Colin Rea’s pitching, William Contreras’ homer give Crew 6-3 win over Pirates

Box Score

Entering Sunday afternoon with the chance to win their third consecutive series on the road, the Brewers looked to Colin Rea for a strong start against the Pirates in the rubber match in Pittsburgh.

After threatening to score in the first, the Pirates got the first two runs of the game across in the bottom of the second on a two-run homer from Nick Gonzales to straightaway center.

From there, Rea looked strong, spanning 6 ²⁄₃ innings while allowing two runs on five hits and a walk with three punchouts.

The Brewers provided Rea with some run support in the third, as Raimel Tapia was hit by a pitch, Andruw Monasterio drew a walk, and William Contreras took Rich Hill deep out to left center for a three-run homer to give Milwaukee a 3-2 lead.

The Brewers added to their lead in the top of the eighth with a two-out rally, starting with a Blake Perkins walk before Brian Anderson singled to put men on the corners for Brice Turang. Turang hit a soft groundball to the pitcher, which was then thrown errantly, allowing both Perkins and Anderson to score. Turang was thrown out trying to advance to second, but the Brewers entered the bottom of the frame with a 5-2 lead.

With Elvis Peguero on the mound in the bottom of the eighth, the Pirates mounted a two-out rally of their own. Carlos Santana hit a line drive single to right before a Josh Palacios double brought him around to score to cut the lead to 5-3.

Milwaukee got the run back in the ninth, as Joey Wiemer singled, advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt, and scored on a double from Monasterio to put the Brewers up 6-3 entering the bottom of the ninth.

Devin Williams came on to close and did his job, setting Tucupita Marcano, Jared Triolo, and Henry Davis down in order on nine pitches to send the Brewers back to Milwaukee with a 7-3 record on the 10-game road trip.

Unfortunately for the Brewers, the Reds also won Sunday, keeping the two teams in a tie for first in the NL Central. The Brewers now start a seven-game stretch with the Cubs and Reds at American Family Field, beginning with game one of a four-game set with the Cubs on Monday. First pitch is scheduled for 1:10 p.m. with Julio Teheran pitching opposite Drew Smyly.