PITTSBURGH (AP) — Mitch Keller pitched eight innings of two-hit ball, and the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Washington Nationals 2-0 on Thursday.

Keller (12-9) struck out seven and walked one. The 27-year-old right-hander improved to 3-1 with a 3.07 ERA in his last seven starts.

“Just filling it up and using the cutter to lefties was huge. Using the sinker and the four-seam to righties set up the sweeper,” Keller said. “We’re able to mix things and keep a good attack plan. Mixed in the curveball again today, used some changeup there too, which was really good to see. (Catcher Jason Delay) did a great job picking spots to call them. They were really successful pitches.”

David Bednar pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his 35th save. Keller was pulled after 92 pitches, 65 for strikes.

“When he went out in the eighth, the first two pitches he threw were like 91-92 (mph), so that was like, ‘Eh,’ with David there available,” Pirates manager Derek Shelton said. “I mean, if he comes out and he’s (throwing) 95 there, then we’re having a different conversation.”

Pittsburgh won the final three games of the four-game set against last-place Washington. The Pirates have won 11 of 16 overall.

The Nationals wasted a solid performance by Josiah Gray (7-12), who struck out 10 in 6 1/3 innings. The right-hander was charged with two runs and five hits.

“Early strikes, first-pitch strikes, finish them off with my whole array of pitches,” Gray said. “Just getting ahead early worked a lot today, just believing in my stuff. Using the whole part of the plate. It was a good day.”

It was Gray’s first big league appearance since Sept. 3 against Miami, when he allowed three runs and walked four in four innings.

“For me, it was just, how can I, not sort of simplify things, but try and bring out some properties in my delivery that I know where I feel stable, where I feel comfortable,” Gray said. “I felt good with it, felt I could roll with it. The early returns are good, but just like every day, have to come to the ballpark tomorrow and get back to work. Just continue to build off it.”

Pittsburgh jumped in front when Jack Suwinski led off the second with his team-high 25th homer on a drive to right. Alfonso Rivas connected with two out in the fifth, hitting a 411-foot shot to center for his third homer.

“I thought Gray was pretty good today. The slider was pretty effective,” Shelton said. “We had two solid homers, but I think in terms of Jack, he’s back to releasing the barrel the way he was earlier in the year.”

Washington put two runners on in the first when CJ Abrams hit a leadoff single and Lane Thomas reached on an error by shortstop Liover Peguero. But Keller retired Keibert Ruiz on a fly ball to left, picked off Abrams at second and struck out Joey Meneses.

“The at-bats today were not good. They weren’t crisp,” Nationals manager Dave Martinez said. “We chased a lot out of the zone. We have to do a better job, especially against a guy like (Keller). He’s also good. We have to get him in the zone. Today, we just chased a lot.”

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Brandon Woodruff pitched seven shutout innings and Mark Canha’s two-run single capped a six-run fifth inning as the NL Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 7-3 on Tuesday night.

Woodruff (4-1) allowed just two hits, singles to Ji Hwan Bae in the first inning and Endy Rodriguez in the fifth. Woodruff also had six strikeouts and two walks while improving to 14-3 with a 2.36 ERA in his last 29 starts dating to last season.

“I thought it was a good outing and that he got stronger as the game went on and then really got on cruise control and every pitch started working well,” Brewers manager Craig Counsell said. “Just a great outing.”

Coming off back-to-back losses, the Brewers entered the night 2 1/2 games ahead of the Chicago Cubs in the NL Central race.

Woodruff missed nearly four months with right shoulder inflammation before returning Aug. 6. He is beginning to feel comfortable again after making six starts.

“I expect to go out there and pitch well but coming off this injury it’s a weird deal where I expect to go out there and perform yet not have many expectations because I don’t have a full season to work with,” Woodruff said. “I’m trying to go out there and have fun and go pitch to pitch. I’m kind of just working inning to inning so far. Thankfully, it’s working out so far.”

Connor Joe broke up the Brewers’ shutout bid by hitting a three-run home run in the ninth inning off Clayton Andrews for just his second hit in his last 29 at-bats. The Pirates had runners on first and second with two outs but Elvis Peguero got Miguel Andujar to hit a game-ending ground out.

Andre Jackson (1-2) was charged with six runs in 4 1/3 innings and walked five as the Pirates lost for just the second time in eight games.

The Brewers broke a scoreless tie with a run in the fourth on a double-play grounder by Canha after Jackson walked the bases loaded.

Milwaukee extended its lead to 7-0 with the big fifth inning.

Andruw Monasterio drove in the first run with a triple to the 410-foot mark in left-center. Brice Turang hit an RBI single, Christian Yelich lofted a sacrifice fly and Carlos Santana doubled in a run before Canha delivered his two-run single to left field.

“As a hitter, you’re waiting for the pitch to make a mistake and he made one to me,” Monasterio said. “We started hitting mistakes in that inning. When you do that, you do damage at home plate.”

Jackson retired the Brewers in order in each of the first three innings before struggling in the fourth and fifth.

“Command of the zone,” Shelton said when asked what caused Jackson’s problems. “It didn’t look like the stuff ticked down a little bit. It’s just he wasn’t on the plate.”

Brewers rookie center fielder Sal Frelick had two hits. It was a bit of a homecoming for Frelick as his father Jeff’s – a former Pitt fullback — side of the family is from nearby Greensburg, Pennsylvania.

Milwaukee’s William Contreras walked twice but went 0 for 3 to end his career-best 14-game hitting streak.

Pirates reliever Hunter Stratton pitched two scoreless innings in his major league debut. Joshua Palacios had two hits.