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LaRoche powers Pirates past Brewers

Jul 5, 2007 - 10:53 PM PITTSBURGH (Ticker) -- Adam LaRoche hit two home runs and Ryan Doumit also homered for the second consecutive day as the Pittsburgh Pirates won their third straight, 6-3 over the Milwaukee Brewers Thursday afternoon.

LaRoche, who also homered Wednesday, went 3-for-4 with three runs scored and three RBIs and Xavier Nady went 3-for-4 for the Pirates, who have won six of their last nine.

Geoff Jenkins hit his 13th home run for first-place Milwaukee, which lost three out of four at PNC Park this week and have dropped four out of five overall.

"This is a great series win for us," Pirates manager Jim Tracy said. "We played very good baseball the entire series."

What was supposed to be a pitchers' duel between Tom Gorzelanny and Ben Sheets - two pitchers who combined for 18 wins and ERAs under 3.20 - never really materialized in earnest. Neither pitcher was awful, but neither was on the top of his game, either, after a 2-hour, 28-minute rain delay pushed start time back from 12:35 p.m. ET to after 3 p.m.

"I don't think either pitcher was on today to the point where they were lights out," Brewers manager Ned Yost said. "(Gorzelanny) was tough, but we probably could have made him throw more pitches."

Doumit's shot to scenter on a 1-2 pitch from Sheets led off the bottom of the second and accounted for the game's first run.

LaRoche's first homer was to right and came with Nate McLouth aboard with one out in the third. It was LaRoche's 12th of the season and extended his hitting streak to nine games.

LaRoche, who just missed out on a third home run when he doubled off the wall in the fifth, hit his third homer in 24 hours in the seventh.

"I'm just in one of those zones where pitches over the plate, you recognize it right away," LaRoche said. "And pitcher's pitches that are balls, you see that. It doesn't happen all the time. You just try to ride it out as long as it goes."

Jason Bay broke an 0-for-14 stretch when he singled up the middle to drive in Nady in the third to make it 4-0.

The Brewers cut the lead in half with a two-run homer by Jenkins, who was playing because Bill Hall had left the game with a right ankle sprain sustained while scaling the wall trying to catch Doumit's home run. Brian Braun scored on the shot to right.

J.J. Hardy drove in Corey Hart with a two-out single an inning later to cut the Pirates' lead to 4-3. Hart had extended his hitting streak to 21 games with a double previously.

But Nady got that run right back for the Pirates in the bottom of the inning when his single to left scored LaRoche.

Sheets (10-4), who allowed five runs on eight hits in six innings, lost for the first time since May 22. The Brewers had won 10 of his previous 12 starts.

"It just wasn't a good day," Sheets said. "I wish I could blame (the long rain delay), but I don't think so. I felt good, but it just felt like I was throwing marshmallows for some reason. There just wasn't anything on the ball. It felt like marshmallows, but when they hit it, it didn't sound like marshmallows. They were loud."

Gorzelanny (9-4), who was up for a fan's internet vote for the NL's final All-Star spot, allowed three runs on four hits in seven innings. He walked two and struck out five in winning his third straight decision.

"It was definitely a tough day for me," Gorzelanny said. "It was one of those days I just couldn't really get in the zone too much, and I was all over the place. I had to keep telling myself to stick with it, stay in there and try to fight. The guys were able to get the job done and pick me up out there."

Matt Capps pitched the ninth for his ninth save.

"The best way to make up ground is to play the team on top," LaRoche said. "We did it, and we got three of them. This was nice. This was big. It shows we're not going anywhere."