Marcell Ozuna scores 3, Charlie Morton limits former team to 3 hits as Braves beat Pirates 6-1

ATLANTA (AP) — Marcell Ozuna drove in three runs with a double with the bases loaded in Atlanta’s five-run third inning, Charlie Morton allowed just three hits to Pittsburgh, his former home, and the Braves beat the Pirates 6-1 Friday night.

Austin Riley hit his ninth home run, including six in the last 14 games. The Braves scored six runs in four innings against Martín Pérez (1-4) during the left-hander’s return from the injured list. Pérez had been out since May 27 due to a left groin muscle strain.

The Pirates’ only highlight came in the eighth when Bryan Reynolds hit a single up the middle off Jesse Chavez, extending his hitting streak to 24 games, the longest in the majors this season. It was the longest streak by a Pittsburgh hitter since 2003.

Morton (5-4) was dominant in his second career start against Pittsburgh, where he pitched from 2009 to 2015. The 40-year-old right-hander threw 6 1/3 scoreless innings.

Morton hit Reynolds with a pitch in the first and walked Nick Gonzales in the second. He retired 10 straight batters before Ke’Bryan Hayes’ single up the middle with one out in the fifth for the Pirates’ first hit. Andrew McCutchen opened the sixth with an infield single and Gonzales doubled to open the seventh.

The Pirates avoided a shutout when Hayes’ two-out double against Aaron Bummer in the ninth drove in Connor Joe, who hit a pinch-hit double.

TRAINERS’ ROOM

Pirates: Rookie RHP Jared Jones had his normal turn in the rotation skipped. Jones logged 86 innings after pitching a career-high 126 1/3 innings in the minor leagues last season. “We came into the season knowing from the get-go that we had to watch his innings,” manager Derek Shelton said. … IF Jake Lamb signed as a minor league free agent and was assigned to Triple-A Indianapolis.

Braves: OF Ramón Laureano did not start for the second straight game due to lower back soreness after throwing a pitch in the second game of Wednesday’s doubleheader at St. Louis. Manager Brian Snitker said he hoped Laureano would be available off the bench. … LHP AJ Minter (left hip inflammation) is expected to start Sunday at Triple-A Gwinnett, perhaps for his final rehab appearance since landing on the IL on May 30.

FOLLOWING

Braves right-handed pitcher Paul Skenes (4-0, 2.14 ERA) faces left-handed pitcher Max Fried (7-3, 3.00) on Saturday. “He’s pretty special,” Snitker said of Skenes, who has allowed just one earned run in five of his eight starts. “Even though it’s tough, it’s pretty cool to see a young talent like him in person.” »

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