Andrew McCutchen Ties Pittsburgh Pirates Franchise Record with Walk-off Homer

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Andrew McCutchen went hitless in his first two at-bats Sunday but stepped to the plate in the ninth inning of a tie game and delivered at a critical time.

McCutchen blasted his eighth home run of the year—his sixth career walk-off shot with the Pirates to tie him with Hall of Famers Ralph Kiner and Willie Stargell for the most in franchise history, per ESPN Stats & Info.

2017 has been a down year for McCutchen, who only owns a .215 batting average and an on-base percentage below the .300 mark. He's still produced on the power front, collecting eight home runs already this season but hasn't repeated the form at the plate that earned him five straight All-Star nominations from 2011 to 2015 and four straight Silver Slugger awards from 2012 to 2015.

The Pirates planned to move McCutchen to left field for the first time in his career, with Starling Marte set to serve as the club's everyday center field. However, Marte tested positive for a performance-enhancing substance in mid-April, forcing McCutchen back to his stomping grounds in center.

Without Marte, Pittsburgh is missing some punch in the middle of the batting order and owns just a 24-28 record on the season. Despite currently sitting in the cellar of the NL Central, the Pirates are not out of contention. Entering Tuesday's action, they sit just 3.5 games back of the division-leading Milwaukee Brewers.

McCutchen and the Bucs return to the diamond Tuesday, looking to build off four wins in the club's last six games.