 to straightaway center, a 432-foot shot that hit just below the scoreboard.Milwaukee took two of three from its NL Central rival and moved into a first-place tie with the Chicago Cubs, who lost to Cincinnati. The Brewers finished their homestand at 5-5.Jeremy Jeffress (2-2) pitched a scoreless eighth, and Matt Albers worked the ninth to pick up his first save of the season.Milwaukee's Zach Davies, who had an 8.10 ERA over his previous four starts, allowed one run and six hits in 5 1/3 innings. He walked two and struck out two. He also drove in the Brewers' first run with a two-out single in the fourth after the Pirates intentionally waked Manny Pina.Melky Cabrera had a run-scoring single in the first for the Pirates.Pittsburgh's Steven Brault allowed one run and five hits but lasted just 4 2/3 innings after throwing 97 pitches.Pirates shortstop Kevin Newman had his hitting streak halted at 19 games.TRAINER'S ROOMPirates: C Elias Diaz was checked by a trainer and remained in the game after being called for catcher's interference in the fifth when Ryan Braun's bat struck his glove on a swing. Diaz took a foul tip off his right hand later in the game but stayed on after another visit from the trainer. ... RHP Chris Archer, who was pulled after four innings from his start on Friday night due to left hip discomfort, will be re-evaluated when the team returns to Pittsburgh on Monday. ... C Francisco Cervelli, who is on the injured list with a concussion, continues to await clearance to return to game action. He participated in on-field activities in Milwaukee.Brewers: Davies was hit in the hand by a line drive off the bat of Adam Frazier in the second inning.UP NEXTPirates: Trevor Williams (2-2, 4.25 ERA) will make his 12th start of the season as Pittsburgh opens a four-game series at home against the Cubs. Williams is 2-4 with a 3.68 ERA in eight career appearances (six starts) against Chicago.Brewers: Adrian Houser (2-2, 2.94) will make his fourth start of the season Monday as Milwaukee begins a four-game series at Cincinnati. Houser is 0-2 with a 9.00 ERA as a starter.---More MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/-Sports)
Davies looks to get back on track as Brewers host PiratesFLMZach Davies hopes to get back to being the pitcher he was the first six weeks of the season.Davies is scheduled to take the mound for the Milwaukee Brewers in the finale of their three-game series against the visiting Pittsburgh Pirates on Sunday afternoon.He was one of the league's ERA leaders through mid-May, but has become vulnerable since then.Davies (7-2, 3.34 ERA) is 2-2 in June with a 6.20 ERA in five starts. He has failed to go at least five innings in his past two outings, a mark he missed just once in his first 14 starts.Most recently, he had a 1-0 lead to start the third inning on Tuesday against the visiting Seattle Mariners, but gave up four straight extra-base hits, capped by a two-run homer, to give the Mariners a 4-1 lead before they went on to an 8-3 victory.Davies was gone after four innings, having allowed six runs (four earned) and six hits."I just need to go back to my mentality I had before, being aggressive, controlling the game myself and not being passive," he told reporters afterward. "That's the biggest change I see in myself right now, and it happens to everybody. There are times where you are going to doubt yourself. There are times where you think that somebody else knows what's best for you, and you don't rely on yourself." Davies wasn't being critical of any particular person, rather pointing his finger directly at himself."It's just you've lost a little bit out there," he said. "You think somebody else can help you, instead of looking at yourself and knowing that's the person who's going to change it." Davies will go up against Pirates left-hander Steven Brault, who will be making his seventh straight start since exiting the bullpen. He's 2-0 since then with a 2.23 ERA.The Pirates have scored 11 runs in each of Brault's past two appearances, but he wasn't around to get the victory in his last outing, when Pittsburgh finished on top of the visiting San Diego Padres in a wild 11-10 win in 11 innings.Brault (3-1, 4.50 ERA) faced the Brewers on June 9 in Milwaukee and gave up two runs and five hits in 6 1/3 innings. He gave the ball to the bullpen with a 2-1 lead and the tying run on second with one out, but the bullpen didn't bail him out and he received a no-decision in the 5-2 loss.Brault has made 12 appearances overall against Milwaukee in his career, including six starts. He's 1-2 with a 4.05 ERA.The Pirates will be playing the third game of 16 straight against the NL Central opponents."It's a good time to get into a groove, and feel like we're in a good spot," Brault said after his last start.The Pirates had won seven of eight before losing 3-1 on Saturday night to even the series.Pirates infielder Kevin Newman had two more hits on Saturday to extend his hitting streak to 19 games, the longest by a Pittsburgh rookie since 1900.--Field Level Media
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