A bitter brew
PITTSBURGH — A loss like this hurt in April and May, for sure. When a contending team like Milwaukee climbs back from a four-run deficit, ties it up in the late innings and then loses in September, the defeat feels a whole lot worse.
Ronny Paulino singled in the go-ahead run during a three-run eighth inning, and the Pittsburgh Pirates staged a rally of their own to beat the division-leading Brewers 7-4 Wednesday.
Pinch-hitter Josh Phelps followed Paulino's hit with a two-run triple off Derrick Turnbow (4-5) and rookie Steve Pearce drove in two runs for Pittsburgh, which is one loss away from a 15th consecutive losing season yet won twice in the three-game series.
"We're playing contenders for the rest of the season and we have a chance to spoil some playoff hopes," Pirates reliever John Grabow said. "We can't let up. We need to keep the mind-set that these teams are trying to kill us and we've got to play them as hard as we can."
Milwaukee, which is now tied for first in the NL Central with Chicago after Cubs beat Houston 3-2, dropped to 20-42 at PNC Park, which opened in 2001. Even while mounting a comeback from a 4-0 deficit, the Brewers left five runners on base in the seventh and eighth innings.
The Brewers tied it at 4 in the eighth on Prince Fielder's run-scoring grounder and Corey Hart's RBI triple. But the Brewers, who had won nine of 13, left the bases loaded when Grabow (3-1) got pinch-hitter Geoff Jenkins to ground out after falling behind in the count 3-0.
Turnbow immediately got into trouble by walking Jose Bautista and Pearce, who had four hits and three RBI in the series. Paulino's single put Pittsburgh ahead again and Phelps — who is on a 13-for-27 tear yet is playing little — tripled into left-center.
"When the team comes from behind, battles hard the whole game, ties the game up and gets in a position to win and you're the guy who doesn't get the job done, it's tough," Turnbow said.
Matt Capps pitched the ninth for his 16th save in 18 opportunities and now has been scored upon in only two of his last 31 appearances. All 12 of his pitches were strikes.
The Pirates finished up a 4-2 homestand against the Cubs and Brewers, both of whom were in sole possession of first place at some point in their series.
"We played the hell out of both of them," manager Jim Tracy said. "When you can compete against clubs like this that have been good the whole season and you beat them, you feel pretty good."
