Jared Jones etched his name into Pittsburgh Pirates history after producing another commanding display in a 7-1 victory over the Cleveland Guardians in the opening game of Saturday’s double-header at Progressive Field.
The right-hander retired 30 consecutive batters across three outings before the remarkable run ended when Steven Kwan singled in the third inning.
Over the past 70 seasons, only Harvey Haddix and Jim Bibby had previously achieved a streak of at least 30 straight retired batters for the Pirates.
Jones’ impressive sequence began after he surrendered a double to Bryce Harper during his outing against the Philadelphia Phillies on 2 July, per DK Pittsburg.
He followed that by throwing six perfect innings against the Atlanta Braves before the All-Star break and then limited Cleveland to one run over five innings, allowing three hits, issuing one walk and striking out a season-high nine batters.
“Giving up a run, I had some choice words for myself,” Jones said. “But yeah, just hearing those numbers back and sitting back and realizing what I’ve done over the last three has been pretty cool.”
Confidence growing after injury lay-off
The victory was Jones’ first since 4 June and continued his encouraging return following a lengthy spell on the sidelines after elbow surgery.
The 23-year-old has now produced back-to-back starts of at least five innings while conceding no more than one run. Since returning to the rotation, he owns a 2-1 record with a 4.05 ERA and a 1.10 WHIP across nine starts.
“It was a long break, so it just felt really good to go out there and give the guys a chance to win,” Jones said. “Having not thrown a baseball in a game for more than 12 months and coming back a little bit shaky, a little extra nerves going on in there that I hadn’t felt before. Kind of feel like I’m able to get in my groove a little bit easier now.”
Fastball and slider prove decisive
Jones relied heavily on his two signature pitches throughout the contest, overpowering the Guardians’ batting order.
This home run is brought to you by Esmerlyn Valdez! pic.twitter.com/2uGxgR9Tba
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) July 18, 2026
His fastball averaged 98.7 mph across 48 deliveries and accounted for nine of his 11 swinging strikes, while five of his strikeouts came via the pitch. He also mixed in 17 sliders, using the breaking ball to finish off his remaining four strikeouts.
The combination allowed Jones to attack hitters efficiently and maintain control throughout his outing as Pittsburgh comfortably secured the opening game of the double-header.
“When I have those two pitches working, I feel like it’s going to be a pretty good day for me,” Jones said. “When it’s not, I need to figure out some other stuff. When those two are going the way they were today, it’s going to be a pretty fun day.”
Dodgers vs Yankees postponed
Yankee Scores earlier reported that Saturday’s Major League Baseball clash between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Yankees was postponed because of heavy rain, with the fixture now set to be played as part of a split double-header on Sunday.
