The Pittsburgh Pirates' Ryan O'Hearn (29) watches as his three-run home run off Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Hurston Waldrep clears the wall during the third inning of an MLB game, Tuesday, July 7, 2026, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Philip G. Pavely)

PITTSBURGH — Ryan O’Hearn hit three home runs and finished with a franchise-record 10 RBIs as the Pittsburgh Pirates drilled the Atlanta Braves 12-4 on Tuesday night.

The first baseman, the rare free agent to sign a multiyear deal with the Pirates, made it easy for ace Paul Skenes (7-8) to pick up his first win in nearly two months as Pittsburgh won its third straight.

The left-handed slugger hit his third career grand slam off Atlanta’s Hurston Waldrep (0-1) in the first, took Waldrep deep again for a three-run shot in the third and broke Johnny Rizzo’s 87-year-old franchise record for RBIs in a game by adding another three-run blast against reliever Connor Thomas in the sixth.

“That’s pretty amazing. I never hit three in any game at any level so to do it at home in front of (the fans) is pretty special. I know that’s enough RBIs for a month, so its cool,” O’Hearn said.

He was told after the game by a field reporter that the third home run was the 100th of his career.

“No kidding … that’s awesome, thats amazing,” he added.

O’Hearn’s bid to become the 22nd player in major league history to hit four homers in a game ended when he singled off Atlanta infielder Jorge Mateo — making his third career appearance in relief — in the ninth. O’Hearn instead settled for being the 11th player since the RBI became an official statistic in 1920 to hit three homers and drive in 10 runs in a game. Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani was the last player to do it in 2024 against Miami.

“I didn’t do anything different. I was seeing him (Waldrep), the guys got on base and that made it special,” O’Hearn said. “I never got a curtain call before so thank you all for that. That was awesome.”

O’Hearn’s historic night gave the Pirates a welcome boost on the same day the club lost star rookie Konnor Griffin for at least two months with a left-hand injury.

Skenes, the reigning NL Cy Young winner who was replaced on the National League All-Star team on Tuesday by teammate Braxton Ashcraft, allowed two runs on eight hits over a workmanlike six innings with a walk and four strikeouts as his ERA ticked down to 3.58.

“It was a great win. Paul pitched great, everyone played great against a good team, too,” O’Hearn added.

Michael Harris and Mauricio Dubon had two hits for the NL East-leading Braves, who have dropped three consecutive games.

Waldrep, making his second start of the season, struggled in 3• innings. The right-hander allowed seven runs — all driven in by O’Hearn — and walked five.

Ashcraft going

The righty Ashcraft has been named to the National League All-Star team for this year’s Major League Baseball All-Star Game, which will take place on Tuesday, July 14 at Philadelphia’s Citizens Bank Park.

He joins Skenes as the Pirates’ representatives.

The 26-year-old Ashcraft, a first-time All-Star, is 9-3 with a 3.24 ERA (108.1ip/39er) and 122 strikeouts in 18 starts. His 122 strikeouts entering Tuesday were the fourth-most in the National League.

Ashcraft and Skenes become the first Pirates pitching duo to make the All-Star game since Francisco Liriano and Gerrit Cole did it in 2015.

On deck

Tonight: Atlanta at Pittsburgh, 6:40 p.m.

Pitchers: Braves RHP Grant Holmes (5–4) vs. Pirates RHP Jared Jones (1-1)

TV: SportsNet Pittsburgh