Shelby Miller delivers a pitch on Friday night vs. Pittsburgh. (photo/MLB)

Shelby Miller delivers a pitch on Friday night vs. Pittsburgh. (photo/MLB)

Pedro Alvarez hit two towering home runs and Travis Ishikawa added his first major league home run in nearly two years for Pittsburgh, off Cardinals starter Shelby Miller as he falls to 0-5 lifetime agains the Pirates in a 12-2 blowout loss.

Miller’s ERA against the Pirates is 5.92 after giving up five runs in 5.1 innings. What’s more troubling is that Miller has now allowed seven home runs in his last three starts against Pittsburgh, dating back to a couple of games in August, 2013.

The game was close in the fifth when Matt Carpenter homered off Gerrit Cole to make it a 3-2 game. Cole got out of a bases loaded jam in the fourth. Then the wheels came off in the sixth, when the Pirates made it a 6-2 game, aided by a throwing error by Yadier Molina.

Pittsburgh added another run the seventh and five more in the eighth off Keith Butler, called in for mop up duty.