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Pirates outslugged by Orioles, fall 5-2 in home opener

Oneil Cruz blasts pair of home runs in Pirates’ 9-7 loss to Phillies Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz runs the bases after hitting a home run in the fifth inning of a spring training baseball game against the Toronto Blue Jays Tuesday, March 5, 2024, in Bradenton, Fla. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall) (Charlie Neibergall/AP)

PITTSBURGH — This article originally appeared on pittsburghbaseballnow.com.

Oneil Cruz and Jared Triolo each homered, but the Pittsburgh Pirates were outslugged by the Baltimore Orioles and were defeated 5-2 in their home opener on Friday.

Jared Jones (1-1) made his second-career start for the Pirates and began his outing by striking out three of the first four batters he faced, but with one out in the second, Ryan O’Hearn hit a solo shot to center to put Baltimore up 1-0. It was the first of three homers in the game for the Orioles.

The following inning, Gunnar Henderson hit a solo homer to nearly the same spot as O’Hearn’s, doubling the Orioles’ lead. Henderson golfed a changeup down and out of the zone for his second home run this year.

Read more at pittsburghbaseballnow.com.

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