Bailey Falter leaned on his fastball tonight and turned in another gem at PNC Park as the Pirates beat the Braves, 3-2, to snap a seven-game losing streak.

After allowing two runners to reach base in the first inning, Falter went on to throw six scoreless innings and scatter two hits while walking two and striking out three. He also retired 15 of the final 16 hitters he faced. 

It was the second straight start that Falter has pitched at least six innings while allowing one or fewer runs, two or fewer hits and two or fewer walks. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, he is the second Pirates pitcher since at least 1893 to do so in consecutive starts within a single season since Sam Leever did so in 1900. 

"Felt like early on he was kind of feeling for it a little bit," Don Kelly said. "Then he got in the groove and got everything rolling."

On this night, Falter said his fastball was key and has been over his last two starts. He threw it 40% of the time tonight and mixed in both his slider and sinker to keep hitters off balance throughout the night.

The key to his fastball was its pinpoint accuracy as he was able to move it around the zone. Just take a look at this 1-2 fastball to Matt Olson in the sixth inning, the last pitch Falter would throw:

It was perfectly executed on the outer edge of the zone as he went right after Olson, who is a career .254 hitter but is just two seasons removed from leading the major leagues in home runs (54) and RBIs (139).

"The last two starts, the heater has been in a really good spot," Falter said. "Feel like we've been executing it really well. And then, I feel like a broken record, as soon as we developed the heater, everything else plays so well off of it. So, I feel like we're in a really good spot right now. Just kinda trying to continue to ride that wave." 

Over his last two starts, both of which have come at PNC Park, Falter has thrown 13 innings and has given up just one earned run, a solo home run to Manny Machado on Saturday. He's also only given up four hits and walked four while striking out nine.

"I feel like we found a really good spot mechanics-wise," Falter said. "Figure out some stuff in the lower half and the arm is just along for the ride. Velo has been up a little bit too, so that also plays a lot as well, especially with the breaking stuff." 

When Falter has struggled this season, such as his start against the Dodgers on April 27, he hasn't had his fastball command, which allows him to mix in his breaking staff and keep hitters honest. But, when he has it, he's able to produce outings like he did tonight.

• Don Kelly will hold his pre-game media availability tomorrow in his office at PNC Park. That's a change from Derek Shelton who always held his pre-game media availability in the press conference room away from the clubhouse.

• Jared Triolo hit his first home run of the season tonight in the sixth inning when he turned on a 1-1 sinker from Bryce Elder and sent it just over the wall in left field:

After a couple close calls during the Pirates' last home stand, in that same area of the ballpark, Triolo said he felt like the wall was getting "further and further away."

"It surely felt good. To see it go over the wall, it really felt good," Triolo said.

• Kelly said Tommy Pham was scratched from the lineup about an hour before first pitch after the outfielder was "feeling under the weather."

• The Pirates struck out 12 times as five different players struck out at least twice. It's just the second-time the Pirates have done so this season but it's the 14th time they've recorded double-digit strikeouts in a game. They also didn't record a walk for the fourth time this season.