Bellinger turned on a 100 mph fastball from Jared Jones (2-4) in the first inning and sent it into the right-field seats for the Cubs. He later added two doubles and an RBI single and is hitting .538 (7 for 13) since returning from fractured ribs.
Ian Happ and Chris Morel had two hits apiece for the Cubs, who have won four of six. Happ, a Pittsburgh native, continued to torment his hometown team. His infield hit in the fourth extended his on-base streak against the Pirates to 60 games, a major-league record by one player against one opponent. He later added an RBI double and is batting .322 in 96 career games against Pittsburgh.
“We had some big at-bats from the middle of the order,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. “We got eight hits from our three, four, five hitters. So big night for those guys.”
Nick Madrigal added a two-run single for the Cubs during a four-run seventh that broke it open. Ben Brown (1-1) worked 3 2/3 scoreless innings in relief of starter Javier Assad to pick up his first major league win.
“(Brown) was really crisp today and just throwing a ton of strikes and the breaking ball was really, really good,” Counsell said. “And we saw some funky swings and, they were uncomfortable with it. So that was a big outing.”
Nick Gonzales had a two-run single on the day he was recalled from Triple-A Indianapolis. Oneil Cruz had two hits for the Pirates. Pittsburgh has lost three straight and 17 of 23.
Jones, who dazzled during seven shutout innings against Colorado last weekend, wasn’t quite as crisp this time. He retired the Cubs in order just once over six innings and his four strikeouts marked just the second time in eight starts he fanned less than seven.
Still, there were signs of continued growth. Jones worked out of a two-on, no-out jam in the fourth and would have escaped damage in the fifth if catcher Yasmani Grandal could have held onto Cruz’s relay from shortstop that easily beat Nico Hoerner to the plate on a Bellinger double. Grandal lost the ball, however, while making a sweeping tag that allowed the tying run to score.
Chicago took the lead in the sixth on Miguel Amaya’s RBI single and then pulled away.
“I thought (Jones) pitched good enough for us to win and I think that’s all we ask out of all of our starters,” Pirates manager Derek Shelton said. “He wasn’t as sharp as he’s been in some of his outings but he’s been really sharp in some outings. I still thought he threw the ball really well.”
