​The Milwaukee Brewers will close the unofficial first half of the season this weekend by traveling to Pittsburgh to face the Pirates, marking just the second meeting between the clubs this season and the first on the road. Milwaukee currently sits at 58-34 as they wrap up Thursday night’s game in St. Louis, holding a 6.5-game lead over the Cubs atop the division and a 12-game cushion over the 47-47 Pirates, who have shown an up-and-down 2026 campaign.
Meanwhile, Pittsburgh has flipped the script with one of the more potent pitching staffs in recent seasons taking a step back this year. The rotation features a familiar trio in Paul Skenes, Braxton Ashcraft, and Bubba Chandler, all scheduled to start this weekend, but they haven’t matched the lofty expectations set for them. What has carried the Pirates this season is offense, which has improved after several seasons of underachievement. They’ve climbed to the top of the home run leaderboard behind two offseason acquisitions, Brandon Lowe and Ryan O’Hearn, who have provided the punch in the middle of the lineup. More on those two in a moment.
Milwaukee’s injury list remains lengthy as the Brewers navigate the grind of a long season. On the mound, Brandon Woodruff is sidelined with an expected return date still to be determined, Joel Kuhnel is out until late July or early August, Coleman Crow is expected back in late July, DL Hall is also out until late July, and Carlos Rodriguez is projected to return in mid-July. Rob Zastryzny is framed for a mid- to late-July return, while Brian Fitzpatrick and Quinn Priester are each out for the season. Angel Zerpa rounds out the pitching injuries, also out for the season. In the lineup, outfielders Brandon Lockridge and David Hamilton are unavailable until late July and mid- to late July, respectively.
Pittsburgh, conversely, must navigate their own set of injuries. Wilker Dotel is on the injured list through the All-Star break, with Evan Sisk and Chris Devenski also sidelined in the near term. The Pirates are missing several key position players as well, including Spencer Horwitz (mid-July), rookie Konnor Griffin (September), Oneil Cruz (late July), and Endy Rodríguez (late July).
On the Milwaukee side, Jake Bauers continues to pace the offense, displaying strong power with 16 homers while posting a .265/.365/.495 line. Jackson Chourio has cooled somewhat after a scorching June but remains a force, slashing .282/.337/.502 with 13 homers and 36 RBIs in 58 games this season. Catcher William Contreras is Milwaukee’s lone All-Star representative this year (Jacob Misirowoski was replaced due to his scheduled start on Sunday), carrying a .284/.349/.401 line behind the plate. The rest of Milwaukee’s everyday lineup features Brice Turang, Garrett Mitchell, Christian Yelich, Gary Sánchez, Sal Frelick, Joey Ortiz, Cooper Pratt, Luis Lara, Andrew Vaughn, and Greg Jones, rounding out a veteran-deep group.
Collectively, the Brewers are hitting .255/.337/.397 with a .734 OPS, ranking ninth in OPS among the league’s teams. They have accounted for 84 homers (28th in the league), 468 runs (fifth in the league), and 85 stolen bases (tied for seventh). The Pirates, led by their offseason additions Lowe and O’Hearn, have surged offensively. Lowe has posted a .243/.315/.490 line with 21 homers, 20 doubles, and 64 RBIs, while O’Hearn has been equally productive at .289/.346/.490 with 16 homers and 61 RBIs. Bryan Reynolds has also enjoyed a strong bounce-back year, hitting .281/.395/.477 with 14 homers, 57 RBIs, and a clean 7-for-7 mark on stolen bases. Rounding out Pittsburgh’s regulars are Henry Davis, Nick Gonzales, Jared Triolo, Jake Mangum, and Marcell Ozuna, with Esmer contributing to the depth chart for SEO considerations.