{"id":7054,"date":"2026-07-11T19:35:39","date_gmt":"2026-07-11T19:35:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7054"},"modified":"2026-07-11T19:35:39","modified_gmt":"2026-07-11T19:35:39","slug":"esmerlyn-valdezs-grand-slam-two-homers-lead-pirates-past-brewers-7-6-in-first-game-of-doubleheader","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7054","title":{"rendered":"Esmerlyn Valdez’s grand slam, two homers lead Pirates past Brewers 7-6 in first game of doubleheader"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n
Pittsburgh Pirates\u2019 Esmerlyn Valdez hits a grand slam home run off Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Aaron Ashby during the seventh inning of the first game of a baseball double header in Pittsburgh, Saturday, July 11, 2026. (AP Photo\/Gene J. Puskar)<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n

PITTSBURGH \u2014 Rookie phenom Esmerlyn Valdez hit two home runs, including a go-ahead grand slam in the seventh inning, and drove in six runs to rally the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 7-6 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers on Saturday in the first game of a doubleheader.<\/p>

Read more Linda Noskova recovers from 2nd-set meltdown to win Wimbledon and claim her 1st Grand Slam title<\/a><\/p>\n

The 22-year-old right fielder has hit nine home runs and driven in 24 runs in his first 26 games. His first career grand slam came off Aaron Ashby (12-2), turning a 6-3 deficit into a 7-6 lead and keeping the Brewers from their 60th win of the season with their second loss in seven games.<\/p>\n

Valdez\u2019s first homer of the day was a solo shot in the third that put the Pirates ahead 3-2. He also hit a run-scoring single in a two-run first inning.<\/p>\n

Jake Bauers and Sal Frelick hit two-run home runs for the Brewers, who entered the day with a 7\u00bd-game lead in the NL Central.<\/p>\n

Bauers lined his home run into the right-field seats in the second inning to tie the game at 2-2. Frelick\u2019s blast capped a three-run fifth inning and put the Brewers ahead 5-3.<\/p>

Read more White Sox outfielder Tristan Peters named as an All-Star replacement<\/a><\/p>\n

The Brewers added a run on William Contreras\u2019 single in the top of the seventh, but Valdez answered with his grand slam in the bottom of the inning.<\/p>\n

Pittsburgh starter Braxton Ashcraft, who has been selected for Tuesday\u2019s All-Star Game, had one of his few poor outings this season. He allowed five runs in five innings.<\/p>\n

Carmen Mlodzinski (6-3) pitched one-run ball in three innings of relief and Gregory Soto pitched a scoreless ninth for his 12th save, getting Andrew Vaughn to ground into a game-ending double play with the bases loaded.<\/p>\n

Brewers rookie starter Brandon Sproat gave up three runs in three innings.<\/p>\n

Brewers LHP Shane Drohan (4-2, 2.97 ERA) is scheduled to face RHP Bubba Chandler (3-8, 4.82) in the second game of the doubleheader in a matchup of rookies.<\/p>

Read more Chicago White Sox select UCLA shortstop Roch Cholowsky with No. 1 pick in MLB draft<\/a><\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

AP MLB: https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/mlb<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Rookie phenom Esmerlyn Valdez hit two home runs, including a go-ahead grand slam in the seventh inning, and drove in six runs to rally the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 7-6 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers in the first game of a doubleheader<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7052,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7054","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interesting"],"yoast_head":"\nEsmerlyn Valdez's grand slam, two homers lead Pirates past Brewers 7-6 in first game of doubleheader - Moving Insider USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7054\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Esmerlyn Valdez's grand slam, two homers lead Pirates past Brewers 7-6 in first game of doubleheader - 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