Jared Triolo, who entered with a .152 batting average, had two of Pittsburgh’s five hits against him. Triolo drove a leadoff double in the third inning and scored on two groundouts. Valdez’s only other blip came in the fifth, when Triolo had the first of three straight two-out singles against him.

Framber Valdez pitched seven strong innings, Isaac Paredes homered twice, and the Houston Astros beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 8-2 after a lengthy rain delay.

The Pirates fall to 23-40 overall and 14-18 at home with this defeat to the Astros, who improve to 34-28 and 12-16 on the road. A rain delay moved first pitch from 6:40 p.m. to 10