By the numbers: Anderson's 2-HR game in the Brewers' loss

MILWAUKEE -- The Brewers scratched out a one-run lead in the seventh inning on Sunday and then saw it slip away. Far, far away.

The Red Sox opened the eighth with back-to-back home runs off Matt Bush to take the lead and then kept piling on, scoring nine runs off Bush and Javy Guerra in that single frame to send the Brewers to a 12-5 loss at American Family Field -- Milwaukee’s first loss this year after leading through seven innings.

“This will be important for us to bounce back from,” said Brian Anderson, who homered twice. “We fought all game, and then we had that tough inning. Our guys don’t quit.”

Masataka Yoshida homered twice for Boston in the eighth inning alone, following Justin Turner’s leadoff shot with a go-ahead solo homer off Bush, then capping the outburst with a grand slam off Guerra. It made Yoshida the first player to homer twice in an inning, including a grand slam, since Toronto’s Edwin Encarnación on July 26, 2013 against the Astros.

By the numbers, here’s more on the Brewers’ loss:

Ten.
That’s how many home runs Bush has surrendered in his last 25 1/3 innings pitched for the Brewers dating to last season, including four home runs in 7 2/3 innings this year. Coming into Spring Training, it looked like Bush was locked into a setup role ahead of closer Devin Williams, but Bush’s ongoing trouble with the longball has meant opportunities for Peter Strzelecki, Hoby Milner and others in those high-pressure spots.

When asked about Bush’s role moving forward, Brewers manager Craig Counsell said, “Matt’s going to have to get outs for us, for sure. We’re going to have to have an eight-man bullpen; that’s what we’re going to count on. He got huge outs in the Seattle series for us [and] had a bad day today.”

Bush, earning $1.85 million this season, is out of Minor League options. That puts the Brewers in a bind.

“We’ve relied on six guys for essentially the last week,” said Counsell, referring to the lack of work for Guerra and newcomer Elvis Peguero before Sunday. “It’s been close games. Just the nature of it is we’ve got some guys tired. We were trying to stay away from some guys and give them a break, especially this early in the season.”

Eighty-eight.
That’s how many appearances left-hander Milner is on pace to make this season after pitching for the 12th time in the team’s first 22 games. It would be a franchise record; the current mark is 83 appearances in a season, set by Ken Sanders in 1971 and matched by Alex Claudio in 2019.

Once again, Milner got the job done. With the game tied 3-3 in the seventh, Milner inherited a baserunner and hit Alex Verdugo with a pitch before inducing an inning-ending double play from Red Sox star Rafael Devers. The Brewers pushed ahead, 4-3, moments later in the bottom of the seventh.

Forty-eight.
That was Corbin Burnes’ pitch count after two hard-fought innings, and it could have been higher had the Red Sox not run themselves out of a rally in the second. It was Burnes’ first start since leaving his last outing in Seattle with left chest tightness, and while he pitched on schedule and said he was completely healthy, he struggled with command.

Burnes wound up rallying to get through five innings on 91 pitches.

“Not bad,” is how Burnes described his outing. “It was one of those weeks that was a really tough week for me, so just to be able to go out there and perform was kind of something I’m proud of. Even after a tough week like I had, I can still go out there and perform.”

Two.
That’s a.) how many times Anderson homered Sunday, b.) the number of games in which he has hit multiple home runs this season and, c.) how many positions he has been playing regularly for the Brewers so far, with 11 starts at third base and nine in right field.

“The infielder-outfielder, guys who can be a good defender at an infield position and an outfield position, the flexibility that it gives you and the floor it creates for your team when other things are going on around you,” Counsell said, “that’s really important.”

Second.
That’s what place the Brewers find themselves in the National League Central standings after the Pirates passed them by on Sunday. Pittsburgh shut out the Reds on Sunday for a seventh consecutive victory and has the best record in the National League at 16-7. The Brewers are 15-7.