Pirates reliever Vance Worley stepped up in a big way Sunday for Pittsburgh after starting pitcher Charlie Morton couldn't make it out of the first inning during a 9-2 loss to the Nationals.
Worley, who entered in the first inning after Morton allowed nine runs in two-thirds innings, tossed 4 1/3 scoreless innings in relief. He allowed just two hits and one walk, while striking out five.
Worley has been pretty effective since moving into a relief role in mid-May. He is 0-1 with a 1.26 ERA in six relief outings. He has 12 strikeouts and issued just one walk on 14 1/3 relief innings.