Pirates 2, Brewers 1: In his final outing before playoffs, presumed Game 1 starter Freddy Peralta gets to 200 Ks

PITTSBURGH – Freddy Peralta pounded the webbing of his glove with his right fist, let out a scream and walked off the mound, another 200-strikeout season behind him.

Ahead lies Game 1 of the National League wild card series.

"I’m in a great position right now," Peralta said. "I feel great, awesome. My arm, my legs. The body is most important to me."

In his final regular season start before being the presumed playoff-opening pitcher for the Milwaukee Brewers , Peralta delivered an outing that was both a microcosm of the upside he brings to a Game 1 start – as well as what can go south in a moment's notice.

Peralta struck out seven over 5 ⅓ innings to achieve consecutive seasons of at least 200 punch outs, joining some excellent company in franchise history by doing so, but also experienced a sudden loss of command that ultimately gave the Pittsburgh Pirates a 2-1 win Wednesday night at PNC Park.

Freddy Peralta gives up the lead while chasing No. 200

Peralta was cruising through 4 ⅔ innings when his command vanished into the Pennsylvania air. He was one strike away from number 200 when he uncorked two uncompetitive pitches to Yasmani Grandal, then was nowhere close to the zone on two of his misses as he followed with a walk to Nick Yorke. Peralta got ahead, 0-2, on Liover Peguero and couldn’t put him away, tossing three balls nowhere near the zone before the Pirates’ No. 9 hitter slammed a middle-middle fastball for a two-run double.

The subtext of the inning was that Peralta was sitting on 199 strikeouts, just one shy of an important milestone for any pitcher.

Peralta retired the first two hitters in the fifth on just five pitches and was at just 61 pitches, seemingly in great shape to become the fourth pitcher in franchise history to get to 200 strikeouts in back-to-back years.

It took Peralta 26 pitches to get through the fifth after recording the first two outs.

"I thought he let the inning before get away from him," Brewers manager Pat Murphy said. "Focusing a bit too much on the result on not the process of getting him out. I think that led to the two runs, to be quite honest with you."

Peralta acknowledged the round number was definitely on his mind.

"I was thinking about it, yeah," Peralta said.

Peralta did eventually get to 200 strikeouts

Despite the 31-pitch fifth inning, Peralta came back out for one batter in the sixth with one goal in mind and only one chance to do it.

Peralta, whose day might have been done after four innings had he not been on the cusp of a personal milestone, won a nine-pitch battle with Bryan Reynolds on a slider below the zone. It was the only batter Murphy was going to let him face in the sixth. ,With the strikeout, Peralta joined Teddy Higuera (twice), Corbin Burnes (three times) and Yovani Gallardo (four) as the only pitchers in franchise history to record consecutive years of 200+ strikeouts.

That marked the end of the day (and regular season) for Peralta. He threw a career-high 173 2/3 innings with a 3.68 earned run average.

"You talk about a pillar," Murphy said. "We call those guys our pillars. He did it on the field, too. He gave us everything he's got."

Next up will, presumably, be Game 1 of the postseason for the Brewers, who are almost guaranteed to be playing in the wild card round. Come October, Peralta will be arguably the most important player on the Brewers, not only because he will set the tone in the opener but because the variance that he's shown in his performance.

Peralta looked unhittable through the second out of the fifth against Pittsburgh, touching 97.7 mph with his fastball and working all his secondary pitches off that primary offering. When Peralta is on, he can be dominant.

"I thought he was really, really good," Murphy said. "I thought he had a conviction and he just went right at them. One of his better outings outside of that three-batter stretch where it was two outs and he was just trying to punch guys out."

Then, in the blink of an eye, Peralta struggled to find the zone against the bottom three hitters in a last place team's lineup.

It all happened in the fifth inning, too, where Peralta allowed 25 earned runs for a 7.67 ERA as opponents posted an OPS over .900 this year.

"He's got a chance to get way better," Murphy said. "Like, way better."

That's the contrast of Peralta as the postseason looms. He has the potential to be a playoff ace, the arm that carries Milwaukee deep into autumn. But questions about consistency and command linger as the calendar flips.

"The key is pitch by pitch," Murphy said. "Let it go. Get in that flow where you’re not stopping and worrying about each pitch. You’re getting into that flow of hitting the glove."

The Brewers' opponent in the wild card remains in the air, with a potentially significant wrinkle added with MLB announcing Wednesday that the Braves and Mets will play a doubleheader Monday as Hurricane Helene led to the postponement of the final two games of their critical series.

No matter the opponent, Peralta wants the ball.

"I live this game and I love this game," Peralta said. "I know that it’s going to be exciting."

Jake Bauers breaks homer drought

Homerless since August 24, Brewers designated hitter Jake Bauers launched a solo shot nearly out of the stadium on the fly with one out in the top of the second. Bauers' 12th homer of the year, which traveled 403 feet, was not only his first dinger in more than a month but also his first extra-base hit in that time.

That would be the Brewers' lone offense, though, as Pirates starter Luis Ortiz silenced their bats on his way to seven high-quality innings. Milwaukee managed just four hits, all singles, the rest of the way.

Brewers lineup

• Brice Turang 2B
• Jackson Chourio LF
• William Contreras C
• Garrett Mitchell CF
• Willy Adames SS
• Jake Bauers DH
• Rhys Hoskins 1B
• Sal Frelick RF
• Joey Ortiz 3B
• Freddy Peralta SP

Pirates lineup

• Isiah Kiner-Falefa 3B
• Bryan Reynolds LF
• Oneil Cruz CF
• Andrew McCutchen DH
• Nick Gonzales 2B
• Jared Triolo 1B
• Yasmani Grandal C
• Nick Yorke RF
• Liover Peguero SS
• Luis Ortiz SP

Brewers schedule

Brewers at Pirates, 11:35 a.m. Thursday. Milwaukee RHP Aaron Civale (7-9, 4.53) vs. Pittsburgh TBA. Broadcasts: TV – Bally Sports Wisconsin. Radio – AM-620.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Pirates 2, Brewers 1: In his final outing before playoffs, presumed Game 1 starter Freddy Peralta gets to 200 Ks