Brewers finish off sweep of Pirates
MILWAUKEE -- Even in rebuilding mode, the Milwaukee Brewers still own the Pittsburgh Pirates at Miller Park.
Matt Garza allowed just one earned run in five innings, and Milwaukee relievers pitched four hitless innings as the Brewers took a 4-2 decision over the Pirates on Sunday.
The Brewers won their ninth straight home game against the Pirates and are now 64-17 at against Pittsburgh at Miller Park since 2007.
Garza (2-4) allowed two runs on four hits through five innings.
Corey Knebel, Carlos Torres and Will Smith pitched scoreless innings, and Jeremy Jeffress pitched the ninth for his 27th save and fourth in four days.
Brewers catcher Jonathan Lucroy, who earlier in the day voided a trade to Cleveland with his no-trade clause, pinch-hit in the eighth inning and received a loud ovation from the crowd of 32,405. Lucroy flied out to right to strand two runners.
Keon Broxton and Chris Carter his solo homers to lead Milwaukee's eight-hit attack as the Brewers swept the three-game set and won their fourth straight game and sixth in seven. Pittsburgh fell to 52-51 with its third straight loss.
The Brewers scored in the first inning for the third time in the series. This time Hernan Perez reached on a two-out single against Pirates starter Francisco Liriano (6-11). As Perez stole second, the ball deflected into short right-center. Perez came all the way around to score, as center fielder Andrew McCutchen's throw skipped past catcher Eric Fryer.
Broxton, a former Pirates minor-leaguer acquired in the offseason, gave the Brewers a 2-0 lead in the second with his second home run.
Gregory Polanco pulled the Pirates within a run in the third by smacking his 15th homer of the season. The blast gave Polanco homers in consecutive games and three of the last four.
The Brewers loaded the bases with nobody out in the third but only managed one run on Martin Maldonado's double-play grounder.
Pittsburgh again made it a one-run game in the fifth. Jordy Mercer singled and went to third on a throwing error by Perez that allowed Fryer to reach. After Liriano struck out, Mercer scored on John Jaso's fielder's choice grounder.
Carter restored Milwaukee's two-run lead when he crushed a Liriano offering over the wall in right-center for his 24th homer of the season. After going 15 games without a homer, Carter homered in two of the three games against the Pirates.
NOTES: Brewers C Jonathan Lucroy vetoed a trade that would have sent him to the Cleveland Indians for four prospects. Lucroy had in his contract eight teams he could not be traded to without his approval. He sat out Saturday's game as the trade talks were completed and was not in the lineup Sunday despite the trade being off. "There were some circumstances that came up that made me void it, obviously," Lucroy said in the dugout two hours before the game. "I think when it eventually comes out, I think you'll understand why." ... Brewers GM David Stearns said the Brewers had no choice but to accept Lucroy's decision and there was no frustration or disappointment on his part. "We know that this is part of the process," Stearns said. "It's why we engage with multiple teams throughout the entirety of negotiation. Jonathan elected to invoke the no-trade clause. Certainly, we were aware that was one of the possibilities." ... Brewers 2B Scooter Gennett entered Sunday with a career-best nine-game hitting streak during which he's hitting .343 (12 for 34, 1 HR, 7 RBI). ... Brewers LF Ryan Braun was not in the lineup for the fourth straight day because of tightness in his right side. ... Pirates LF Sterling Marte is on a six-game hitting streak, the least three of which are multi-hit games. He is hitting .410 (16 for 39) in his last 11 games with six doubles, one triple, one homer and five RBIs. ... Pirates C Francisco Cervelli was not in Sunday's lineup. He played all of Saturday's game after leaving in the eighth inning Friday because he was drilled on the right foot with a pitch while behind the plate. Eric Fryer made his first start since July 2.