Although the offense has cooled, the first-place Cubs gained ground in the NL Central during a challenging part of the schedule.

Boyd, who lowered his ERA to 2.79 with a great performance in Saturday’s win, caught Pirates outfielder Tommy Pham off first for the left-hander’s league-leading sixth pickoff of the season, erasing a walk that stood as the only base-runner Boyd allowed after a first-inning home run.

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Among those in attendance was 67-year-old prostate cancer survivor Clark Atwater, who threw out the ceremonial first pitch.

Locked into another pitchers' duel, the Cubs finally created their opportunity in the 10th, pulling off a double steal to put the winning run 90 feet away with nobody out. David Bednar struck out Jon Berti and got ahead of Ian Happ with two splitters, but the third splitter was lined to right for a walk-off single.

The Chicago Cubs need starting pitching help and not just from the return of injured left-hander Shota Imanaga.

Tucker's ability to walk more than he strikes out has Cubs hitters thinking they can accomplish big things, too.