Cubs starter Kyle Hendricks (0-1) walked
Frazier to start the game before Hayes silenced the
limited-capacity crowd and became the youngest Pirates hitter to
homer on Opening Day since Barry Bonds in 1988.
Chicago was held to two hits by seven pitchers and struck out 13
times.
The temperature at game time was a chilly 36 degrees with heavy
winds, leading to some uncharacteristic control issues for
Hendricks. After walking a total of eight batters in 81 1/3
innings last season, Hendricks gave up three runs with three
walks over three innings while throwing 63 pitches.
Hayes is one of the National League's top rookies after making
an impressive debut last September, when he hit .376 in 24
games. The 24-year-old led the majors in hitting in spring
training and is a bright spot for the rebuilding Pirates, who
won despite going 3-for-20 with runners in scoring position.
Chad Kuhl allowed two runs (one unearned) over three innings
before turning it over to six relievers, including Sam Howard
(1-0), who struck out the side in the sixth. Richard Rodriguez
worked around a one-out walk in the ninth for the save.
Chicago complied with COVID-19 safety precautions and welcomed a
crowd of 10,343, but the fans had few reasons to cheer.
The Pirates never trailed and took a 5-2 lead in the seventh on
Frazier's two-out double. After Willson Contreras reached base
on an error to lead off the third inning, the Cubs did not have
another baserunner until Eric Sogard began the eighth with a
double and scored on a sacrifice fly.
Cubs pitchers walked the leadoff hitter in five of the first six
innings and issued a total of 11 walks. Jacob Stallings and
Kevin Newman joined Frazier with two hits apiece for Pittsburgh,
which opened the season on the road for the fifth straight year.
The NL Central teams are off Friday before resuming the
three-game series on Saturday.
--Field Level Media
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