Nilsson, Brewers Stop Astros

Dave Nilsson picked an opportune time to figure out Shane Reynolds.

Nilsson homered twice and doubled as the Milwaukee Brewers avoided a three-game sweep by beating the Houston Astros 4-1 Thursday.

"I've never hit Shane Reynolds at all," said Nilsson, hitless in his only three previous at-bats against him. "I think if you'd speak to him, he'd say they were mistakes. When you're going well, that's what you hit is a lot of mistakes."

Steve Woodard (5-5) gave up one run and six hits in six innings, striking out six and walking two. Woodard was coming off his worst outing of the season when he allowed eight runs and 11 hits in three innings.

"Even though I didn't think he was as sharp as I've seen him in the past, he did manage to hold them down," Brewers manager Phil Garner said. "He used more offspeed pitches today, and even though he wasn't as sharp with them as I've seen him in the past, he stayed out of trouble by going to his offspeed."

Reynolds (7-5) allowed four runs and nine hits in 5 2-3 innings, losing for the third time in four starts.

Nilsson, who went 3-for-4, hit solo home runs in the second and fourth innings, raising his second total to 11 with the 10th multihomer game of his career, his second this season. He also scored the Brewers' fourth run after doubling to open the sixth.

"They know my out pitch is a split-finger, so I'm sure they talk about it, and he was sitting there waiting for on one," Reynolds said. "I gave him two. I thought the second one was better than the first one, but he's a good hitter. He happened to hit both of them pretty good."

Eric Plunk pitched the seventh and eighth innings, and Bob Wickman finished with a perfect ninth for his 10th save in 12 chances.

Nilsson, whose solo homer accounted for the Brewers' only run in a 9-1 loss Wednesday night, gave the Brewers their first lead of the series with a one-out homer in the fourth that made it 2-1.

Milwaukee increased its lead to 3-1 in the fifth on singles by Geoff Jenkins, Fernando Vina and Mark Loretta.

Nilsson doubled to the warning track in straightaway center leading off the sixth and scored on Jenkins' two-out double.

"I think if I'd hit it good, it would have gone out in center," said Nilsson, who has never hit three homers in a game. "Obviously, I hit it good, but not good enough."

Bill Spiers' third homer of the season had put Houston ahead in the second.

"If you're going to beat these guys, you're going to beat them like we beat them today," Garner said. "You've got to shut them down and put a couple of runs on the board. Because they're pitching is going to keep them in ballgames. They're solid all they way from top to bottom."

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