MILWAUKEE — Ben Gamel rounded second base, pointed toward the Pirates dugout and pumped his left fist and arm in celebration, the emotion flowing through the Pirates outfielder glaringly obvious on Saturday at American Family Field.
While the two-run homer Gamel clobbered off Brewers reliever Brad Boxberger turned out to be the difference in Pittsburgh’s 4-3 victory, its tentacles stretched further than a pretty swing at a key time against a former employer.
An inning earlier, Gamel did what he almost never does and misplayed a routine single, which led to a Brewers run. Gamel also came to bat in the eighth inning of Friday’s game with two men on and the chance to make a difference and struck out.
For someone who takes so much pride in doing the little things and also producing when his teammates need him the most, you know those moments didn’t sit well with Gamel. The good news: He totally redeemed himself when he drove a 2-0 fastball the opposite way for his first home run since May 13.
The blast also capped a four-run rally for the Pirates in the seventh inning that came, oddly enough, against the Brewers’ terrific bullpen.
Yoshi Tsutsugo got things started with his — and the Pirates’ — second hit of the game, a hard-hit single to the warning track to open the seventh inning. Kevin Newman shot a ball into left before Oneil Cruz’s bloop double got the Pirates on the board at 3-1.
With runners on second and third, manager Derek Shelton sent Bryan Reynolds to the plate as a pinch hitter, and Reynolds was hosed on an absolutely horrid called third strike from home-plate umpire Roberto Ortiz. Reynolds fumed. So did Shelton, who was promptly ejected. Both clearly had a point.
The Pirates’ cut Milwaukee’s lead to 3-2 when the next batter, Josh VanMeter, flew out to left field, and Boxberger mishandled the throw into the infield from left fielder Christian Yelich, Newman alertly bolting home and scoring what would become a key run.
Pittsburgh’s rally helped Shelton’s club take the lead and win the game, obviously, but it also erased a pair of outfield miscues the Pirates would rather forget.
The second came in the sixth inning, and it resulted in the Brewers taking a 3-0 lead. With third baseman Luis Urias on first base after Eric Stout hit him with a pitch, designated hitter Keston Hiura drove a single to left. Gamel shuffled to the side, but the ball scooted through his legs, allowing Urias to score easily.
How rare was Gamel’s error? Put it this way: It snapped a 275-game, 2,015-inning errorless streak for him, which was the longest active run among MLB outfielders. Gamel’s last error before his miscue Saturday came April 28, 2019, as a member of the Brewers.
The Pirates' first outfield mistake occurred in the bottom of the fifth inning, this sequence involving Diego Castillo. Yelich led off with a double. Pirates starter Zach Thompson rebounded nicely by striking out shortstop Willy Adames and first baseman Rowdy Tellez before former Pirate Andrew McCutchen shot a single into right field.
With Newman back and Jake Marisnick not yet activated, Shelton decided to play Castillo in the outfield to give Reynolds a day off, and it burned him. Castillo overran the ball, which allowed Yelich to score easily.
Thompson, who began Saturday’s game with a 2.68 ERA over his last nine starts, went 4 2/3 innings and allowed two earned runs on six hits with three walks and four strikeouts.
Milwaukee grabbed a 1-0 lead with a solo home run from third baseman Urias in the second inning, as he caught an 0-2 cutter from Thompson and ripped it 404 feet over the fence in left-center. It was the team-high 13th long ball Thompson has allowed this season.
Brewers starter Brandon Woodruff retired the first 13 Pirates he faced before Tsutsugo went down and got a curveball at the bottom of the zone for a well-struck double in the fifth. Woodruff also walked Cruz in the inning — his first free pass issued since May 27 — but struck out Castillo looking to strand a pair of runners.
Chase De Jong, Duane Underwood Jr. and Wil Crowe gave the Pirates 2 2/3 innings of scoreless relief, walking none and striking out three, to get the ball to David Bednar, who picked up his 15th save.
