Brewers bash Mets pitching again, come back for 11-9 win

MILWAUKEE -- Manny Pina slapped his right hand against his chest as he rounded the bases. He pointed into the stands as he headed to a dugout full of happy Milwaukee Brewers.

Somewhere among the delirious fans at Miller Park, his wife watched with pride. Pina's three-run homer with two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning capped the Brewers' comeback from a six-run deficit for an 11-9 win Sunday over the New York Mets.

Pina spoke to his mother in Venezuela by phone after the game. She screamed with joy.

"This is my (biggest) hit that I've hit in my career, so when I hit the ball -- wow, everything came into my mind, Mother's Day," Pina said.

The Brewers swept the three-game series. The struggling Mets have lost four straight, and their battered pitching staff took another demoralizing hit.

"We have a clubhouse full of veterans. They have all been through a game like this, they have all been through a series like this before," manager Terry Collins said. "You've got to rise out of the ashes and get back on the horse."

Pina hit a 3-2 slider from Addison Reed (0-2) over the wall in left. The Brewers scored 10 runs over their final three innings, teeing off on the Mets bullpen after a solid start by Jacob deGrom.

Third baseman Hernan Perez encouraged Pina before he came to the plate in the eighth after the catcher grounded out in the seventh with nobody out and runners on second and third, failing to drive in a run.

The frustrating at-bat weighed on Pina's mind. The emotions spilled out as he ran the bases.

"I was fighting every pitch, every pitch ... When I hit that ball, I knew that ball was gone, so that was amazing," a smiling Pina said.

Neftali Feliz (1-4) got the win despite allowing a run in eighth. Corey Knebel picked up his first save by pitching a scoreless ninth.

The Brewers moved to four games over .500 for the first time since Sept. 24, 2014.

METS MISERY

Michael Conforto finished a single short of the cycle and scored four runs. He and Neil Walker hit back-to-back, two-run doubles in the fifth to build a 7-1 lead before the Brewers tarted chipping away against the Mets bullpen.

Four New York relievers allowed seven runs on five hits and three walks.

DEGROM'S DAY

DeGrom allowed eight hits and four runs before being lifted in the seventh after allowing a leadoff single to Domingo Santana. The right-handed had an admirable afternoon for an injury-plagued pitching staff that lost closer Jeurys Familia and ace Noah Syndergaard this month to long-term injuries.

Starters Matt Harvey and Robert Gsellman have also struggled.

"The injuries are unfortunate. You can't help that. We got who we got here, and we got to do a better job. That is all there is to it," deGrom said.

BREWERS BITS

The Brewers had their biggest comeback since July 2, 2011, when the beat the Twins in Minnesota 8-7 after falling behind 7-0. ... Starter Wily Peralta struggled through 4 1/3 innings for Milwaukee, allowing seven hits and seven runs.

QUOTABLE

"I don't know if I've seen anything like that. We just kind of chipped away." -- Brewers manager Craig Counsell on the team's comeback.

TRAINER'S ROOM

Mets: Collins said Asdrubal Cabrera's left thumb was "pretty sore" before Sunday's game, though the shortstop was available to pinch-hit with the aid of a brace. Jose Reyes played shortstop and led off with Cabrera out of the starting lineup. ... OF Jay Bruce got a day off.

Brewers: OF Ryan Braun (left calf) will travel with the team on the upcoming seven-game road trip to the Padres and Cubs. Braun is eligible to come off the 10-day disabled list during the Chicago series starting Friday. The Brewers expected Braun to have a short stay on the DL. ... 3B Travis Shaw left the game after the bottom of the sixth after hurting his right index finger. He appeared to jam the finger while trying to make a play on Reyes' infield single in the top of the sixth.

UP NEXT

Mets: RHP Zack Wheeler (2-2) opens a three-game series Monday in Arizona against the Diamondbacks. Wheeler is 1-0 with a 3.48 ERA in two road starts this season.

Brewers: RHP Chase Anderson (2-0) takes the mound to start the four-game series in San Diego. Anderson, who used to pitch in the NL West with Arizona, is 3-1 with a 3.60 ERA in six career starts against San Diego.

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