Bucs Take Four-Game Series Sweep From Rockies

September 2, 2019 4:03 am

DENVER (AP) – Steven Brault came into the dugout after his first big league home run ready to celebrate with his teammates. Instead, they greeted him in jest with silence. It was only fitting after he quieted the Colorado Rockies’ bats for most of the afternoon. Brault hit a towering shot into the second deck and pitched effectively into the seventh inning to lead the Pittsburgh Pirates over the Rockies 6-2 on Sunday for a four-game sweep. Adam Frazier homered on the first pitch of the game, the second straight day the Pirates did that. Kevin Newman connected against Tim Melville on Saturday night, and Newman also led off Thursday’s game with a home run. It was the third time in major league history a team hit three leadoff homers in a four-game series. Pittsburgh had 63 hits and 37 runs at Coors Field over the weekend. Brault, who pitched three years at Regis University in Denver, socked a 441-foot solo homer that made it 3-1 in the seventh. He rounded the bases trying unsuccessfully to suppress a smile and was met with indifference when he got to the dugout. “That’s the longest silent treatment I’ve ever seen and everybody got mad at Trevor (Williams) for breaking it so early,” Brault said. “It’s cool to get the silent treatment, that’s a cool feeling.” Brault (4-3) allowed only one hit until Nolan Arenado lined a two-out fastball into the seats in left field in the sixth for his 35th home run. Brault left in the seventh when the Rockies got a run on two hits and an error, but Richard Rodriguez got out of the jam by fanning Trevor Story. Brault allowed just one earned run and four hits in 6 1/3 innings. Josh Bell and Colin Moran each hit an RBI single for the Pirates. Bryan Reynolds had three hits. Pittsburgh could have scored more runs but Colorado cut down three baserunners in the first six innings. Reynolds was thrown out at home trying to score from first base on a double in the third, Starling Marte was picked off in the fifth when he broke for second too early, and Erik Gonzalez was thrown out trying to stretch a single in the sixth. That helped limit the damage for Jeff Hoffman (1-5), who was recalled from the minors before game. Hoffman lasted just two innings in his previous start for the Rockies but held Pittsburgh to two runs and nine hits over five innings Sunday.  It wasn’t enough to prevent last-place Colorado from losing its sixth in a row.