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Needing to start this big stretch of games against National League Central opponents on the right foot, the Pittsburgh Pirates did just the opposite Tuesday night at Miller Park as the Pirates wasted a solid performance from starter Ivan Nova in a 3-1 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers.
The loss was the Pirates third straight and keeps them 4.5 games behind the division leading Chicago Cubs.
The bats and the defense let the Bucs down in this one.
Former Pirates outfielder Keon Broxton hit a pinch-hit home run, Manny Pina drove in two runs for the Brewers as Milwaukee starter Zach Davies pitched into the seventh inning silencing the Pirates bats.
Adam Frazier tied the game at one in the sixth with an RBI triple but Davies allowed just six hits on the night.
The Bucs had chances, but couldn’t get a big hit with runners in scoring position, which they had multiple times.
The biggest culprit turned out to be Josh Harrison, who left a small village on the base paths.
Harrison popped out to end the third with two men on; grounded out to short with two men on in the fifth and grounded out to former Pirates reliever Jared Hughes in the seventh with a runner on second.
Josh Bell also had a bad night for the Pirates. His throwing error helped lead to the Brewers first run in the second. The Brewers took a 2-1 lead in the sixth when Bell’s foot appeared to come off the bag taking a throw. Bell was also thrown out by a mile at the plate trying to score.
The Pirates will need to salvage a split in the two-game series this afternoon when Gerrit Cole (10-8, 3.87 ERA) takes the hill. Cole has been very good against the Brewers, going at least seven innings in his last three starts against Milwaukee. Cole has also been a bit of a road warrior. He is 7-0 in his last seven starts on the road.
He will be opposed by Milwaukee’s Jimmy Nelson (9-6, 3.72 ERA).
Before Tuesday’s game, the Pirates placed Gregory Polanco on the 10-day disabled list. catcher Elias Diaz was called up to take his roster spot.
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Clutch Hitting
We saw last night how important clutch hitting needs to be for this Pirates team and it is something that has been missing most of the season.
Harrison was the biggest culprit last night, but overall, the Pirates are hitting just .254 with runners in scoring position, which is good for only 11th in the National League.
That number drops to .232 with runners in scoring position and two outs
With the bases loaded, they have hit only .237, good for 13th in the NL.
Among Pirates regulars, only Andrew McCutchen, Jordy Mercer, Frazier and Bell have hit above .280 with runners in scoring position on the season.
Needless to say, the Pirates probably win last night if they get a couple of big hits in big spots.
That is something that is going to have to improve down the stretch for this team to make any kind of run.
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