CHICAGO -- The Pirates have played fine ball as summer turns to fall. They currently sit nine games under .500 as a whole, but they’ve been above par over the last handful of weeks. They’ve taken series from several quality opponents, a list that now includes the Cubs after taking two of three at Wrigley Field following Thursday night's 8-6 victory.

Pittsburgh has already won 10 more games than last year and still has 12 games to go, and a playoff appearance next year doesn’t seem completely out of the question.

On Thursday night, Chicago manager David Ross was not in the business of offering praise.

"That's not a good team that just took two out of three from us -- or not a higher-caliber team, I believe,” Ross said.

Endy Rodríguez wasn’t aware of Ross’ comments when he spoke with reporters. His sentiment, though, ran counter to Ross’ belief; he’s seen what this team has done, and he knows what this team can do.

“We can fight,” Rodríguez said. “We don’t have the best team in the league, but we still have the talent to fight for the [expletive] playoffs.”

The Pirates have yet to be mathematically eliminated from postseason contention, but a playoff appearance, at this juncture, isn’t likely. But on this night, they did show off the talent that Rodríguez describes -- from Joshua Palacios’ latest clutch exploits to Johan Oviedo grinding through six scoreless innings to Ke’Bryan Hayes’ impressive two-way play.

“We just kept going,” said manager Derek Shelton. “We kept batting. The Cubs are a good team. They kept punching back. We just continued to battle. I’m really proud of them.”

The biggest punch that the Pirates threw came courtesy of Palacios, who once again delivered when the lights were at their brightest.

Pittsburgh took a four-run lead into the bottom of the eighth inning, but Chicago slashed the deficit to one by scoring a trio of runs off Colin Holderman. The Pirates held control for most of the ballgame, but the Cubs, in the penultimate inning, had their response.

Palacios, literally and figuratively, ended that noise. As he is wont to do, Palacios cleared the fences with his latest game-altering home run, a pinch-hit three-run shot in the top of the ninth inning that expanded the lead to four runs and sent dozens for the exits. There was the go-ahead double on the Fourth of July. There was the walk-off homer against the Phillies. There was the go-ahead homer against the Cardinals in the ninth. On Thursday, Palacios added another highlight to the reel.

“He’s the best,” Rodríguez said. “I love him when he ... pinch-hits. I love him. I feel 100% that he’s going to do something. I don’t know how he does that, but it’s crazy.”

Rodríguez’s impact on the ballgame, by contrast, wasn’t as loud; it won’t even show up on a box score. But in the third and fifth innings, Rodríguez changed the trajectory of the game with a pair of mound visits to Oviedo that paved the way for the right-hander’s scoreless outing.

Rodríguez’s first mound visit occurred in the third. The Cubs, trailing by two runs, had loaded the bases. After Oviedo threw a first-pitch ball to Swanson, Rodríguez emerged from his crouch and consulted his batterymate. Oviedo responded with three straight fastballs to punch out Swanson to end the inning.

Two innings later, the two conversed once more. The Pirates scored a run in the fifth, but the Cubs were threatening in the bottom half. Nico Hoerner kicked off the inning with an opposite-field single on a slider that didn’t slide. Ian Happ, who hit a grand slam the night prior, drew a six-pitch walk.

Runners on first and second. No outs. Cody Bellinger, Dansby Swanson and Seiya Suzuki, all capable of tying the game with one swing, due up.

So, again, Rodríguez met his man on the mountain. Just like in the third, Oviedo made the pitches he needed to make. Bellinger flied out. Swanson flied out. Suzuki flied out. Threat over. Inning over.

“We have a really good relationship,” Oviedo said. “He knows things that help me out to get back into the game. Most of the time, it’s just, ‘Let’s go, trust in yourself. Just get ahead. Just throw strikes.’ Stuff like that. It feels really good to have those kinds of conversations when we need it.”

Rodríguez’s recollection of the mound visits, by contrast, were more colorful.

“Let’s [expletive] go buddy,” Rodríguez said. “You’re throwing 97 every start. So, let’s go man.”