Pirates get swept out of Milwaukee
NL baseball
Trending
MILWAUKEE -- William Contreras drove in four runs, Christian Yelich drove in three and the Milwaukee Brewers beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 12-5 on Wednesday to extend their winning streak to 12 games.
Milwaukee scored double-digit runs for the second straight game and the fourth time this month. The Brewers belted out 12 hits but only two -- back-to-back fourth-inning doubles by Sal Frelick and Isaac Collins -- were for extra bases.
Frelick and Joey Ortiz each drove in two runs and Collins had one RBI.
Bryan Reynolds got the Pirates on the board in the fifth inning off Shelby Miller with his 12th homer of the season, a three-run shot. He also had a two-run homer in the sixth off Nick Mears.
Brandon Woodruff gave up four hits and a pair of walks over four scoreless innings. Jared Koenig (5-1) recorded the win with a scoreless seventh.
Pirates starter Mitch Keller (5-11) lasted only four innings. He was tagged for eight runs on six hits and two walks with five strikeouts.
Key moment
Ortiz and Frelick drew back-to-back walks to lead off the bottom of the sixth inning. Collins moved the runners over with a sacrifice bunt to bring up Contreras, who smacked a 1-2 sinker from Carmen Mlodzinski to right, clearing the bases to give Milwaukee a three-run cushion.
Cruz out
The Pirates placed outfielder Oneil Cruz on the seven-day concussion injured list. Outfielder Ronny Simon was recalled from Triple-A Indianapolis.
Cruz was injured in Tuesday night's loss when he collided with teammate Jack Suwinski in the outfield while the two of them were tracking a flyball.
The 25-year-old Simon, who was claimed off waivers from Miami on June 2, hit .291 (60-for-206) with nine doubles, a triple, seven home runs, 30 RBI, 32 walks, 24 stolen bases and 35 runs scored in 52 games with Indianapolis prior to being promoted today. During his time with the Indians, he made 34 appearances (33 starts) in left field, 11 appearances (all starts) as the designated hitter and seven appearances (all starts) in right field.
Simon's 24 stolen bases from June 6 through Tuesday were tied for the most among all Triple-A players in that stretch, while his 60 hits during that span were the third-most in the International League.
Over his last 15 games prior to being recalled today, Simon batted .344 (22-for-64) with four extra-base hits, nine RBI, eight walks, five stolen bases and nine runs scored.
Simon went 11-for-47 (.234) with two doubles, five RBI, seven walks and six runs scored in 19 games with the Marlins this season, his first in the big leagues. He made nine appearances (eight starts) at second base, six appearances (three starts) in left field, four appearances (all starts) as the designated hitter and one appearance at shortstop.
Key stat
Contreras recorded multiple hits in each of his last four games. He had 10 hits, including three home runs and 12 RBIs, during Milwaukee's six-game home stand.
Up next
The Brewers start an eight-game road trip with the first of three against the Reds in Cincinnati on Friday.
The Pirates travel to Chicago for a weekend set against the Cubs beginning Friday.