By Brandon Apter, Sports Talk Philly editor 
Final: Pirates 5, Phillies 4 ❖ Attendance: 32,439
Pittsburgh, PA - The Philadelphia Phillies and Pittsburgh Pirates hit two home runs each, but it was Adam Frazier's solo blast that proved the be the difference in Sunday's series finale, which ended in favor of Pittsburgh, 5-4. The game included a storm that delayed things for over an hour and a half.
Vince Velasquez struggled with command for a majority of the game, piling up his pitch count inning by inning. He was at 90 pitches through five innings, walked four and allowed four runs. Offensively, Cesar Hernandez raised his average to .286, going 3-for-5 with an RBI-triple out of the lead-off spot. Ryan Howard went 2-for-3 and Odubel Herrera hit his 11th home run of the season.
Meanwhile, Andres Blanco left the game in the fifth after a caught stealing play at third base with what was later diagnosed as a fractured left index finger. It looked like Gregory Polanco may have gotten one of his spikes into Blanco's hand.
The Phillies head to Miami for a three-game series with the Marlins beginning tomorrow at 7:10 pm. Jeremy Hellickson is scheduled to start for Philadelphia. Miami has yet to announce a starter.
WP: Neftali Feliz (4-0, 2.97 ERA) ❖ LP: Edubray Ramos (1-1, 4.91 ERA) ❖ SV: Mark Melancon (30)
Hub: Game Summary ❖ Starting Pitchers ❖ At the Plate ❖ Bullpen ❖ What's Next
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
| PHI | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 10 | 0 |
| PIT | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 9 | 0 |
Andres Blanco got the scoring started with two outs in the first inning, launching a solo home run to right center field, giving the Phils a 1-0 lead.
The Pirates took the lead in inning number two. Starling Marte led off with a single and Matt Joyce walked. Elias Diaz drove in Marte with an RBI ground out and Sean Rodriguez plated Joyce with a two-out RBI-double, giving Pittsburgh a 2-1 lead.
Philadelphia struck back in the third. Vince Velasquez singled and Cesar Hernandez drove him in with a triple to right center, tying the game at 2-2. Odubel Herrera brought Hernandez in from third with an RBI ground out, putting the Phillies back in the driver's seat, 3-2. In the top of the sixth, Herrera extended the lead to 4-2 with a solo home run, his 11th of the season.
In the bottom half of the sixth, Starling Marte hit a lead-off double. Matt Joyce followed with a two-run home run, tying the game at 4-4. Adam Frazier hit a lead-off solo home run off of Edubray Ramos in the seventh, giving the Pirates a 5-4 advantage.
With two outs in the bottom of the eighth, the rain began in Pittsburgh, delaying the game for an hour and 32 minutes.
When the game resumed, Andrew Bailey got the final out of the eighth before Pirates closer Mark Melancon set the Phils down 1-2-3 in the ninth to clinch the series victory for Pittsburgh.
| IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR | ERA | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vince Velasquez | 6.0 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 3.34 |
| Jameson Tallion | 6.0 | 8 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 3.83 |
Phillies
- Cesar Hernandez: 3-5, 3B, R, RBI, .287 AVG
- Odubel Herrera: 1-4, HR, R, 2 RBI, 2 K, .290 AVG
- Ryan Howard: 2-3, K, .166 AVG
Pirates
- Starling Marte: 3-4, 2B, 2 R, K, .316 AVG
- Matt Joyce: 2-2, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI, BB, .285 AVG
- Adam Frazier: 1-1, HR, R, RBI, .359 AVG
Phillies
- Edubray Ramos (7th): 1.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 K, 1 HR, 4.97 ERA
- Hector Neris (8th): 0.2 IP, 1 H, 1 K, 2.66 ERA
- Andrew Bailey (8th): 0.1 IP, 1 K, 4.94 ERA
Pirates
- Neftali Feliz (7th): 1.0 IP, 1 H, 1 BB, 1 K, 2.97 ERA
- Tony Watson (8th): 1.0 IP, 1 H, 1 BB, 1 K, 2.66 ERA
- Mark Melancon (9th): 1.0 IP, 1.51 ERA
What's Next
- Monday, July 25, 2016: at Miami Marlins, 7:10 p.m.
- Miami, FL - Marlins Park
- RHP Jeremy Hellickson (7-7, 3.84 ERA) vs. TBD
- TV: CSN; Radio: SportsRadio 94 WIP
