Brandon Lowe's go-ahead homer in the 8th lifts the Pirates past the Royals, 6-5

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Brandon Lowe hit a go-ahead two-run homer in the eighth to lift the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 6-5 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Saturday night.

Lowe jumped on a pitch from Steven Cruz (2-4) and sent it into the seats in right field for his 33rd homer of the season, the second-most by a player in their first year with the Pirates. The two-time All-Star was acquired by Pittsburgh last winter.

The home run was also the 96th at PNC Park this year for the Pirates, a club record for most homers at home in a season. The 1947 club hit 95 round-trippers when the team called Forbes Field home.

Pittsburgh rookie outfielder Ronnie Simon hit his first career homer. Jake Mangum added his fifth of the season as the Pirates won their third straight to improve to 78-77. The franchise is seeking its first winning season since 2018.

Lowe, Rafael Flores and Oneil Cruz had two hits each for the Pirates. Luke Weaver (3-1) picked up the win by pitching a scoreless eighth. Mason Montgomery worked the ninth for his 15th save. Montgomery hasn't allowed a run in 22 2/3 innings, the second-longest streak ever by a Pittsburgh reliever.

Nick Loftin had four hits for the Royals. Bobby Witt Jr. added three and Carter Jensen slugged his 25th of the season but it wasn't enough to prevent the Royals from losing for the sixth time in seven games.

Pirates starting pitcher Bubba Chandler needed 90 pitches to get through four innings. The 24-year-old right-hander allowed three runs with a walk and six strikeouts.

The series wraps up Sunday. Michael Wacha (9-9, 3.34 ERA) was set to start for the Royals. The Pirates had not announced a starter.

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Kansas City Royals' Carter Jensen celebrates as he crosses home plate after hitting a solo home run off Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Bubba Chandler during the third inning of a baseball game in Pittsburgh, Saturday, Sept. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Camilo Doval collects himself on the mound during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Kansas City Royals in Pittsburgh, Saturday, Sept. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Kansas City Royals' Nick Loftin (12) celebrates with first base coach Damon Hollins (39) after driving in a run with a single off Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Camilo Doval during the seventh inning of a baseball game in Pittsburgh, Saturday, Sept. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Pittsburgh Pirates' Jake Mangum, top, rounds the bases after hitting a two-run home run off Kansas City Royals pitcher Noah Cameron (65) during the fourth inning of a baseball game in Pittsburgh, Saturday, Sept. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Pittsburgh Pirates' Jake Mangum (28) celebrates with Nick Gonzales (3) after hitting a two-run home run off Kansas City Royals pitcher Noah Cameron during the fourth inning of a baseball game in Pittsburgh, Saturday, Sept. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

PHOENIX (AP) — Torey Lovullo has said the same phrase several times over the past seven years, even as fans and sometimes reporters rolled their eyes at the Arizona Diamondbacks manager's optimism.

“Pavin Smith can hit,” Lovullo would say.

And on Saturday night, he finally did, injecting some life into the D-backs' slim playoff hopes by smacking a game-ending, two-run homer in the ninth inning for a 5-3 win over the New York Yankees. Entering as a pinch-hitter, the left-hander ripped a cutter from Michael Fulmer over the right-field wall.

The D-backs pulled within four games of Philadelphia for the final NL wild card with seven games remaining.

“I'm never looking to be proven right,” Lovullo said. “I'm just trying to put players in the best position to be successful and when they have success I share it with them. But I do believe Pavin can hit.”

Smith has had an up-and-down career with the D-backs after being selected with the No. 7 overall pick in the 2017 amateur draft after a stellar three seasons in college at Virginia. He has a career batting average of .241 with 47 homers, but has been worth exactly 0.0 wins above replacement, according to baseball-reference.com.

The 30-year-old looked like he might finally be ready for his breakout season this spring, but he developed bone spurs in his elbow in March and needed surgery. That knocked him out of action for roughly two months.

He returned to the lineup on June 1, but looked lost at the plate. The low point came on July 9 when he was designated for assignment by the only organization he had ever known. At the time, he was hitting .141.

Smith cleared waivers, meaning 29 other teams didn't think he was worth picking up. Then the D-backs sent him back to Triple-A Reno, where he slowly regained confidence in his swing.

Now he's making big contributions at a critical stage of the season.

“It felt really good,” Smith said. “There were lots of times this year when I didn't feel like I could ever hit again. I think that happens to a lot of people. Just didn't have any timing coming back from the surgery.”

Smith's homer was a crowd-pleaser at Chase Field, where a season-high 47,918 fans were in attendance for the franchise's 25-year anniversary celebration of their 2001 World Series win over the Yankees.

Lovullo said their might have been a little magic in the air for the D-backs since so many franchise legends were in the building, including Luis Gonzalez, whose bloop single off Yankees closer and Hall of Famer Mariano Rivera in the ninth inning of Game 7 scored Jay Bell for a 3-2 win.

“Gonzo hit a walk-off about 25 years ago and to be able to do it on the (celebration) night is pretty cool,” Smith said. “It's a full stadium. It was a playoff-like atmosphere. Every pitch felt like it mattered more and to pull it out in the end feels good.”

See AP’s full MLB coverage here

Arizona Diamondbacks' Pavin Smith has gum dumped on him after he scored the winning home run in the ninth inning of a baseball game against the New York Yankees, Saturday, Sept. 19, 2026, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Caitlin O'Hara)

Arizona Diamondbacks' Pavin Smith celebrates with the team as he arrives home after scoring the game-winning home run during the ninth inning of a baseball game against the New York Yankees, Saturday, Sept. 19, 2026, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Caitlin O'Hara)

Arizona Diamondbacks' Pavin Smith celebrates with the team as he arrives home after scoring the game-winning home run during the ninth inning of a baseball game against the New York Yankees, Saturday, Sept. 19, 2026, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Caitlin O'Hara)