Jake Magnum’s final at-bat in the 10th inning of the Pirates’ afternoon game Thursday featured an awkward exchange in the background, as one male fan was caught on the broadcast appearing to grab his female companion’s chest while she laughed.
The interaction lasted a few seconds and the pair continued talking throughout.
Moments after the broadcast captured that moment, Magnum — who finished 3-for-5 with three singles — grounded into a game-ending double play as the Pirates lost, 8-7, to the Nationals.
“Dollar hot dogs got the fans in a bit of a frenzy at the ballpark today,” the original poster of the video wrote.
That forced Pittsburgh to settle for a series split amid a surprisingly strong start to the season, with the Pirates tied for first in the AL Central at 11-8 entering play Friday.
Starting with their finale against the Mets in the season-opening series, they ripped off six wins in seven games to start their quest to top .500 for the first time since 2018.
On Thursday, it was the errors that sank Pittsburgh — Braxton Ashcraft, Nick Gonzales, Nick Yorke and Konnor Griffin all committed one at different points — and undid the progress of 15 hits and seven runs. James Wood drove in the go-ahead run for the Nationals when he singled in the 10th inning.
“Not our cleanest baseball,” Pirates manager Don Kelly told reporters, according to MLB.com. “We need to play better. But the fight, they continued to stay in the game. A lot of times that can get away from you. It didn’t today.”
It’ll take more than a promising 19-game stretch to alter the trajectory of the Pirates, who haven’t made the postseason since a wild-card appearance in 2015 and have faced more questions about what they can get in return for ace Paul Skenes when he inevitably gets traded instead of what they can accomplish with him as their roster’s centerpiece.
But this has been a start — with the 19-year-old Griffin providing a jolt, with Brandon Lowe already hitting seven homers, with Oneil Cruz already adding five of his own after a gaffe-filled Opening Day loss to forget.
After the conclusion of their Nationals series, the Pirates will remain at PNC Park this weekend and host the Rays, with Bubba Chandler starting the opener Friday.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
