Bucs rally to hand Brewers bad loss

Pittsburgh took two of three, hurting Milwaukee’s division hopes.

PITTSBURGH (AP) — A loss like this hurt in April and May, for sure. When a contending team like Milwaukee climbs back from a four-run deficit, ties it up in the late innings and then loses in September, the defeat feels a whole lot worse.

Ronny Paulino singled in the go-ahead run during a three-run eighth inning, and the Pittsburgh Pirates staged a rally of their own to beat the division-leading Brewers 7-4 Wednesday.

Pinch-hitter Josh Phelps followed Paulino’s hit with a two-run triple off Derrick Turnbow (4-5) and rookie Steve Pearce drove in two runs for Pittsburgh, which is one loss away from a 15th consecutive losing season yet won twice in the three-game series.

“We’re playing contenders for the rest of the season and we have a chance to spoil some playoff hopes,” Pirates reliever John Grabow said.

“We can’t let up. We need to keep the mind-set that these teams are trying to kill us and we’ve got to play them as hard as we can.”

Struggle at PNC

Milwaukee, which began the day one game ahead of the Chicago Cubs, dropped to 20-42 at PNC Park, which opened in 2001.

Even while mounting a comeback from a 4-0 deficit, the Brewers left five runners on base in the seventh and eighth innings.

The Brewers tied it at 4 in the eighth on Prince Fielder’s run-scoring grounder and Corey Hart’s RBI triple.

But the Brewers, who had won nine of 13, left the bases loaded when Grabow (3-1) got pinch-hitter Geoff Jenkins to ground out after falling behind in the count 3-0.

“We just didn’t get the job done there,” manager Ned Yost said.

Turnbow immediately got into trouble by walking Jose Bautista and Pearce, who had four hits and three RBIs in the series.

Paulino’s single put Pittsburgh ahead again and Phelps — who is on a 13-for-27 tear yet is playing little — tripled into left-center.

Matt Capps pitched the ninth for his 16th save in 18 opportunities and now has been scored upon in only two of his last 31 appearances.

All 12 of his pitches were strikes.