Big Rally Falls Short, Pirates Lose to Brewers 11-8

RECAP

PITTSBURGH – The Pittsburgh Pirates scored the final eight runs of Saturday’s game. The problem was they gave up the first 11 and their late-inning rally fell short in an 11-8 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers at PNC Park.

The Brewers’ Corbin Burnes (6-5) took a no-hitter into the sixth inning before Jack Suwinski broke it up with a two-run single to right field with two outs.

The Pirates (39-43) still trailed 11-2 at that point before scoring six runs in the eighth to make it a three-run game. Suwinski’s two-run home run and a two-run triple by Tucupita Marcano highlighted the outburst.

However, following a 33-minute rain delay, the Pirates went down 1-2-3 in the ninth inning as their four-game winning streak ended.

Suwinski went 2 for 4 with four RBIs and two strikeouts.

The Brewers (44-39) built a 6-0 lead after two innings against Johan Oviedo. Christian Yelich’s three-run homer sparked a five-run second.

KEY MOMENT

Yelich’s home run gave the Brewers a 5-0 lead and put them in position to eventually extend it to 11-0. The Brewers needed almost every one of those runs.

STAR OF THE GAME

Yelich went 1 for 3 with his home run, two walks and three RBIs.

STAT OF INTEREST

Andrew McCutchen’s on-base streak reached 20 games, a season-high, when he was hit by a pitch in the sixth inning. However, he finished 0 for 4.

NOTEWORTHY

–The start of the game was also delayed 41 minutes because of the threat of inclement weather. Yet the rain never came, the sun shined most of the time and the ground crew even watered the infield during the rainless delay.

–Oviedo (3-9) lost his fifth straight start as he was tagged for eight runs and nine hits in five innings while walking three and striking out one. Oviedo had four quality starts in June in five outings.

–Carlos Santana’s streak of four consecutive multi-hit games ended as he went 0 for 3. He was lifted by manager Derek Shelton after the sixth inning with the Pirates trailing 11-8.

–A fan “ran” onto the field before the start of the sixth inning. He was barely jogging and was cuffed by police without even a tiny bit of resistance.

–Santana became the second Pirates player to hit a walk-off home run into the Allegheny River when he connected for a two-run shot in the ninth inning Friday night off the Brewers’ Matt Bush. The only other player to do it was Garrett Jones in both 2009 and 2011. Bush was designated for assignment prior to Saturday’s game.

UP NEXT

Left-hander Rich Hill (7-7, 4.45) will start for the Pirates at 1:35 p.m. Sunday against Colin Rea (4-4, 4.57) in the deciding game of the three-game series.

Hill went 3-2 with 3.86 in five starts in June. Rea is 4-1 with a 3.79 ERA in his last seven starts.