Liriano, Snider dominate Brewers in 7-1 win

The Pirates dominated the Brewers in a 7-1 victory Thursday night.

The Brewers got on the board first with Jonathan Lucroy's RBI single off Francisco Liriano in the first. But Andrew McCutchen had limited the Brewers' potential earlier that inning with a leaping catch on Ryan Braun's shot to the wall, and the Brewers had to settle for one. Liriano calmed down from there, and the Bucs tied the game in the fourth, when Pedro Alvarez walked and stole second (!?!) and Clint Barmes brought him home with a double on a ball that Braun clearly misjudged.

Then, in the fifth, Starling Marte reached on a bunt single, and Travis Snider blasted off with a line-drive home run, his first of the season and only his second as a Pirate, making it 3-1.

"We've got big guys behind us, and Marte's been on base almost every time I come up there, so there's situations where moving guys [over and] getting on base is more important than hitting the longball, but it's something I just take one day at a time," Snider said.

Marte doubled the following inning, and Snider started a series of four RBI singles off Alfredo Figaro to make it 7-1. The Pirates' low-wattage relievers continued from there, and the Brewers didn't put up much of a fight. Liriano finished with seven strikeouts and three walks over 5.1 innings. Snider went 3-for-5, and Marte, McCutchen, Garrett Jones and Russell Martin all had two hits apiece.

The Pirates ended up taking three of four from the Brewers despite an ugly loss Monday night. That pattern -- lose one, win three -- has happen three other times this season, with the Braves and Phillies in April and with the Mets last week.

"I had no idea this was how you tried to go about winning a four-game series, by losing the first game," Clint Hurdle said. "It's kind of crazy."

David Manel contributed to this post.