Andrew Heaney, Pirates bashed by Brewers

Noah Hiles, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on Jun 24, 2025

Published in Baseball

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MILWAUKEE — The first contest of the Pittsburgh Pirates’ three game series against the Milwaukee Brewers included plenty of back and forth action. The same couldn’t be said for what unfolded Tuesday. A dominant effort from the Brewers lineup paired with a solid outing from their ace Freddy Peralta resulted in an ugly 9-3 loss for the Pirates at American Family Field.

Pirates starter Andrew Heaney had an evening to forget, allowing seven runs, all earned, on seven hits and three walks over four innings. He was the game’s losing pitcher, falling to 3-7 on the year.

Milwaukee tagged Heaney for three long balls, two coming from Joey Ortiz and the third from Caleb Durbin. Those homers accounted for six of the seven runs allowed by the Pirates’ veteran lefty, with the final one coming after a wild pitch thrown by his replacement, Michael Darrell-Hicks, in the bottom of the fifth inning.

Peralta, meanwhile, made the most of his lead, pitching into the sixth inning before allowing any damage. The Pirates had an opportunity to strike early against the Brewers’ right-hander, loading the bases with no outs in the top of the second inning, but failed to bring any runners home.

Nick Gonzales put Pittsburgh on the board in the top of the sixth with a three-run homer, which ended Peralta’s day. He finished his outing having allowed the three runs on seven hits while striking out eight over five-plus innings. The win improved his record to 8-4 on the year.

The Brewers added two additional run to their credit in the bottom of the eighth inning off Carmen Mlodzinski. The runs were brought home on a fielder's choice from Ortiz and an RBI single from Sal Frelick. Both of those runs were unearned due to a fielding error by Gonzales.

It was over when …

The Pirates had a chance to take an early lead in the top of the second inning, but failed to capitalize. Spencer Horwitz led the frame off with a single, which was followed by singles from Ke’Bryan Hayes and Adam Frazier to load the bases with no outs.

Henry Davis was the first Pirate who failed to come through, grounding into a fielder’s choice that resulted in an out at home plate. Isiah Kiner-Falefa then struck out, putting the pressure on Oneil Cruz, who ended the frame with a ground out to second base.

On the mound

After being recalled from Triple-A on Tuesday morning, Darrell-Hicks was quickly called upon to cover innings for his new club, replacing Heaney with two men on and no outs in the top of the fifth inning. He began his tenure with the Pirates by getting William Contreras to bounce into a double play.

That at-bat, however, was followed by the wild pitch that allowed Milwaukee’s seventh run to come home. In the end, Darrell-Hicks threw two scoreless innings, allowing no runners to reach base while striking out a pair. He allowed just one of his two inherited runners to score.

At the plate

Gonzales followed his five-hit effort Monday with his third homer of the season Tuesday evening. The blast traveled 395 feet to left field with an exit velocity of 100.7 mph. Gonzales is now batting .451 (14-for-31) with three doubles, two homers and seven RBIs in his past seven games.

Most valuable player

Oritz, who tallied his first career multi-homer effort and drove home four runs in the win for Milwaukee.

Up next

The Pirates will conclude their three game series against the Brewers on Wednesday afternoon at American Family Field. Paul Skenes (4-6, 1.85) will face off against rookie Jacob Misiorowski (2-0, 1.64). First pitch is scheduled for 2:10 p.m. ET.

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