PITTSBURGH -- Trying to predict how a team will perform based on pregame clubhouse atmosphere can often be a fool’s errand. Everyone’s mood changes once the umpire yells “play ball.”
However, the mood was decidedly mellow in the visitors’ clubhouse at PNC Park in Pittsburgh on Sunday morning. Nothing but soft rock and power ballads on the sound system, and a lack of chatter among teammates, left the impression that the Brewers were a tired team.
Milwaukee then played like a weary team on Sunday afternoon, thumped 14-5 by the Pirates, who completed a three-game series sweep.
It was understandable why the Brewers were dragging. They played their second doubleheader in five days on Saturday, losing a pair of one-run games, and Sunday marked the end of a three-city, 11-game road trip through Phoenix, St. Louis and Pittsburgh.
So, it would be hard to fault the Brewers if they were looking ahead to the four days off that come with the All-Star break that starts on Monday. Yet manager Pat Murphy scoffed at the idea that fatigue caused the Brewers to lose three straight games for the first time since June 18-20.
“I don’t think we were out of gas,” Murphy said. “Our guys played hard. We shouldn’t be any more tired than any other team. We’ve all played 94 games or so. We didn’t pitch well, and that’s why we lost. You’re not going to give up 10 runs in an inning and win.”
The Pirates broke the game open with a 10-run fourth against starter Robert Gasser and relievers Jared Koenig and Grant Anderson. That stretched the Brewers’ deficit from a manageable 4-2 to 14-2.
Gasser was tagged for eight runs (seven earned) in three-plus innings after being recalled from Triple-A Nashville on Saturday. The left-hander started in place of ace Jacob Misiorowski, who was scratched due to arm fatigue and will also miss the All-Star Game on Tuesday night in Philadelphia.
“He wasn’t very good,” Murphy said of Gasser. “His stuff wasn’t good, and they crushed it.”
It was an admittedly frustrating day for Gasser, who made eight starts for the Brewers earlier this season.
“I was never able to make the big pitches when they needed to be made,” Gasser said. “I felt like I made a lot of good pitches and got quite a few swing-throughs. I feel like many of my offerings were good, but when it came to the result pitches, they weren’t going my way. I feel like a lot of pitches that were hit were decent, but they also killed my mistakes.”
The game got out of hand after Koenig replaced Gasser. The lefty failed to retire any of the five batters he faced, and they all eventually scored.
The Brewers have a 59-37 record, the most wins before the All-Star break in franchise history, and a sizable lead in the National League Central as they pursue a fourth consecutive division title.
“It was a really good first half, but we’ve got to come back and play even better in the second half,” said second baseman Brice Turang, who hit a two-run home run in the eighth inning. “It’ll be good to get four days off because everyone is a little tired at this point in the season and needs to recharge a little bit.”