PITTSBURGH (Interstat) — Jack Dreyer earned the win and Tanner Scott recorded the save as the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates 8-6 on Thursday night at PNC Park. The Dodgers improved to 44-25 while the Pirates fell to 35-34 in front of 30,660 fans in a game lasting 3 hours, 19 minutes. Los Angeles broke open a scoreless tie with three runs in the third inning, helped by a two-run single from Kyle Tucker. They added two runs in the fourth and two more in the seventh before scoring an insurance run in the eighth. Pittsburgh rallied with four runs in the fifth, highlighted by a two-run homer from Brandon Lowe, his 16th of the season. The Pirates added two in the eighth on an RBI double from Jake Mangum and a run-scoring double from Rafael Flores Jr., who finished 2 for 3 with a homer and two RBIs. Dreyer pitched one scoreless inning with two strikeouts. Scott worked 1 1/3 hitless innings with three strikeouts for his seventh save. Mitch Keller took the loss. Shohei Ohtani went 2 for 2 with a homer for Los Angeles.

PITTSBURGH (Interstat) — Shohei Ohtani homered and drove in a run, Kyle Tucker delivered a two-run single and the Los Angeles Dodgers held off a late Pittsburgh Pirates rally to win 8-6 on Thursday night at PNC Park. The Dodgers improved to 44-25, while the Pirates dropped to 35-34. Attendance was 30,660 and the game lasted 3 hours, 19 minutes. Los Angeles struck first in the top of the third. Ohtani launched a line-drive homer to right-center field, his 13th of the season, giving the Dodgers a 1-0 lead. After Andy Pages singled and Freddie Freeman was hit by a pitch, Tucker singled to left, scoring Pages and Freeman to make it 3-0. The Dodgers added two more in the fourth. Ohtani singled, advanced to third on a single by Pages and scored on Freeman’s single to left. Pages later scored on a walk to Mookie Betts, but the inning ended when Max Muncy walked and Tucker grounded out, leaving the Dodgers ahead 5-0. Pittsburgh answered in the bottom of the fifth. Rafael Flores Jr. led off with a solo homer to center, his first of the season. After Jared Triolo lined out, Nick Gonzales singled and Brandon Lowe followed with a two-run homer to right, cutting the lead to 5-3. Bryan Reynolds singled, Ryan O’Hearn singled and Spencer Horwitz singled to drive in Reynolds, making it 5-4. The Pirates loaded the bases but Jake Mangum struck out to end the inning. The Dodgers responded in the seventh. Alex Call walked, Dalton Rushing doubled to left, putting runners at second and third. Miguel Rojas reached on a fielder’s choice as Call scored, giving Los Angeles a 6-4 lead. Santiago Espinal singled to load the bases, but Andy Pages popped out and Freeman was hit by a pitch to reload them. Mookie Betts flew out, stranding three. An insurance run came in the eighth. Tucker struck out but reached first on a passed ball by catcher Flores. Alex Call singled, and Rushing walked to load the bases. Rojas hit a sacrifice fly to left, scoring Tucker for a 7-4 lead. The Pirates mounted a threat in the bottom of the eighth. Tyler Callihan tripled to right and scored on Jake Mangum’s double to center, trimming the lead to 7-5. Flores followed with a double to right, scoring Mangum and making it 7-6. Flores advanced to third on a groundout, but Nick Gonzales struck out and Brandon Lowe flew out to end the inning. The Dodgers added a run in the top of the ninth when Andy Pages reached on an infield single, but the inning ended without further scoring. In the bottom of the ninth, Tanner Scott struck out Bryan Reynolds, Ryan O’Hearn and Spencer Horwitz in order to secure the save. Jack Dreyer (3-1) earned the win, allowing four runs on six hits over five innings with four strikeouts and two walks. Mitch Keller (5-4) took the loss, giving up five runs on five hits over four innings with one strikeout and four walks. Scott recorded his seventh save. Ohtani finished 2-for-2 with a home run, a single and two walks. Tucker went 1-for-5 with two RBIs. Rushing was 1-for-3 with a double and two walks. Freeman went 1-for-3 with an RBI and was hit by two pitches. Espinal went 1-for-2. For the Pirates, Flores went 2-for-4 with a homer and a double, driving in two runs. Lowe went 1-for-4 with a two-run homer. Mangum doubled and drove in a run. The Dodgers’ bullpen held Pittsburgh scoreless over the final 3 1/3 innings. Alex Vesia pitched a third of an inning with a strikeout. Edgardo Henriquez allowed two runs on three hits over two-thirds of an inning, and Scott closed with 1 1/3 hitless innings, striking out three. The game was the decisive contest of a three-game series. The Pirates won 9-8 on Wednesday, while the Dodgers took Tuesday’s opener 12-3. Los Angeles now heads to Chicago for a weekend series against the White Sox, while Pittsburgh hosts the Miami Marlins. Interstat’s game simulator projected a 6-5 Dodgers win. The Dodgers were installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of minus-1.5. The total of 14 runs went under the over-under line of 8.5. Interstat’s ELO system gave Los Angeles a 65.20 percent probability to win.

PREVIEW: Dodgers at Pirates PITTSBURGH (Interstat) — The Los Angeles Dodgers will aim to complete a three-game sweep of the Pittsburgh Pirates on Thursday evening at PNC Park, with first pitch scheduled for 6:35 p.m. EDT under a forecast of 85-degree temperatures and rain. Left-hander Justin Wrobleski (7-2, 3.12 ERA) is set to start for the Dodgers, who own the best record in the National League at 43-24. Right-hander Mitch Keller (5-3, 3.98 ERA) will counter for the Pirates, who enter the series finale at 34-33. Los Angeles has dominated the first two games of this series, winning Tuesday 12-3 and Wednesday 2-1. The Dodgers have won six of their last seven games overall. Players to Watch Dodgers left-hander Eric Lauer has been sharp in three consecutive starts, all victories. In his most recent outing on June 9 against these same Pirates, Lauer pitched 5 2/3 innings of two-run ball, striking out five, before departing with the lead. He also earned wins over Arizona (June 2) and Colorado (May 26), allowing a combined five earned runs over 16 1/3 innings. Pirates right-hander Paul Skenes, notably the player Pittsburgh acquired in the blockbuster trade for Lauer this offseason, has struggled during a five-start losing streak. In his last outing June 9 against the Dodgers, Skenes allowed two earned runs over six innings but received no run support in a 12-3 defeat. Over his previous four starts, the rookie has surrendered 15 earned runs in 20 innings. By the Numbers The Dodgers are installed as -1.5 run favorites, according to Interstat. The game total is set at 8.5 runs, with the simulator projecting a 6-5 final in favor of Los Angeles. Up Next Following this series, the Dodgers travel to Chicago for a three-game set against the White Sox beginning Friday. Pittsburgh returns home to host Miami for a three-game weekend series starting Friday.