The Milwaukee Brewers fell into an early hole when Kyle Harrison fell apart on the mound.
The Milwaukee Brewers fell to the Pittsburgh Pirates on Thursday, 7-4, at PNC Park.
With the loss, the Brewers missed out on the opportunity to complete the sweep of Pittsburgh. What went wrong?
Harrison’s struggles continue
After a dominant first half of the season, Milwaukee left-hander Kyle Harrison has not been the same after serving a near month-long stint on the Injured List due to left forearm tightness.
Unfortunately for Harrison and the Brewers, his woes continued on Thursday.
Harrison got the starting nod, and after getting through the first inning while only allowing a double, the Pirates got to the 25-year-old in the bottom of the second inning. To make matters worse, Harrison opened the frame with a strikeout and a groundout before coming apart.
With just one out needed to get off the field, Harrison began to melt down. He gave up a walk and a single before Bo Naylor was hit with a catcher interference call that loaded the bases.
From there, Harrison allowed a two-RBI double and a two-RBI single before hitting two batters and walking another in between them to bring another run across home plate for the Pirates that capped off a five-run inning.
The Brewers took a 1-0 lead in the top of the second, but it was quickly erased by Harrison’s downfall. Harrison was replaced before the second inning was over, and he posted an egregious final line of four hits, four earned runs, two walks and two strikeouts over 1.2 innings.
Harrison’s precipitous drop-off from the excellent numbers he was producing just months ago is alarming, to say the least. There was a time when he created a lethal one-two punch with Jacob Misiorowski, but now it has become increasingly difficult to trust him on the mound.
Too much to overcome
The Brewers tried to get back in the game, but the uphill battle created by the disaster in the second inning was too great a challenge.
Milwaukee scored a run in the fifth inning, and the offense added two more runs in the eighth to cut the deficit to 5-4, but the Pirates responded with two runs of their own, which ultimately sealed the deal.
The loss on Thursday demonstrates that even a team as good as the Brewers can have some hiccups, but this team needs to figure out how to help Harrison get back to his old form. They will need the best version of him in the playoffs, just like they will need the best version of everyone who steps on the field to reach their goals.
