PITTSBURGH -- It could have been another nondescript loss and a bitter end to a rough road trip, but Brooks Conrad put his stamp on another game at a critical juncture in the season.
Conrad's two-run, pinch-hit home run in the 11th inning brought the Braves a 4-2 win over the Pirates, completing a two-game sweep that came after the Braves put Jason Heyward and Nate McLouth on the disabled list.
“That’s what he does,” said Brian McCann, who singled with one out to bring up Conrad. “He gets big hits and drives in big runs, and helps us win a lot of games in the course of the season.”
A year and five days after Conrad’s walk-off grand slam against the Reds became a benchmark for the Braves, Conrad came up with his first homer of the year in a dramatic spot.
The gritty Braves bench player launched the fifth pinch-hit homer of his career off reliever Jeff Karstens to win a game the Braves never should have been still playing.
The Pirates had the game all but won in the ninth inning and had put Jonny Venters in a tough position after a miscommunication on a double-play ball saw Alex Gonzalez and Dan Uggla collide at second base.
With the bases loaded and one out, Venters got Steve Pearce to ground out to third baseman Chipper Jones, who threw home to start a game-extending double play.
“It was picture-perfect,” Jones said. “Got a nice candy hop and made a good throw and so did Mac.”
At the time, Venters had pitched into his second inning, something manager Fredi Gonzalez could afford to do with an off day coming on Thursday. The Braves open a three-game series at home against the Reds the next day.
George Sherrill threw a perfect 10th to get to closer Craig Kimbrel, who finished off the 11th with his 14th save.
“For the first time in a long time our defense almost let us down,” said Fredi Gonzalez, who noted that Gonzalez was supposed to cover second but was charged with the error after Uggla covered, too. “But Jonny got another groundball, a double play. He was outstanding.”
The Braves went into extra innings for the sixth time in their past 14 games, and won for the fourth time. After going 1-4 in Arizona and Anaheim, the Braves headed home 3-4, with a big assist from Conrad.
“He’s just broke into my top 10 all-time favorite teammates today,” Jones said at his locker afterward, within earshot of a smiling Conrad. “It’s a big momentum boost going back home. We’re back on the right track. We did a lot of things wrong today but we also did a lot of things good.”
Conrad got two strikes before sending a change-up over the right-field fence.
“It’s so much fun to come through for the team,” Conrad said. “In that situation with one out, you’ve got to do your best to stay through the ball, [and] try not to roll over and hit into a double play. It ended up being a change-up, that last pitch. I was able to stay through it long enough and get it up in the air, and it went out.
Mike Minor pitched 5 2/3 innings, allowing only one run in his first start for the Braves since April 6 in Milwaukee. Filling in for the injured Tim Hudson, he had much better command of the strike zone and pitched as poised as he did when the Braves summoned him late last season.
“This time I was trying to throw strikes and let them hit it instead of being a little timid,” Minor said. “I didn’t put as much pressure on myself this time.”
Eric Hinske gave Minor a 2-1 lead with a solo home run in the top of the sixth. However, in the seventh, reliever Eric O’Flaherty gave up the first home run he’s allowed this season; Steve Pearce sent a ball just inside the left-field foul pole for the first home run off O’Flaherty since Delwyn Young hit one here last September.
The Braves had the last word, drawing a double-play ball from Pearce in the ninth.
