Angels roll past Pirates behind six shutout innings from Kikuchi

PITTSBURGH — Yusei Kikuchi did the quiet work. The lineup did the rest in waves.

Kikuchi turned in his best start of the season and the Angels backed him with three separate scoring bursts, beating the Pirates 6-1 on Saturday at PNC Park.

The left-hander worked around traffic all night, scattering five hits and three walks over six scoreless innings with six strikeouts. Pittsburgh managed runners in scoring position in four of those frames but never cashed one in. Kikuchi’s shutout stretch improved him to 1-5 and dropped his ERA to 4.96.

Sep 5, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Los Angeles Angels starting pitcher Yusei Kikuchi (16) delivers a pitch against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the first inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Sep 5, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Los Angeles Angels starting pitcher Yusei Kikuchi (16) delivers a pitch against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the first inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

The offense didn’t need one big swing. It needed three good innings, and it got them.

The first crack came in the fourth. Wade Meckler doubled and scored two batters later when Moisés Ballesteros singled him home, breaking the scoreless tie. Josh Lowe made it 2-0 an inning later with a leadoff homer, his 11th of the year, and the Angels tacked on a third run in the same frame when Denzer Guzman singled, moved to third on a balk during Zach Neto’s at-bat, and scored when Neto lined a single to center.

Sep 5, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Los Angeles Angels third baseman Denzer Guzman (23) greets right fielder Josh Lowe (3) crossing home plate on a solo home run against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the fifth inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Sep 5, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Los Angeles Angels third baseman Denzer Guzman (23) greets right fielder Josh Lowe (3) crossing home plate on a solo home run against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the fifth inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

The Pirates’ bullpen absorbed the real damage in the seventh. Adam Frazier opened the inning with a double off reliever Isaac Mattson, and after Neto singled him to third, Mike Trout drove him in to make it 4-0. Meckler wasn’t finished either. His second double of the night, this one to center, scored both Neto and Trout and pushed the lead to 6-0 before the inning was over.

Sep 5, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Los Angeles Angels center fielder Mike Trout (right) slides past Pittsburgh Pirates catcher Rafael Flores Jr. (43) to score a run during the seventh inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Sep 5, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Los Angeles Angels center fielder Mike Trout (right) slides past Pittsburgh Pirates catcher Rafael Flores Jr. (43) to score a run during the seventh inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Braxton Ashcraft took the hard-luck loss for Pittsburgh, falling to 14-6 despite striking out nine over five innings. He was around a lot of loud outs and just enough contact to allow three runs, and the Pirates’ relief corps couldn’t stop the bleeding once the Angels got rolling.

Pittsburgh’s only run came in the eighth, when Bryan Reynolds turned on a fastball from Luke Murphy for a solo homer, his 16th, cutting the deficit to 6-1. Ryan Watson had already tossed a scoreless seventh out of the Angels bullpen, and José Fermín shut the door with a scoreless ninth, stranding a pair of Pirates to end it.

Sep 5, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates left fielder Bryan Reynolds (10) celebrates his solo home run while wearing a welder’s hood in the dugout against the Los Angeles Angels during the eighth inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Sep 5, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates left fielder Bryan Reynolds (10) celebrates his solo home run while wearing a welder’s hood in the dugout against the Los Angeles Angels during the eighth inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Neto finished 3-for-5 with a run scored and steady work at shortstop all night, Trout and Meckler each had two hits, and Meckler’s pair of doubles accounted for three of the Angels’ six runs. Lowe added the solo shot and Ballesteros drove in a run of his own, with six different Angels crossing the plate in a game that never really let Pittsburgh find its footing.

Twelve hits and six runs is a good night against any pitching staff, and it came on a night Kikuchi handed the bullpen exactly the kind of length it needed. The offense made sure that effort didn’t go to waste.

Sep 5, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Los Angeles Angels center fielder Mike Trout (27) hits an RBI single against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the seventh inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Sep 5, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Los Angeles Angels center fielder Mike Trout (27) hits an RBI single against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the seventh inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

The win pushes Los Angeles to 53-68 on the year. The Angels will look to close out the series Sunday morning, when Walbert Ureña gets the ball against Pirates ace Paul Skenes, with first pitch at PNC Park set for 10:35 a.m. PT.