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Improving on the field might not be the only thing that will help the
Milwaukee Brewers
end their losing streak.
The struggling Brewers look to avoid matching their longest road skid in almost 16 years when they open a three-game series
against the
Pittsburgh Pirates
on Tuesday night.
After finishing second in the NL Central last season, Milwaukee (20-24) was expected to be a contender in 2008, but its struggles
in May have the Brewers last in the division.
Winning away from home has again been a problem for Milwaukee, which was swept in its third straight road series after losing
11-7 to Boston on Sunday. The Brewers, who have lost five in a row overall and are 5-12 in May, look to avoid losing 10 straight
away from home for the first time since July 31-Aug. 27, 1992. They went 32-49 on the road in 2007.
At least one Brewer believes the club needs to be more confident.
"I feel like we're there at times, but we need to come with that same approach every day," left fielder
Ryan Braun
told the team's official Web site. "We have to figure it out in a hurry. We're better than that, but a lot of it is our approach
mentally, (which) sometimes has to improve. We have to go to Pittsburgh and find a way to win the series."
That likely won't be easy for Milwaukee against the improving Pirates (21-23). The Brewers are 5-12 over the last two seasons
at PNC Park, where Pittsburgh is 12-8 this year and has won seven of eight.
Milwaukee scored 16 runs and hit seven home runs at Boston, but its pitching staff posted a 7.13 ERA in the series and the
team committed six errors.
"At this level, for the most part, you need to be consistent on all three levels every day if you're going to be successful,"
Brewers manager
Ned Yost
said.
Braun homered twice and drove in four runs Sunday. He is 6-for-18 with four home runs and six RBIs in his last four contests,
and has three multi-homer games in his last eight. He hit .300 with two homers and 10 RBIs in 10 games against the Pirates
last season.
Manny Parra
(1-2, 5.03 ERA) makes his first career start against Pittsburgh on Monday. He allowed one earned run and seven hits through
6 2-3 innings of a 6-4 loss to the
Los Angeles Dodgers
on Wednesday.
The left-hander will face a Pirates club that lost two of three to the NL Central-leading
Chicago Cubs
over the weekend, but has won nine of its last 13 contests.
"We're trying to stay focused on what we need to do (each game) and we've done a good job with that all year," manager
John Russell
told the Pirates' official Web site after Sunday's 4-3 loss at Wrigley Field.
Adam LaRoche
homered and drove in three runs Sunday for the Pirates, who couldn't overcome seven walks from starter
Phil Dumatrait
. Though he's batting .207, LaRoche is 4-for-9 with four RBIs in his last two contests. He hit .404 (21-for-52) with four
homers and 11 RBIs against Milwaukee in 2007.
Paul Maholm
(2-4, 4.94) takes the ball for the Pirates looking to bounce back after allowing four runs and 11 hits in six innings of a
5-1 loss at St. Louis on Wednesday. The left-hander is 2-2 with a 3.98 ERA in five career starts against the Brewers.
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