Pittsburgh Pirates fans were irate at third base umpire Alex Mackay during Sunday’s crazy 7-6 comeback win by the Chicago Cubs, who got a huge call to go their way in the ninth inning. Tied at six, the Pirates had the go-ahead run at third base in Oneil Cruz, and Brandon Lowe was at the plate with a 3-2 count. Daniel Palencia unleashed a 99mph up and out of the zone, but on appeal, Mackay ruled that Lowe didn’t check his swing.
Cruz jumped up and down in frustration, while Lowe took his helmet off and had some words for the third base umpire as Palencia celebrated on the mound. The thing about check swings is that no matter what, fans will be pissed off. There’s no actual rule on a check swing as an umpire essentially decides whether or not he thinks a batter made an attempt at a pitch, and that’s what Mackay called on Lowe.
This could have easily gone the other way, but it didn’t.
The Pirates would have had runners at the corners with two outs and Bryan Reynolds at the plate. Reynolds was 1-for-4 on Sunday and has been on fire the past two weeks, hitting above .300 with a .909 OPS in his last 36 plate appearances. Yet it’s not like there was any guarantee Reynolds would come through against Palencia anyway. Reynolds is 0-for-3, with two strikeouts and two walks against Palencia in his career.
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So, the game went to the bottom of the ninth inning still tied, and after using closer Dennis Santana on back-to-back days, the Pirates used Jose Urquidy. The Cubs immediately put the pressure on with a leadoff double by Michael Conforto. Alex Bregman reached on an infield hit, and following an Ian Happ fielder’s choice groundout, Urquidy walked Seiya Suzuki, who was down in the count 0-2.
Carson Kelly completed the comeback as the Cubs were trailing 5-0 after Lowe’s two-out grand slam in the second inning.
The Cubs were able to tie the game in the eighth inning thanks to a Pirates’ error. Michael Busch pinch-hit for Matt Shaw with two outs and two runners on. Busch blooped a single to left field that brought in Suzuki from second base, and then Swanson scored from first base after Reynolds’ throw from the outfield got away in the infield.
Swanson had another great head-up play on the bases in the seventh inning, when Bregman popped up to Lowe with the bases loaded. Lowe fell after catching the ball just outside the infield dirt, and without hesitation Swanson raced home to score.
A much-needed win for the Cubs, who were on the verge of getting swept at home by the Pirates for the first time since 2017.
