PITTSBURGH -- Through the first three innings of his start on Tuesday night at PNC Park, Brandon Woodruff was cruising. But he was also in a weird spot: He hadn’t struck out anyone despite owning a career 29.1 K%.

“I was just thinking about what Wade [Miley] was going to say if I didn’t have at least one strikeout,” Woodruff said with a laugh.

Ultimately, Woodruff saved himself some grief, recording six strikeouts from then on, while he gave the Pirates grief, decimating Pittsburgh’s stingy offense en route to the Brewers’ 7-3 win.

• Games remaining: at PIT (1), at NYY (3), vs. MIA (4), vs. WAS (3), at STL (4), at MIA (3), vs. STL (3), vs. CHC (3)
• Standings update: The Brewers (77-61) hold a 2 1/2-game lead over the Cubs (75-64) in the National League Central. Milwaukee is the third-best division leader, meaning it would host a best-of-three NL Wild Card Series against the final Wild Card entrant starting on Oct. 3.
• Magic number: The Brewers' magic number over the Cubs to clinch the NL Central is 22, with 24 games to play in the regular season.

Woodruff began his outing trying to get to two strikes as quickly as possible vs. a Pirates team that has the lowest chase rate in the Major Leagues.

“It’s a tough lineup, because they don’t strike out much,” Woodruff said. “They put the ball in play, and it was just one of those nights in the beginning, where I just knew I had to make some pitches early in the count because I knew they were swinging.”

That aggressiveness by the Pirates only increased as the game went on. And as Woodruff synced up the timing on his fastball, which he said he pulled a handful of times early on, it led to some quick innings.

It appeared Woodruff would have to carry the load for an offense that struggled in the opener and was held without a hit through 4 1/3 innings. But after Sal Frelick walked to open the fifth, Andruw Monasterio ended Pirates starter Andre Jackson’s no-hit bid and nearly sent it to the deepest part of PNC Park for a homer, but it caromed off the walls of the North Side Notch and leaked into left field for a Statcast-projected 409-foot RBI triple. The Brewers notched four hits, a sac fly and a walk over the next six plate appearances to break out of a short funk.

But with the way Woodruff was dealing, the pressure was off regardless. The right-hander didn’t allow any Pirates to go beyond first base safely, giving up just two hits and issuing two walks.

“I thought it was a game where he got stronger as the game went on and then really got on cruise control,” manager Craig Counsell said.

“He’s one of our [main] guys,” said Monasterio. “I think it’s what the team expects from him. I’m happy for him.”

And the Brewers have to be happy with the early returns from Woodruff after missing nearly four months of MLB action, as the two-time All-Star holds a 2.78 ERA in 35 2/3 innings since returning on Aug. 6.

“I think Woody is back,” Counsell said before the game. “I think he’s really been back for a while.”

Counsell also said the layoff, while tough to endure, could prove beneficial at this juncture of the season. All of Woodruff’s pitches had a higher average velocity on Tuesday night than his season averages coming into the game except for his slider, which had a bit more downward break to strong effect. 

“I think maybe last time, there was maybe even an uptick on his stuff,” Counsell said pregame, “and so I think this may be a place where maybe the injury helps us, because he’s kind of climbing into all of this. I couldn’t be happier with where he’s at, really.”

Woodruff is just glad to be back with the team fighting for another postseason bid. Since he pitched key innings in the 2018 playoffs, when he had a 2.19 ERA in 12 1/3 innings, Woodruff has become a critical part of the Brewers’ success in September and beyond. 

Woodruff tried to keep that aspect of his return at the back of his mind while he was rehabbing and just focus on the day to day. But he knew this team was special, and he couldn’t wait for moments like these.

“I just knew we had a really good team. I knew I just wanted to be a part of it,” Woodruff said. “I didn’t know when that was going to happen, but thankfully, it’s happening and we’re playing good baseball. That was my main goal was just to be a part of it at the end of the year.”