Lopez pitches 7 innings, Marlins win 4-3 over Pirates

MIAMI -- For the second straight game Pittsburgh jumped on Miami, this time though the Marlins' answered and Pablo Lopez and his teammates were able to lock down the Pirates the rest of the way.

Lopez pitched seven strong innings and allowed three runs to help the Miami Marlins beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-3 on Saturday night.

The Pirates, who have lost eight of nine, built a 3-0 lead in the fourth and the Marlins responded with three in the bottom half.

"Definitely the guys scoring runs was a turning point," Lopez said.

Lopez (5-5) gave up seven hits and one walk. He struck out four. He is 2-0 with a 1.80 ERA over his last four starts.

"It kind of looked similar to last night and they were going to start banging him around and he gets out of the inning and then we get the runs back," Marlins manager Don Mattingly said. "Then he was really good after that. I thought Pablo got really aggressive with his fastball. Everything seemed to be clean and he really just beared down after that."

Garrett Cooper and Harold Ramirez paced the offensive attack with three hits apiece for the Marlins while Starlin Castro knocked in the go-ahead run in the fifth.

"Yesterday they jumped on us early and our at-bats got away from at the end of the game," Cooper said. "We had a meeting today that if we got down just to not give those at-bats away, stick with what we do."

Sergio Romo pitched around a one-out single in the ninth by getting Melkey Cabrera to bounce into a game-ending double play to earn his 12th save in 13 opportunities.

Cooper is hitting .360 (32 of 89) with six home runs and 18 RBI over his last 23 games.

"Cooper can just hit," Mattingly said. "He can go the other way, but obviously he's showed he's dangerous too with the long ball. We've always liked the hit tool, he uses the whole field, an inside-out guy."

Cooper singled and Brian Anderson dropped in a double to right field to begin the fifth off Geoff Hartlieb (0-1). Castro grounded out to third scoring Cooper for a 4-3 lead.

Kevin Newman's base hit started the scoring in the third for the Pirates, who added two runs in the fourth on a base hit by Josh Bell and a double by Corey Dickerson for a 3-0 lead.

The Marlins tied it in the fourth with three runs on a base hit by Harold Ramirez, a throwing error by second baseman Adam Frazier, and a single by Jorge Alfaro.

"You've got to love to be engaged in major league baseball," Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said. "Tonight's game goes to show there is a game to be played and a game to be finished. We give them one extra out in the fourth and it cost us."

AGRAZAL MAKES MLB DEBUT

Pirates' 24-year old right-hander Dario Agrazal, a native of Panama, made his debut. He pitched four innings and allowed six hits and three runs, two earned, while striking out three.

"I felt very good," Agrazal said. "It is an emotion I will never forget. It is an amazing experience."

Agrazal's major league debut was broadcasted in his home country of Panama. Before throwing his first pitch, he reflected on his journey.

"I realized my dream," he said. "When I stepped on the mound, I saw many people. At first you feel nerves which is normal. But what's important is I maintained my focus."

Agrazal allowed two baserunners in the first three innings before running into trouble in the fourth.

"I thought Agrazal pitched well," Hurdle said. "First three were clean, double play helped. The error extended the inning however they synced him up a little bit. They hit four hard hit balls in that inning for singles as well."

TRAINER'S ROOM

Pirates: RHP Trevor Williams (side) is nearing a return. "Trevor's feeling good and we're intending to start him Wednesday against Detroit," Hurdle said. "Everything has gone well." . C Francisco Cervelli (concussion) is scheduled to be re-examined by the neurologist in the next couple of days. . RHP Keone Keta was transferred from the 10-day injured list to the 60-day.

Marlins: LHP Caleb Smith (hip) threw for the first time. "I know he's excited to be playing catch and get on the field," manager Don Mattingly said. "This is kind of the start of getting him ready. I don't want to put a timetable on it, but hopefully it's something that's not going to be a long time.". IF Jon Berti (oblique) and OF Peter O'Brien (ribs) are advancing with baseball activities.

UP NEXT

Pirates: RHP Chris Archer (3-6, 5.73 ERA) is looking to bounce back after allowing a career-high five home runs in a 7-5 loss at Atlanta in his last start.

Marlins: RHP Sandy Alcantara (3-6, 3.67) has allowed one earned run in 20 innings over his last three home starts.