The Sports Xchange
PITTSBURGH - Once again, the Milwaukee Brewers were close to taking a key victory that would keep them in the thick of the playoff chase. But with a 1-0 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates on catcher Russell Martin’s RBI single in the seventh, the Brewers are now pushed closer to the edge of elimination.
Milwaukee lost four of its last five and now trails the Pirates by 4 1/2 games for National League’s second wild-card spot. The Brewers (80-76) have six games remaining this season.
“It sure doesn’t look good,” manager Ron Roenicke said. “And we’ve got to basically win it out. It’s not easy to do.”
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Lately, Milwaukee’s problem hasn’t been its pitching but the hitting. On their six-game road trip to St. Louis and Pittsburgh, the Brewers only allowed 12 runs to score but mustered just eight themselves.
Against two teams above them in the postseason hunt, it’s no wonder Milwaukee finished the trip 2-4 especially after it blew late leads in two of its losses.
Even after a trip that could be the precursor to the delivery of a knockout blow to the Brewers’ playoff chances, at least one player is still optimistic.
“It looks bad but as long as you still have a chance you’ll still continue to fight for it,” center fielder Carlos Gomez said. “There’s still six games to play, and early in the season we won nine games straight, so we know we can win six straight.”
