PITTSBURGH Pirates win 15-inning marathon -- again

The Indians lost for the second straight night, this time on a wild pitch.
PITTSBURGH (AP) -- Abraham Nunez tripled and scored on Dan Miceli's wild pitch and the Pittsburgh Pirates rallied three times to beat the Cleveland Indians 7-6 Saturday -- their second 15-inning game in as many nights.
The last time two teams played consecutive 15-inning games was June 18-19, 1996, when the Marlins and Giants did it.
Nunez, batting just .210, tripled down the right field line to start the 15th against Miceli (1-1), the Indians' sixth pitcher, and Kenny Lofton was intentionally walked.
Miceli's 1-2 pitch to Jason Kendall then bounced over catcher Josh Bard, who had no play as Nunez scored easily.
Scott Sauerbeck (2-4) pitched a scoreless 15th to win it after Julian Tavarez pitched five hitless relief innings, giving him 6 1-3 hitless innings over two nights.
In the teams' second wild, extra-inning game in as many nights, the Indians squandered leads of 3-0 and 5-1, went ahead 6-5 on Milton Bradley's RBI single, then saw the Pirates tie it on consecutive two-out errors by shortstop John McDonald in the ninth.
McDonald fumbled potential game-ending grounders by Reggie Sanders and Matt Stairs to score Aramis Ramirez, who had doubled with two outs for his third hit.
It was the second straight night the Pirates, who trailed 3-0 and 5-1, rallied from at least three runs down. They were behind 3-0 Friday before winning 5-4 on Randall Simon's 15th-inning homer in a rain-delayed game that didn't end until 1:37 a.m. EDT.
The McDonald misplays contrasted to Pirates left fielder Brian Giles' homer-saving catch in the eighth on Brandon Phillips' long drive with one on. Giles pushed off the fence with his foot to elevate himself, stretched his glove over the 6-foot fence and pulled the ball back from the second row of the stands.
The Pirates then tied it at 5 in their half of the eighth on Sanders' leadoff homer, which Indians left fielder Coco Crisp almost grabbed as he leaned over the wall.
Jody Gerut and Bradley each drove in two runs as the Indians scored three times in the first and twice more in the fifth to take their 5-1 lead against Kris Benson. Bradley finished with three hits and three RBIs.
Late Friday
Pirates manager Lloyd McClendon celebrated Randall Simon's game-winning home run in the 15th inning, trudged back to his office and pulled out a blanket.
He was too exhausted and emotionally drained to drive home, and it was much too late to find a hotel, so he decided to bunk for the night -- or, actually, the early morning -- on his clubhouse couch.
"I'm just going to sleep right here," he said. "I'm not going home. What's the point?"
The Cleveland Indians must have felt the same way. They were just as drained and worn-out as the Pirates, only they had nothing to show for one of the longest nights they'll ever experience in the majors.
The Pirates overcame a three-run Indians lead, two rain delays totaling two hours and one extra-inning scare after another to outlast Cleveland 5-4 on Friday night on Simon's homer off Danys Baez (0-5).
Both teams threatened repeatedly after the Indians squandered a three-run lead, then recovered to tie it at 4 on Josh Bard's RBI single in the eighth inning.
SATURDAY'S BOXSCORE
CLEVELANDPITTSBURGH
abrhbiabrhbi
Crisp lf5230Lofton cf7110
Blake 3b5210Kendall c6012
DMiceli p0000BGiles lf7021
Gerut rf4222ARmrz 3b7231
Riske p0000RSndrs rf7121
Spncer ph1000KYong 1b2000
DBaez p0000Stairs ph1000
Srensen 2b2000Tvarez p1000
Brdley cf6033STorres ph1000
Brssrd 1b6000Srbeck p0000
Bard c6011JWilsn ss3000
JMcDld ss5010Beimel p1000
BPhllps 2b5010MWlms p0000
Wstbrk p0000CWilsn 1b2010
Peralta 3b1000Rboulet 2b6130
Traber p3000Benson p1000
Boyd p0000Hyzdu ph1110
Lawton rf1000Bhrngr p0000
ANunez ss5120
Totals506126Totals587165
Cleveland300020001000 000--6
Pittsburgh100011111000 001--7
No outs when winning run scored.
E--Blake (7), JMcDonald (5). DP--Cleveland 1, Pittsburgh 1. LOB--Cleveland 11, Pittsburgh 15. 2B--Crisp (2), Gerut (13), Bradley (22), Lofton (13), ARamirez 2 (19), Hyzdu (3). 3B--ANunez (1). HR--ARamirez (7), RSanders (10). SB--Lofton (14), CWilson (2), ANunez (3). CS--Crisp (1), Bradley (3). S--Crisp, Blake, JMcDonald, Reboulet. SF--Bard.
IPHRERBBSO
Cleveland
Traber663316
Boyd2-311110
Riske1 1-331112
DBaez111002
Westbrook330001
DMiceli L,1-1221113
Pittsburgh
Benson575533
Boehringer110021
Beimel210003
MiWilliams121100
Tavarez500033
Sauerbeck W,2-4110000
DMiceli pitched to 2 batters in the 15th.
HBP--by Westbrook (CWilson). WP--Boyd, DMiceli, Benson. PB--Kendall. Umpires--Home, Dana DeMuth; First, Marvin Hudson; Second, Greg Gibson; Third, Jerry Layne. T--4:58. A--36,856.
FRIDAY'S BOXSCORE
CLEVELANDPITTSBURGH
abrhbiabrhbi
Lawton lf8120Lofton cf7010
Blake 3b7220Kendall c7120
Gerut rf3001BGiles lf4111
Spencer rf4010ARamirez 3b6113
Bradley cf5131RSanders rf3010
Broussard 1b7031ANunez ph1000
Bard c4011Hyzdu rf2000
Peralta pr0000KYoung 1b3010
Laker c3000Simon 1b3111
JMcDonald ss7020JWilson ss6010
BPhillips 2b7020Reboulet 2b5110
Tallet p2000Fogg p1000
Sorensen ph1010Stairs ph1000
Boyd p0000Sauerbeck p0000
Riske p0000Tavarez p0000
Crisp ph1000CWilson ph1000
Westbrook p0000MiWilliams p0000
DMiceli p0000STorres p1000
Sabathia ph1010
JaDavis pr0000
BriAnderson pr0000
Mulholland p1000
DBaez p1000
Totals624184Totals515105
Cleveland201000010000 000--4
Pittsburgh004000000000 001--5
No outs when winning run scored.
E--Blake (6), Tallet (1), Kendall (3), ARamirez (15), Reboulet (1). DP--Cleveland 2, Pittsburgh 1. LOB--Cleveland 15, Pittsburgh 13. 2B--Blake (14), Broussard (7), BPhillips (10), Kendall (8), BGiles (13), RSanders (10). 3B--Lofton (3). HR--ARamirez (6), Simon (7). SB--Bradley 3 (12). CS--Kendall (3). S--Fogg. SF--Bradley.
IPHRERBBSO
Cleveland
Tallet674002
Boyd1 1-300021
Riske2-300001
Westbrook100001
DMiceli100001
Mulholland320060
DBaez L,0-5111100
Pittsburgh
Fogg773305
Sauerbeck2-321111
Tavarez1 1-300001
MiWilliams230001
STorres W,5-2460002
Mulholland pitched to 2 batters in the 14th, DBaez pitched to 1 batter in the 15th. Umpires--Home, Jerry Layne; First, Dana DeMuth; Second, Marvin Hudson; Third, Greg Gibson. T--4:32. A--26,305.