed two runs and five hits in six innings. He struck out three without issuing a walk.
The Pirates played without two of their best players. Designated hitter Andrew McCutchen had the night off. Bryan Reynolds was out of the lineup because of back tightness, although manager Derek Shelton said there were no plans to put the outfielder on the IL
In the second with one out, Barnhart hit his first homer of the season, a shot to center for a 1-0 Cubs lead
Chicago's Ian Happ hit a one-out triple to the corner in right in the fourth -- a play that the Pirates unsuccessfully challenged, saying the ball went out of play for a ground-rule double
Dansby Swanson was hit by a pitch before Cody Bellinger's sacrifice fly to left drove in Happ for a 2-0 edge.
Against Dauri Moreta, Tauchman led off the eighth by hitting his second homer to right, increasing Chicago's lead to 3-0. The next batter, Nico Hoerner, tripled to left-center, and he scored on Seiya Suzuki's sacrifice fly to left. Hoerner was initially called out at home on a throw by left fielder Josh Palacios, but that ruling was overturned on a successful Cubs challenge, making it 4-0
--Field Level Media