The Pittsburgh Pirates had to wait several weeks into the season to see just what they got with right-hander Joe Musgrove in an offseason trade with Houston.

It has been about a month since he came off the disabled list after a shoulder injury delayed his season debut Matt Prater Jersey , and Musgrove has proved fiercely competitive and fiercely loyal.

Musgrove is 2-1 with a 2.16 ERA for Pittsburgh (35-35) going into his sixth start Sunday, against right-hander Anthony DeSclafani (1-1, 5.40) and the Cincinnati Reds (25-45) in a series finale at PNC Park.

With a 6-2 victory Saturday, the Pirates won their third straight, climbed back to .500 and ensured themselves of winning a series after dropping eight in a row.

The Reds have lost two straight after a three-game winning streak.

Not only is Musgrove averaging more than six innings per start, with 23 strikeouts in 25 innings and a 1.12 WHIP, but also has played with an edge.

“He’s a tough guy,” Pirates catcher Francisco Cervelli said last month. “When he’s on the mound, he’s mean. He’s the kind of guy that you want to have on the mound all the time.”

In his most recent outing, a no-decision Monday in Arizona’s comeback 9-5 win, Musgrove was cruising with a 5-0 lead in the seventh inning when he hit Arizona Diamondbacks outfielder Chris Owings in acknowledged retaliation.

An inning earlier, Diamondbacks right-hander Braden Shipley hit Pirates infielder Josh Harrison — who got plunked 23 times last year and spent time on the DL this season and last because of a broken hand after being hit by pitches — and Pittsburgh rookie Austin Meadows got knocked down by a pitch earlier.

“It’s nothing more than just protecting your teammates,” Musgrove said. “It’s baseball. That’s how the game is played. That’s how I was raised to play the game. You protect your teammates, especially when a guy gets hit high up and in.”

The Pirates appreciated Musgrove’s loyalty, despite the fact that his retaliatory move might have sparked Arizona’s winning rally.

“That wasn’t the turning point of the game in my eyes,” Pittsburgh manager Clint Hurdle said. “You can’t control what other people are going to think.

“The importance of teammates taking a stand for one another, I think that is part of the game. Everybody can construct their own narrative afterward. But I know (Harrison) has been hit a ton, been hit a lot. … Just plunking our guys, whether it’s accidental or not, is just not OK.”

Harrison said “it felt good” to have his new teammate stand up for him.

Musgrove has never faced the Reds.

DeSclafani has made six career starts against Pittsburgh, going 1-2 with a 3.41 ERA, but not since Sept. 17, 2016.

DeSclafani missed all of 2017 because of an elbow injury and, like Musgrove, opened this season on the DL because of an oblique strain.

Last Sunday Scott Darling Jersey , in his second start this season, DeSclafani picked up his first win since Sept. 28, 2016, 6-3 over St. Louis. He gave up two runs and 10 hits in five innings, with six strikeouts and two walks.

“I don’t think I was as good as I wanted to be,” DeSclafani said. “There’s definitely a lot of work from here on out. I was falling behind some guys and giving up too many hits.

“But it’s definitely something to build on.”

He has yet to get his setup pitch, his curveball, back to where it once was.

“Definitely still getting a feel for it. I only threw a few of them,” he said. “It’s definitely got to be incorporated. I need some kind of equalizer to (go along with) my fastball and slider. Once that comes around, it should make things a little bit easier.”

Needing a good night’s sleep, Jose Urena left the ballpark shortly after midnight Wednesday before the end of the Miami Marlins‘ 16-inning loss to Tampa Bay, monitoring the game on his phone as he drove home.

That made him perhaps the best-rested player when the teams returned to the field barely 12 hours later. And it showed.

Urena and three relievers combined on a four-hitter and the Marlins bounced back from their marathon loss to beat Tampa Bay 3-0.

J.T. Riddle singled, tripled and homered.

”There is a little bit of a hangover. I’m not going to lie,” Riddle said. ”You play 16 innings like that, and you come in eight hours later and have to play again, the body doesn’t feel the greatest. But it’s part of your job.”

While both teams were dragging, Urena looked fresh in his first outing since June 20, when he was sidelined by right shoulder impingement. He pitched five scoreless innings and struck out six before departing for a pinch hitter after throwing 78 pitches.

”Everything was good,” Urena said. ”I felt I could go longer, but I haven’t thrown that much the past 12 or 13 days.”

Drew Rucinski (4-1) pitched two scoreless innings for his second win in the series. Brad Ziegler pitched around a walk in the ninth to earn his 10th save.

The Marlins took the series and went 5-5 on their longest homestand of the year. The Rays lost for only the third time in the past 12 games.

Riddle’s RBI triple in the sixth put the Marlins ahead. The ball appeared catchable, but sailed over the head of center fielder Kevin Kiermaier near the wall.

Riddle added his fifth homer in the eighth.

Three Rays – Kiermaier, Daniel Robertson and Jake Bauers – started after playing all 16 innings Tuesday. They went a combined 0 for 11.

”Urena pitched well,” manager Kevin Cash said. ”He kind of changed his approach a little bit, started throwing fastballs in to the lefties and away to the righties. That has generally not been his M.O.”

TANTRUM

When the Rays’ Carlos Gomez returned to the dugout after striking out in the second inning, he took three swings at a cooler Youth Sebastian Aho Jersey , and the resulting thuds could be heard throughout the ballpark.

”He squared it up pretty good, it sounded like,” Riddle said.

Gomez then punched another cooler, which sent cups flying over the dugout railing.

Despite all that solid contact, Gomez is batting only .195.

”When I’m angry, I’m not thinking really well,” he said. ”If they fine for me this, I’ve got enough money to pay.”

Gomez said he was upset because he was hit by a pitch during the at-bat, and the umpire blew the call. He was jeered in subsequent at-bats by the crowd of 7,572.

UP AND DOWN

After using nine pitchers Tuesday, the Rays called up right-hander Ryan Weber from Triple-A Durham as reinforcement. Weber (0-1) allowed two runs in five innings and was optioned after the game back to Durham.

”I knew I was coming up to get the team innings, and that’s what I did,” Weber said. ”I kept the pitch count low so they could keep running me back out there. That’s all I could have asked for.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Rays: RHP Chris Archer (left abdominal strain) felt fine after a rehab start and could rejoin the rotation as early as Monday against the Tigers. … LHP Vidal Nuno (right hamstring strain), who earned the victory Tuesday and contributed two hits before he was hurt, went on the 10-day disabled list. … RH Wilmer Font (right lat strain) was transferred to the 60-day DL.

Marlins: OF Lewis Brinson (left hip inflammation), batting only .186, was placed on the 10-day disabled list. … 3B Martin Prado (left hamstring) and 1B-OF Garrett Cooper (bruised right wrist) are expected to be activated for the upcoming series at Washington. … Miami recalled LHP Dillon Peters from Triple-A New Orleans.

UP NEXT

Rays: Following a day off, the Rays play a three-game series at the Mets, with RHP Ryne Stanek (1-2, 1.98) expected to start.

Marlins: RHP Pablo Lopez (1-0, 3.00), who beat the Mets in his major league debut Saturday, is scheduled to start Thursday when Miami opens a four-game series at the Nationals.

Miami is 6-16 against Washington since the start of 2017.

”We’ve had our trouble with those guys,” manager Don Mattingly said. ”They’ve beat us up pretty good the last couple of years.”

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