​The Milwaukee Brewers opened their series against the Pittsburgh Pirates with a 7-6 defeat on Saturday at PNC Park in Pittsburgh. Since Saturday’s game was the first of a doubleheader, Milwaukee still has a chance to even the set when the teams meet again at 3:05 p.m. CT. For now, however, the Pirates hold the edge.
The trouble started early for Milwaukee on the mound with right-hander Brandon Sproat. In the first inning, he hit lead-off batter Jake Mangum, then after recording the first out, he plunked Bryan Reynolds to put two runners on base. An RBI single followed, and a fielding error by Brewers third baseman Joey Ortiz extended the inning, giving Pittsburgh a 2-0 lead. The Brewers answered in the top of the second when William Contreras lined a double and Jake Bauers followed with a two-run homer to tie the game.
But in the bottom of the third, Sproat surrendered a solo homer, and he then hit his third batter of the afternoon and issued a walk. Milwaukee went down in order in the top of the fourth, and Sproat was relieved by Craig Yoho. Sproat finished his outing with three innings pitched, three strikeouts, two hits allowed, two earned runs and two walks.
Milwaukee briefly seized the lead in the top of the fifth. After consecutive doubles by Luis Lara and Cooper Pratt tied the game, Sal Frelick delivered a two-run homer to put the Brewers ahead. The advantage grew later in the inning when Contreras contributed an RBI single, helping Milwaukee take a 6-3 cushion.
The turning point came in the bottom of the seventh. Aaron Ashby came on in relief of Chad Patrick, who had started the frame by yielding a leadoff single. Ashby allowed back-to-back singles to load the bases before striking out a batter. With a 3-1 count against Esmerlyn Valdez, Ashby unleashed a 99 mph sinker that Valdez belted to right field for a grand slam, flipping the scoreboard and giving Pittsburgh a dramatic lead.
Milwaukee threatened again in the top of the ninth, loading the bases with one out, but Andrew Vaughn grounded into a double play to end the game. The Brewers now face the challenge of winning the second game of the doubleheader to avoid dropping the series.
In the early going, Sproat’s rough start set an uneven tone, but the Brewers responded with timely hitting from Contreras, Bauers and Frelick to briefly claim the lead. Yet the seven-run seventh inning by the Pirates, capped by Valdez’s grand slam, proved decisive. Milwaukee will aim to rebound quickly in the nightcap and reclaim momentum in a series that remains very much within reach, contingent on a strong follow-up performance.