Rookie Jason Martin hit a tiebreaking double in the top of the ninth inning against Washington's shaky bullpen, then Felipe Vázquez escaped a bases-loaded jam Sunday to give the Pittsburgh Pirates a 4-3 win over the Nationals.
The Pirates took two of three and won a series at Nationals Park for the first time since 2013.
Josh Bell drew a leadoff walk in the ninth from Wander Suero (1-1) and moved to second on Colin Moran's grounder. With two outs, Martin hit a ground-rule double to left for his second major league RBI.
Washington Nationals starting pitcher Max Scherzer delivers a pitch during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Sunday, April 14, 2019, in Washington. (AP PhotoNick Wass)
Washington entered the day with the worst bullpen ERA in the majors and it rose to 7.75.
The Nationals loaded the bases in the bottom half on a single, walk and Adam Eaton's bunt single with one out. Vázquez (1-0) struck out Howie Kendrick and retired Anthony Rendon on a flyball to end it.
Washington starter Max Scherzer allowed three runs and seven hits while working a season-high eight innings. He struck out seven.
Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Jameson Taillon delivers during the first inning of a baseball game against the Washington Nationals, Sunday, April 14, 2019, in Washington. (AP PhotoNick Wass)
Pittsburgh starter Jameson Taillon gave up three runs and seven hits in six innings.
Rendon extended his hitting streak to a career-high 13 games with a single in the sixth.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Pirates: OF Gregory Polanco (left shoulder) had two hits and drove in two runs Saturday in his first rehabilitation appearance at Triple-A Indianapolis. . RHP Dovydas Neverauskas (oblique strain) had two strikeouts in a scoreless inning Saturday for Indianapolis. He's thrown three scoreless innings during three rehab appearances at Indianapolis and Class A Bradenton.
Nationals: Manager Dave Martinez said 1B Matt Adams, who twisted his ankle Saturday while stepping on Pittsburgh RHP Chris Archer's foot, was available to play Sunday.
ARCHER DROPS APPEAL
Archer dropped his appeal and began serving a five-game suspension for setting off a benches-clearing altercation on April 7. Archer threw a fastball behind Cincinnati's Derek Dietrich, who had stood and watched a long home run in his previous at-bat. Archer, who pitched seven innings Saturday against Washington, will make his next start April 21 at home against San Francisco.
UP NEXT
Pirates: Pittsburgh has Monday off. It begins a two-game series at Detroit on Tuesday as RHP Joe Musgrove (1-0, 0.00 ERA) starts against the Tigers for the first time.
Nationals: After an off day Monday, RHP Stephen Strasburg (1-0, 5.40) starts Tuesday as Washington begins a three-game series at home against San Francisco.
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ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Tre’Davious White arrived in Buffalo in 2017 driven to be the best and began entertaining visions of one day wearing a Hall of Fame gold jacket before two debilitating injuries stopped the cornerback's rising trajectory.
It took time, bouts with depression and spending a year away from Buffalo for White to find peace and discover what matters most in life upon rejoining the Bills this season.
"Football means a lot, but it’s not the end-all and be-all. Good game, bad game, my people still gonna love me,” White told The Associated Press as Buffalo (12-5) prepares to open the playoffs at Jacksonville (13-4) on Sunday.
“I feel I’ve got so much life to give other than what I can do on the football field. And that freed me up,” he added. “I just think this game has given me that perspective on life. And I wouldn’t have got it nowhere else if I wouldn’t have went through those dark times."
The limits of White's resolve were tested after he tore a left knee ligament in 2021 and then his right Achilles tendon in 2023. There were days during his recovery when members of the Bills training staff had to visit his home to coax the player out from his basement.
White’s new-found perspective has been reflected nearly every day this season in how he greets everyone with a beaming smile and happily skips each time he takes the field. This wasn’t always the case in 2022 and ’23, when White turned inward by declining interview requests to the point he faced potential NFL fines for not following the league’s media policy.
“I didn’t have much to cheer or be upbeat about,” White said, reflecting back. “But I’ve learned over time that I can’t let the game dictate my attitude toward life. ... Because at the end of the day, when I stop playing, nobody is gonna care how many tackles I had.”
On Thursday, White was giddy upon being voted the Pro Football Writer’s Association’s Buffalo chapter Kent Hull Stand-up Guy, an award given to a player best demonstrating respect, thoughtfulness and cooperation with reporters.
"Ain’t no way,” he said, with a laugh upon accepting the plaque. “My teammates have to be as mean as (stuff) if you all are giving me this award.”
White, who turns 31 next week, has made a bigger impact on the Bills with his play, willingness to share his wisdom and upbeat demeanor.
“He brings so much joy, so much positivity, so much energy. It means so much to have him back,” cornerback Christian Benford said. “I’m so proud and thankful God has uplifted his spirit, his mind to allow him to bounce back and fight through a lot of this.”
Sean McDermott grows emotional nearly each time he speaks of the player from Shreveport, Louisiana, who starred at LSU before becoming Buffalo's first draft pick upon the coach's arrival.
“I can’t say enough good things about Tre’ and what he means to me, personally, and what he’s meant to our football team,” McDermott said. “I just believe in my heart that there’s something deeper behind all of it with Tre’ because I know what this place means to him.”
If not for his injuries and contract, White wouldn’t have departed Buffalo in the first place after being cut in March 2024 for salary-cap reasons. Upon splitting last season between the Rams and Ravens, White was so eager to re-sign with Buffalo, he told his agent to not call unless he had a deal done with the Bills.
“When I go to sleep at night and when I envision myself making plays, it’s always in red, white and blue,” White said, referring to the Bills' colors.
“This is where I want to be. This is where I’m supposed to be. This is home,” he added. “When I take my last snap as a football player, I want it to be in red, white and blue and No. 27, rightfully so. Hopefully.”
However uncertain his future is beyond the playoffs, White gained closure in a season during which he reestablished himself with 16 starts and an interception. The production might pale from the days White was regarded as one of the NFL’s top shutdown cornerbacks and earned first- and second-team All-Pro honors in 2019 and ’20.
But what are numbers to White, who wondered why it takes someone having to reach their lowest point to find themselves.
“We shouldn’t let extreme circumstances turn us into a person that's going to help others or see life this way now because this happened to me,” White said. “No, let’s see life for what it is right now, and not wait until bad things happen.”
It’s a lesson he's imparting to his three sons.
“I’m so happy that I was able to go through what I went through, to get that callous and come out the man that I am now,” White said. “I feel like maybe as a player, it may not have been what I wanted. But as a person, I’m better going forward.”
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Buffalo Bills cornerback Tre'Davious White (27) remains on the field to watch a tribute video after the Bills beat the New York Jets in the Bills' final regular-season NFL football home game in Highmark Stadium Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Orchard Park, N.Y.(AP Photo/Adrian Kraus)
