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Pirates Walked Off by Brewers 7-5 Despite Oneil Cruz, Rodolfo Castro HRs

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Keston Hiura delivered a two-run walk-off home run against Pittsburgh Pirates reliever Wil Crowe in the bottom of the ninth to give the Brewers a 7-5 win over the Bucs on Monday night at American Family Field in Milwaukee.

The Pirates held a 5-3 lead with two outs in the eighth inning until Duane Underwood Jr. issued a two-out walk to Omar Narvaez.

Manager Derek Shelton called to the bullpen for Wil Crowe, who promptly gave up a game-tying two-run shot to Garrett Mitchell. The blast was the first of Mitchell’s major league career.

In the ninth inning, Willy Adames led off with a single off Crowe. Hiura, who notoriously has dominated the Bucs throughout his career, hit a game-ending homer that bounced off the top of the wall in left field.

It Hiura’s 13th home run against the Pirates.

After being shut out through the first four innings, the Pirates put up a four-spot against Corbin Burnes in the fifth inning. Three of those came on one swing, as Cruz blasted a 437-foot home run to right to put the Bucs ahead 4-3. It was Cruz’s 11th homer of the year.

For Cruz, it was his sixth round-tripper against Milwaukee this season. Cruz doesn’t have more than one homer against any other opponent.

The home run was the fourth straight hit by the Pirates in the inning as Kevin Newman and Tucupita Marcano both singled.

Jason Delay got the Pirates on the board earlier in the inning with an RBI single to center.

An inning later, Rodolfo Castro slugged a solo shot deep to right-center. His fifth home run of the year increased the lead to 5-3.

The Pirates tagged Burnes for five runs in six innings. The reigning National League Cy Young winner allowed eight hits, one walk and struck out five.

Bryse Wilson got through the first two innings of the game unscathed, but the Brewers got to the right-hander in the third inning.

Adames dropped a single into right field, allowing Mitchell to score. Hunter Renfroe later doubled down the right field line, plating two more.

The Brewers would have added another run in the inning when Rowdy Tellez singled to left. However, Pirates left fielder Jack Suwinski retrieved the ball and threw home to prevent Christian Yelich from scoring.

Wilson went three innings for the Pirates while pitching on just two days rest. The Pirates needed an emergency starter after JT Brubaker was placed on the paternity list.

Wilson allowed three runs on five hits with two walks and two strikeouts.

Bryan Reynolds picked up a pair of hits in the loss, his first multi-hit game since hitting a pair of homers as part of a three-hit night against the Boston Red Sox on Aug. 18. Newman had a two-hit performance.

The Pirates will attempt to even the three-game series on Tuesday night. Mitch Keller (4-10, 4.50 ERA) will get the ball for the Pirates. The Bucs will go up against Adrian Houser (4-9, 5.15 ERA).

Takeaways

  • No Rest For The Wilson: Wilson got the start for the Pirates on Friday night against the Phillies, but only managed to go one inning after 43 pitches in that game. With just two days of rest, the right-hander again started for Pittsburgh. Wilson became the first pitcher to start a game for Pittsburgh twice in a four-game span since 2019 when Jameson Taillon, Joe Musgrove and Montana DuRapau all did it.
  • Jack’s Back With An Impact: In his first game back since being recalled from Triple-A Indianapolis, Suwisnki had an impact on both sides of the ball. In addition to recording an outfield assist, his sixth of the year, Suwisnki singled in his first at-bat against Burnes. The base hit snapped an 0-for-28 skid Suwinski endured prior his demotion to Triple-A on July 15. He also drew a walk in the loss.
  • Cruz Missiles Galore: In each of his first three at-bats, Cruz tattooed the ball against Burnes. His first two at-bats both resulted in outs, but had exit velocities of 113.8 mph (lineout) and 113.2 mph (groundout). How do you make sure you get rewarded for a hard hit ball? Hit it even harder and where nobody can make a play on it. Cruz’s fifth inning home run came with a 117.4-mph exit velocity.

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