Barstool Bush
Predictions

Pittsburgh Pirates at Milwaukee Brewers

By Bush StaffUpdated 16d ago·2 min read
Pittsburgh PiratesPIT(57-58)
Milwaukee BrewersMIL(70-43)
2—4
FINAL
123456789RHE
PIT
000000200231
MIL
00030100—440

Paul Skenes (9-9, 3.96 ERA) got the ball for Pittsburgh looking to build off a rough July, while Milwaukee handed the mound back to Kyle Harrison (8-2, 2.84 ERA) for his first start back from injury. First pitch was 6:40 PM CT at American Family Field, and the Brewers needed length from Harrison after leaning on their pen the night before.

Show fees
FINAL
Spread
ML
Total
Pirates(57-58)
LWLWL
2
Brewers(70-43)
WLLWW
4
Best BetBrewers -137
Postgame

The bull case landed exactly as drawn up — Harrison wasn't rusty at all, he was dominant, and Milwaukee's lineup did enough early to make it academic. The rust worry in our bear case never showed up; if anything the layoff seemed to sharpen him. Brewers cruise, 4-2.

Pregame

Milwaukee's the better team by a wide record margin and gets a healthy Kyle Harrison back on the mound, which is why the Brewers sit as clear favorites here. The catch is Pittsburgh has beaten this team 6 times already in 2026, so there's a real matchup wrinkle the raw records don't capture. Still, the class gap and the pitching mismatch make Milwaukee the side to back to win outright.

Harrison hadn't started since July 8, and there was zero reason to expect he'd walk in and dominate immediately. He did anyway. William Contreras and Andrew Vaughn-type pop was always going to be there for Milwaukee's lineup, but nobody scripted the pitcher stealing the show against a Cy Young winner.

Paul Skenes
Paul Skenes
(9-11)·3.88 ERA
Jul 31 @ Reds
ND
4.0IP
5ER
7K
4BB
100P
08/05 Lineup
Kyle Harrison
Kyle Harrison
(10-3)·2.84 ERA
Jul 8 @ Cardinals
L
4.0IP
3ER
2K
0BB
70P
08/05 Lineup

Pittsburgh came in having actually taken two of three from Milwaukee earlier in the week, so this wasn't a team that had no business on the field with the NL's best record. Oneil Cruz being cleared for baseball activities is a real development for a lineup that's been picking up the pieces. None of that mattered once Harrison settled in.

Pittsburgh Pirates
Pittsburgh Pirates
(57-58)
Aug 4L@ Brewers2-4
Aug 3W@ Brewers4-3
Aug 2L@ Reds2-10
Aug 1W@ Reds4-1
Jul 31L@ Reds7-8
Milwaukee Brewers
Milwaukee Brewers
(70-43)
Aug 4Wvs Pirates4-2
Aug 3Lvs Pirates3-4
Aug 2L@ Angels0-3
Aug 2W@ Angels3-1
Aug 1W@ Angels6-2

Milwaukee's lineup did the necessary damage in the 4th, with Christian Yelich doubling home a run before Vaughn singled in two more to make it 3-0. Contreras added a solo shot in the 6th for good measure. Harrison, meanwhile, was busy erasing the last 8 batters he faced by strikeout before his night ended early.

Pittsburgh Pirates
Pittsburgh Pirates
(4)
  • 10-Day-ILRyan O'Hearn (RF) — The Pirates placed O'Hearn on the 10-day injured list Saturday with a left quad strain, Colin Beazley of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.08/01
  • 60-Day-ILMitch Keller (SP) — The Pirates placed Keller on the 60-day injured list Monday due to a right arm teres major muscle injury.08/03
  • 60-Day-ILOneil Cruz (CF) — Pirates director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk said Wednesday that Cruz (hand) has been cleared for all baseball activities, Alex Stumpf of MLB.com reports.07/29
  • 60-Day-ILKonnor Griffin (SS) — The Pirates transferred Griffin (finger) to the 60-day injured list Saturday, Alex Stumpf of MLB.com reports.07/11
Milwaukee Brewers
Milwaukee Brewers
(9)
  • Day-To-DayJake Bauers (1B) — Bauers (abdomen) is not in the Brewers' starting lineup against the Pirates on Wednesday, Hunter Baumgardt of Fox Sports 920 Milwaukee reports.08/05
  • 10-Day-ILSal Frelick (RF) — Frelick (shoulder) began a hitting progression early last week and started a throwing progression Friday, MLB.com reports.08/03
  • 15-Day-ILJoJo Romero (RP) — The Brewers acquired Romero (abdomen) and Dustin May from the Cardinals on Monday, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.08/03
  • 15-Day-ILJoel Kuhnel (RP) — Kuhnel (shoulder) retired two of the five batters he faced and was charged with two earned runs on three hits and no walks in a rehab appearance Sunday for Triple-A Nashville.08/03
  • 60-Day-ILBrandon Woodruff (SP) — Woodruff announced Saturday that he will undergo season-ending capsule repair surgery on his right shoulder, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reports.07/18
  • 60-Day-ILRob Zastryzny (RP) — The Brewers transferred Zastryzny (shoulder) to the 60-day injured list Wednesday.07/16
  • 60-Day-ILBrian Fitzpatrick (RP) — Fitzpatrick (elbow) underwent Tommy John surgery over the past week, Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.07/05
  • 60-Day-ILQuinn Priester (SP) — Priester will undergo thoracic outlet compression surgery on Monday and is expected to be sidelined 8-to-10 months, Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.06/18
  • 60-Day-ILAngel Zerpa (RP) — The Brewers transferred Zerpa (elbow) to the 60-day injured list Sunday.05/31

Pittsburgh's offense never found a rhythm against Harrison and didn't do much more against the pen behind him, managing only 3 hits on the night. Edwin Rodríguez's 2-run homer in the 7th was the only real dent the Pirates put in the scoreboard, and it came far too late to matter. Milwaukee's bullpen — Antonio Senzatela, Abner Uribe and Trevor Megill — did what it's done all year and shut the door.

It was a clean, businesslike win for a Brewers team that's been the class of the National League, and a reminder for Pittsburgh that even a good week against a great team doesn't erase the talent gap. Skenes will get another crack soon enough, but on this night the story belonged to the guy who hadn't pitched in a month.

Sources

MLBPittsburgh PiratesMilwaukee BrewersPolymarketKalshiPaul SkenesKyle Harrison