 struck out seven and walked two for his first victory in a month. Jordy Mercer drove in the lone run with a seventh-inning double, and the Pirates won for the fourth time in five games.The Brewers entered the day leading the NL Central but suffered their third straight loss.The only hit off Williams was a single by Jonathan Villar with two outs in the fifth. The hit followed a walk to Hernan Perez, and the duo executed a double steal before Erik Kratz struck out to end the inning.Williams had gone 0-2 in five starts since beating the Chicago White Sox on May 15.Kyle Crick pitched a perfect eighth inning for Pittsburgh. Christian Yelich singled off closer Felipe Vazquez to open the ninth, ending a string of 13 straight Brewers retired. Vazquez retired the next three hitters for his 14th save in 18 opportunities.Francisco Cervelli drew a one-out walk in the Pirates' seventh and advanced to third on Josh Bell's single. Josh Hader relieved Jhoulys Chacin and struck out Gregory Polanco, but Mercer followed by doubling down the left-field line to score Cervelli.The run was charged to Chacin (6-2), who had won his previous six decisions and not lost in 13 starts since April 4 against St. Louis. Chacin allowed six hits, struck out two and walked two.Cervelli had two hits to snap a 0-for-13 skid.TRIBUTE TO UECKERAs a surprise tribute to Bob Uecker, the Brewers traveling party dressed in loud sportscoats - popularized by the Hall of Fame broadcaster during his frequent guest appearances on The Tonight Show - for the flight from Milwaukee to Pittsburgh on Sunday night.Manager Craig Counsell said he had hoped to replicate an outfit Uecker once wore that included a turtleneck sweater with a belt and a pair of bellbottom slacks. Alas, Counsell came up empty in his search for such garb.PIRATES MOVESThe Pirates activated right-handed reliever Richard Rodriguez from the 10-day disablist list, recalled infielder/outfielder Jose Osuna from Triple-A Indianapolis and optioned right-handed reliever Dovydas Neverauskas and catcher Jacob Stallings to Indianapolis.TRAINER'S ROOMBrewers: 3B Travis Shaw (sore right wrist) was given the night off after being injured Sunday during a swing in a loss to Philadelphia.Pirates: Rodriguez had been out since June 7 with right shoulder inflammation.UP NEXTBrewers: RHP Freddy Peralta (1-0, 3.72 ERA) is expected to be recalled from Triple-A Colorado Springs to start Tuesday night. The rookie made two starts with the Brewers earlier this season, including striking out 13 in 5 2/3 innings at Colorado on May 13 in his major league debut, and is 6-1 with a 2.75 ERA in 12 starts with Colorado Springs.Pirates: RHP Jameson Taillon (4-5, 3.94) is 2-1 with a 2.73 ERA in his last four starts and 1-3 with a 3.47 ERA in seven career starts against Milwaukee.---More baseball: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball)
Brewers turn to Chacin against Pirates 7h ago• 2 min read Right-hander Jhoulys Chacin could have gotten something richer than the two-year, $15.5 million contract he signed with Milwaukee during the offseason.It turns out the Brewers certainly cashed in.Chacin (6-1, 3.32 ERA), who faces right-hander Trevor Williams (5-4, 4.38) and the Pittsburgh Pirates in a series opener Monday at PNC Park, is 6-0 with a 2.66 ERA in his past 12 starts, a career-high six-game winning streak.The Brewers are 12-3 in his starts overall."He's PITCHING," Milwaukee manager Craig Counsell said after Chacin's last outing, when he gave up one run in six innings Wednesday and combined with three relievers for a 1-0 shutout against the Cubs in Chicago."He's got some cunning and some craftiness out there, as well as good stuff." Chacin, who is 2-3 with a 4.76 ERA in seven career starts against Pittsburgh, introduced a split-fingered fastball Wednesday, switching to that after he struggled with command on his changeup.His performance more than 2 1/2 months into the season would seem to make him quite a deal for Milwaukee. He has no regrets."I've never been a guy who wanted a lot of attention," Chacin said. "I just want to go out there and do my job. I was happy to sign here because I saw the chemistry last year. I'm 30 years old, but I've been in the big leagues a little bit longer, and I really want to win. This is a good young team." Milwaukee (42-29) lost its second straight Sunday, 10-9 to the Philadelphia Phillies.Pittsburgh (35-36), which won two of three against Milwaukee in a series in early May, sits fourth in National League Central. The Pirates lost 8-6 Sunday to the Cincinnati Reds to end a three-game winning streak but still won a series after losing eight in a row."If somebody would have told me you're going to lose eight series, you'd think you're going to be horrible," Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said. "We're not horrible. We're fighting. And we believe that our best baseball is in front of us. You've got to go play it, though." Second baseman Josh Harrison said that mindset has permeated the clubhouse."For one, nothing changes for us as far as our day-to-day grind, preparing," he said. "But we also know what's happened here the past couple weeks. Guys are still plugging away and coming ready to show up every day. ... We've just got to continue bringing it every day." Williams is in need of a turnaround just like his club. He won his first three 2018 starts, but he is 0-2 with an 8.57 ERA in his past five starts. Most recently, he gave up three earned runs (eight total) and six hits in three innings Tuesday in a 13-8 loss to the Colorado Rockies.Williams is 0-1 with a 3.29 ERA in three career appearances, two of them starts, against the Brewers.
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