PITTSBURGH (AP) — Andrew McCutchen led off the bottom of the first with a home run for the second straight game, Bailey Falter took a shutout into the eighth inning and the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Milwaukee Brewers 2-1 on Tuesday night.
McCutchen hit the first pitch of Tobias Myers’ major league career down the left-field line for his 24th career leadoff homer and his 100th long ball at PNC Park. McCutchen connected off Joe Ross on Monday night in the Pirates’ 4-2 win.
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Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Tobias Myers delivers during the first inning of the team's baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday, April 23, 2024, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)
Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Tobias Myers delivers during the first inning of the team's baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday, April 23, 2024, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)
Milwaukee Brewers' Gary Sanchez, right, celebrates with third base coach Jason Lane as he runs the bases after hitting a home run during the eighth inning of the team's baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday, April 23, 2024, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)
Milwaukee Brewers catcher Gary Sanchez, left, talks with starting pitcher Tobias Myers during the fourth inning of the team's baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday, April 23, 2024, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)
Milwaukee Brewers' Gary Sanchez is congratulated in the dugout after his home run against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the eighth inning of a baseball game Tuesday, April 23, 2024, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)
Pittsburgh Pirates' Andrew McCutchen celebrates in the dugout after hitting a home run against the Milwaukee Brewers during the first inning of a baseball game Tuesday, April 23, 2024, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)
Pittsburgh Pirates' Andrew McCutchen runs the bases after hitting a home run against the Milwaukee Brewers during the first inning of a baseball game Tuesday, April 23, 2024, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)
Pittsburgh Pirates' Andrew McCutchen runs the bases after hitting a home run against the Milwaukee Brewers during the first inning of a baseball game Tuesday, April 23, 2024, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)
McCutchen became the first Pirates player to hit a leadoff homer in back-to-back games since Adam Frazier in 2019. McCutchen is 5 for 8 in two games since manager Derek Shelton moved him to the top of the batting order, boosting his average from .173 to .233.
“Man, it’s unbelievable. He’s the man and not surprised at all,” Pirates closer David Bednar said. “So yeah, that was awesome. And maybe another one tomorrow.”
Pinch-hitter Connor Joe pushed the lead to 2-0 with an RBI single in the sixth inning.
Falter (2-1) was lifted after Gary Sánchez’s leadoff home run in the eighth — one of just three hits off the left-hander, who had a career-high eight strikeouts and two walks.
Since the second inning of his season debut on March 31 at Miami, Bailey Falter has posted a 1.73 ERA in 25 innings with a .154 opponents’ average in four starts.
Falter credits the turnaround to using his four-seam fastball more often.
“I’ve just simplified things,” Falter said. “I kind of shied away from being the pitcher that got me to the big leagues in the first place. Just try to go back to that. So far, it’s been doing really well for me.”
Bednar pitched a perfect ninth for his second save in as many nights and fourth of the season in seven chances, finishing a three-hitter.
Pittsburgh has won the first two games of the four-game series after losing six straight. The Brewers arrived on a four-game winning streak.
McCutchen’s homer was the only run Myers (0-1) allowed in five innings. He yielded four hits while striking out four and walking one.
“It felt good to get out there for the first time,” Myers said “First-pitch homer certainly settled the nerves, and it was good to see how my stuff plays up here. I was happy with it, and it was relief to finally pitch up here after eight years.”
The 25-year-old right-hander was called up from Triple-A Nashville on Monday. He also spent one day with the Brewers on April 17 but then was sent back down to the minor leagues without having pitched.
Milwaukee is Myers’ sixth organization since he was selected by Baltimore in the sixth round of the 2016 amateur draft. He also spent time with Tampa Bay, Cleveland, San Francisco and the Chicago White Sox.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Brewers: RHP Jakob Junis (right shoulder impingement) was back with the team and being observed for a possible head injury after being struck in the neck during batting practice a night earlier and taken to a hospital. Murphy said Junis, who is on the injured list with a right shoulder injury, was doing much better. … LHP Wade Miley (left elbow inflammation) underwent an MRI on Tuesday but the results were not immediately available.
UP NEXT
RHP Bryse Wilson (2-0, 3.29 ERA) starts for the Brewers on Wednesday night against his former team. LHP Josh Fleming (1-0, 1.74) will be used as an opener by the Pirates and likely be followed by rookie RHP Quinn Priester (0-1, 8.31).
This story has been updated to correct Andrew McCutchen leadoff homers to 24.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Tobias Myers delivers during the first inning of the team's baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday, April 23, 2024, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)
Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Tobias Myers delivers during the first inning of the team's baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday, April 23, 2024, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)
Milwaukee Brewers' Gary Sanchez, right, celebrates with third base coach Jason Lane as he runs the bases after hitting a home run during the eighth inning of the team's baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday, April 23, 2024, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)
Milwaukee Brewers catcher Gary Sanchez, left, talks with starting pitcher Tobias Myers during the fourth inning of the team's baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday, April 23, 2024, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)
Milwaukee Brewers' Gary Sanchez is congratulated in the dugout after his home run against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the eighth inning of a baseball game Tuesday, April 23, 2024, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)
Pittsburgh Pirates' Andrew McCutchen celebrates in the dugout after hitting a home run against the Milwaukee Brewers during the first inning of a baseball game Tuesday, April 23, 2024, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)
Pittsburgh Pirates' Andrew McCutchen runs the bases after hitting a home run against the Milwaukee Brewers during the first inning of a baseball game Tuesday, April 23, 2024, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)
Pittsburgh Pirates' Andrew McCutchen runs the bases after hitting a home run against the Milwaukee Brewers during the first inning of a baseball game Tuesday, April 23, 2024, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)
MAMOUDZOU, Mayotte (AP) — France used ships and military aircraft to rush rescuers and supplies to Mayotte on Monday after the tiny French island territory off Africa was battered by its worst cyclone in nearly a century. Authorities fear hundreds and possibly thousands of people have died.
Survivors wandered through streets littered with debris, searching for water and shelter after Saturday's Cyclone Chido leveled entire neighborhoods when it hit Mayotte, the poorest territory of France and — by extension — the European Union.
“Chaos” is how resident Fahar Abdoulhamidi described the aftermath. In Mamoudzou, the capital of the Indian Ocean island group, destruction was total: Schools, hospitals, restaurants, and government offices were in ruins.
Hillside villages were reduced to a jumble of snapped trees and piles of corrugated metal and wood. Electricity was down across the archipelago, with only the capital spared, and authorities were concerned about a shortage of drinking water.
Telecommunications also were severely disrupted, because most antennas were knocked out of service.
The French Red Cross described the devastation as “unimaginable” and said that it was impossible to give an exact number of victims, with rescuers still searching for bodies in the rubble.
Many ignored the warnings issued 12 to 24 hours before the storm hit, underestimating its power.
“Nobody believed it would be that big,” Abdoulhamidi, 46, told The Associated Press by phone. “Those who live in bangas stayed in despite the cyclone, fearing their homes would be looted,” he said, referring to the island’s precarious informal settlements.
Even worse, many migrants who are living in Mayotte illegally avoided shelters out of fear of deportation, Abdoulhamidi added. “Many were trapped in a vicious cycle,” he said.
Authorities used military-style vehicles to clear trees from roads so rescuers and supplies could reach those in need. The damage — including to the territory's sole airport — has left some areas still inaccessible to emergency teams, hampering authorities’ ability to assess the devastation and get basic necessities to survivors. The vast majority of Mayotte’s residents remained without power.
The official death toll was 20, according to television station Mayotte la 1ere, but French Health Minister Geneviève Darrieussecq earlier warned that any current estimates were likely major undercounts “compared to the scale of the disaster.”
More than 20 tons of supplies, including drinking water, hygiene kits and buckets to boil water, were being shipped in from the nearby French territory of Reunion to meet urgent needs, the French Red Cross said.
Those who survived in Mayotte were also starting to go hungry, according to Mayotte Sen. Salama Ramia. She told BFM-TV that many people heading to shelters found dire conditions.
“There’s no water, no electricity. Hunger is starting to rise. It’s urgent that aid arrives, especially when you see children, babies, to whom we have nothing concrete to offer,” she said.
Even as authorities struggled to bring in aid, people began to rebuild, Abdoulhamidi said.
“I heard hammering everywhere I went today,” he said, pointing to the sheer necessity driving those in bangas to reconstruct their homes from scratch.
Mayotte is a densely populated archipelago of more than 320,000 people, according to the French government, most of whom are Muslim. Situated between Madagascar and the African continent, it is made up of two main islands and has been under French administration since 1841.
The actual population may be much higher due to migrants who have entered illegally from nearby Comoros and other nations, with some estimates of those migrants ranging up to 100,000, according to French media.
The islands were pummeled by Chido, which brought winds in excess of 220 kph (136 mph), according to the French weather service. It was a category 4 cyclone, the second strongest on the scale, and the worst to hit Mayotte since the 1930s, Prefect François-Xavier Bieuville said.
Bieuville, the top French government official in the island group, told Mayotte la 1ere on Sunday that the death toll from the cyclone was several hundred people and could even be in the thousands.
But he added it would be extremely hard to count the deaths and many might never be recorded, partly because of the Muslim tradition of burying people within 24 hours.
Rescue teams and supplies have been sent from France and Reunion, which is being used as a bridge to get help to Mayotte. However, Mayotte’s airport remains closed to civilian flights because of extensive damage, leaving only military aircraft able to fly in and out. The airport is not expected to reopen for commercial flights until at least Dec. 19, authorities said.
After pummeling Mayotte, Cyclone Chido continued west and made landfall Sunday in Mozambique, where it killed three people, injured 34 and caused extensive damage, destroying classrooms in four schools.
In neighboring Malawi, Chido killed two people and affected approximately 1,800 households. In Comoros, President Azali Assoumani said that damage was minor.
In Mayotte, the main hospital suffered extensive water damage to the surgery, intensive care, emergency and maternity departments, according to Darrieussecq, the health minister. Authorities said that efforts were underway to establish a field clinic and deploy 100 additional medical personnel to the territory.
French authorities said that more than 800 more personnel were expected to arrive in the coming days. The French government said that it would use satellite data to assess the damage, prioritize aid and guide rescue teams.
Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau arrived Monday in Mamoudzou, according to TF1 television. French President Emmanuel Macron was set to host a meeting on the situation at the Interior Ministry’s crisis center in Paris later Monday, his office said.
Mayotte’s people have previously expressed discontent that their archipelago suffers from underinvestment and neglect by the French government.
Around three-quarters of the population lives in poverty, with a median annual disposable income roughly one-eighth that of the Paris metropolitan area, according to the French statistics agency INSEE. The territory has also faced political unrest and rising support for the far-right National Rally party, reflecting deep dissatisfaction with the political status quo.
Last year, the French army moved to quell protests on the islands after a drought and mismanagement led to water shortages.
The French Interior Ministry said that 1,600 police and gendarmerie officers were deployed soon after the cyclone struck to “help the population and prevent potential looting.”
December through to March is cyclone season in the southwestern Indian Ocean, and southern Africa has been hammered by a series of strong ones in recent years. Cyclone Idai in 2019 killed more than 1,300 people, mostly in Mozambique, Malawi and Zimbabwe. Cyclone Freddy left more than 1,000 dead across several countries in the Indian Ocean and southern Africa last year.
The European Parliament observed a minute of silence Monday for Chido victims. The chamber's President Roberta Metsola pledged support for the devastated territory, saying “Mayotte is Europe, and Europe will not abandon you."
Thomas Adamson reported from Paris. Gerald Imray reported from Cape Town, South Africa.
Tom Nouvian in Paris, and Monika Pronczuk in Dakar, Senegal, contributed to this report.
This photo provided on Monday Dec. 16, 2024 by the Civil Security shows part of the French territory of Mayotte in the Indian Ocean, after the island was battered by its worst cyclone in nearly a century. (UIISC7/Securite Civile via AP)
This photo provided on Monday Dec. 16, 2024 by the Civil Security shows residents and rescue workers walking in a damaged street in French territory of Mayotte in the Indian Ocean, after the island was battered by its worst cyclone in nearly a century. (UIISC7/Securite Civile via AP)
This photo provided on Monday Dec. 16, 2024 by the Civil Security shows part of the French territory of Mayotte in the Indian Ocean, after the island was battered by its worst cyclone in nearly a century. (UIISC7/Securite Civile via AP)
A man walk in a damaged street in Mamoudzou, in the French Indian Ocean territory of Mayotte, Monday, Dec.16, 2024 and France uses ships and military aircraft to rush rescue workers and supplies after the island group was battered by its worst cyclone in nearly a century. (AP Photo/Rainat Aliloiffa)
A fallen tree lies in Mamoudzou, in the French Indian Ocean territory of Mayotte, Monday, Dec.16, 2024 as France uses ships and military aircraft to rush rescue workers and supplies after the island group was battered by its worst cyclone in nearly a century. (AP Photo/Rainat Aliloiffa)
People walk by damaged constructions in Mamoudzou, in the French Indian Ocean territory of Mayotte, Monday, Dec.16, 2024 as France uses ships and military aircraft to rush rescue workers and supplies after the island group was battered by its worst cyclone in nearly a century. (AP Photo/Rainat Aliloiffa)
Debris are seen in a street of Mamoudzou, in the French Indian Ocean territory of Mayotte, Monday, Dec.16, 2024 and France uses ships and military aircraft to rush rescue workers and supplies after the island group was battered by its worst cyclone in nearly a century. (AP Photo/Rainat Aliloiffa)
This photo provided on Monday Dec.16, 2024 by the Gendarmerie Nationale, shows a member of the Gendarmerie Nationale watching an armored vehicle clearing a road Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024 in Mayotte as France rushed rescue teams and supplies to its largely poor overseas department in the Indian Ocean that has suffered widespread destruction. (Gendarmerie Nationale via AP)
This photo provided on Monday Dec.16, 2024 by the Gendarmerie Nationale, shows a member of the Gendarmerie Nationale watching debris Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024 in Mayotte as France rushed rescue teams and supplies to its largely poor overseas department in the Indian Ocean that has suffered widespread destruction. (Gendarmerie Nationale via AP)
This photo provided on Monday Dec.16, 2024 by the Gendarmerie Nationale, shows fallen trees along a road Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024 in Mayotte as France rushed rescue teams and supplies to its largely poor overseas department in the Indian Ocean that has suffered widespread destruction. (Gendarmerie Nationale via AP)
This photo provided on Monday Dec.16, 2024 by the Gendarmerie Nationale, shows an armored vehicle of the Gendarmerie Nationale clearing a road Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024 in Mayotte as France rushed rescue teams and supplies to its largely poor overseas department in the Indian Ocean that has suffered widespread destruction. (Gendarmerie Nationale via AP)
This photo provided on Monday Dec.16, 2024 by the Gendarmerie Nationale, shows members of the Gendarmerie Nationale sawing a tree that fell on a road Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024 in Mayotte as France rushed rescue teams and supplies to its largely poor overseas department in the Indian Ocean that has suffered widespread destruction. (Gendarmerie Nationale via AP)
This photo provided Monday, Dec.16, 2024 by the Gendarmerie Nationale shows French Gendarmes clearing a road, Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024 in Mayotte as France rushed rescue teams and supplies to its largely poor overseas department in the Indian Ocean that has suffered widespread destruction. (Gendarmerie Nationale via AP)
This photo provided Monday, Dec.16, 2024 by the Gendarmerie Nationale shows vehicles of the Gendarmerie Nationale driving on a road Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024 in Mayotte as France rushed rescue teams and supplies to its largely poor overseas department in the Indian Ocean that has suffered widespread destruction. (Gendarmerie Nationale via AP)
This photo provided Monday, Dec.16, 2024 by the Gendarmerie Nationale shows a vehicle of the Gendarmerie Nationale on a road Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024 in Mayotte as France rushed rescue teams and supplies to its largely poor overseas department in the Indian Ocean that has suffered widespread destruction. (Gendarmerie Nationale via AP)
This photo provided Monday, Dec.16, 2024 by the Gendarmerie Nationale shows a vehicle of the Gendarmerie Nationale clearing a road Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024 in Mayotte as France rushed rescue teams and supplies to its largely poor overseas department in the Indian Ocean that has suffered widespread destruction. (Gendarmerie Nationale via AP)
This photo provided Monday, Dec.16, 2024 by the Gendarmerie Nationale shows Gendarmes clearing a road, Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024 in Mayotte as France rushed rescue teams and supplies to its largely poor overseas department in the Indian Ocean that has suffered widespread destruction. (Gendarmerie Nationale via AP)
This photo provided on Monday Dec.16, 2024 by the Gendarmerie Nationale, shows an armored vehicle clearing a road Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024 in Mayotte as France rushed rescue teams and supplies to its largely poor overseas department in the Indian Ocean that has suffered widespread destruction. (Gendarmerie Nationale via AP)
This photo provided on Monday Dec.16, 2024 by the Gendarmerie Nationale, shows a French Gendarme walking in among debris Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024 in Mayotte as France rushed rescue teams and supplies to its largely poor overseas department in the Indian Ocean that has suffered widespread destruction. (Gendarmerie Nationale via AP)
This photo provided Sunday Dec.15, 2024 by the French Army shows soldiers patrolling in a military truck in the French territory of Mayotte in the Indian Ocean, after Cyclone Chido caused extensive damage with reports of several fatalities. (Etat Major des Armées via AP)
This photo provided Sunday Dec.15, 2024 by the French Army shows a soldier looking at damages in the French territory of Mayotte in the Indian Ocean, after Cyclone Chido caused extensive damage with reports of several fatalities. (Etat Major des Armées via AP)
This photo provided Sunday Dec.15, 2024 by the French Army shows palm tress during strong winds in the French territory of Mayotte in the Indian Ocean, after Cyclone Chido caused extensive damage with reports of several fatalities, Saturday Dec.14, 2024. (Etat Major des Armées via AP)
This undated photo provided by NGO Medecins du Monde on Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024, shows a devastated hill on the French territory of Mayotte in the Indian Ocean, after Cyclone Chido caused extensive damage with reports of several fatalities. (Medecins du Monde via AP)
This photo provided Sunday Dec.15, 2024 by the French Army shows soldiers patrolling in the French territory of Mayotte in the Indian Ocean, after Cyclone Chido caused extensive damage with reports of several fatalities. (Etat Major des Armées via AP)
This photo provided Sunday Dec.15, 2024 by the French Army shows soldiers removing fallen trees in the French territory of Mayotte in the Indian Ocean, after Cyclone Chido caused extensive damage with reports of several fatalities. (Etat Major des Armées via AP)
This photo provided Sunday Dec.15, 2024 by the French Army shows soldiers at work to restore a building in the French territory of Mayotte in the Indian Ocean, after Cyclone Chido caused extensive damage with reports of several fatalities, Saturday Dec.14, 2024. (Etat Major des Armées via AP)
This image taken from video released by the Gendarmerie Nationale, shows massive damage from Cyclone Chido in the French territory of Mayotte, Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024. (Gendarmerie Nationale via AP)
This image taken from video released by the Gendarmerie Nationale, shows massive damage from Cyclone Chido in the French territory of Mayotte, Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024. (Gendarmerie Nationale via AP)
This photo provided Sunday Dec.15, 2024 by the French Army shows soldiers loading relief for the island of Mayotte, in the Indian Ocean, after Cyclone Chido caused extensive damage with reports of several fatalities, Saturday Dec.14, 2024 in Orleans, central France. (Laure-Anne Maucorps/ Etat Major des Armées via AP)
This photo provided Sunday Dec.15, 2024 by the Civil Security shows soldiers and rescue workers clearing a street in the French territory of Mayotte in the Indian Ocean, after Cyclone Chido caused extensive damage with reports of several fatalities, Saturday Dec.14, 2024. (UIISC7/Securite civile via AP)
This photo provided Sunday Dec.15, 2024 by the Civil Security shows rescue workers clearing an area in the French territory of Mayotte in the Indian Ocean, after Cyclone Chido caused extensive damage with reports of several fatalities, Saturday Dec.14, 2024. (UIISC7/Securite civile via AP)
