MILWAUKEE -- The Pirates and Zach Duke picked up right where they left off.

The hitters squandered terrific opportunities early and late, and Duke was tagged for another touchdown in a 7-5 loss to Milwaukee this afternoon at Miller Park. That gave the Brewers a sweep of the two-game set.

Duke, pitching on his 24th birthday, was hoping to shake off the worst start of his career -- seven runs in two innings last week against the San Francisco Giants -- but he gave up seven runs again. This time, it came over four innings and on 11 Milwaukee hits.

"We got hit around in the first four innings," Pirates manager Jim Tracy said. "Our bullpen was terrific, which afforded us an opportunity to peck away."

Tracy described Duke's problem as one of command rather than stuff.

"Command, period," Tracy said. "He was not locating his sinker, and there were a lot of balls that had a lot of plate and were elevated. When he does that, he's going to get hit."

Duke saw it the same way.

"My command is not where I want it to be," he said. "But they hit some tough pitches. I couldn't believe they hit 'em as hard as they did. Maybe they were just too comfortable up there."

First, though, it was the hitters who set the tone with another round of futility.

Chris Duffy opened the game with an infield single that could have been fielded by Milwaukee second baseman Rickie Weeks.

One gift.

Jack Wilson then reached on a bunt when Weeks failed to cover first.

Two gifts.

Freddy Sanchez bounced to third for what might have been a double play after Tony Graffanino stepped on third, but the throw across the diamond was off the mark.

Three gifts.

Adam LaRoche was hit by a Jeff Suppan pitch to load the bases.

Four gifts, but still no runs.

And that is how it would remain when Jason Bay's broken-bat liner went to shortstop J.J. Hardy for an inning-ending double play after the flip to second.

Milwaukee's hitters were not nearly so forgiving in the bottom half, scoring four times off Duke, including Hardy's two-run home run to left off an 0-1 pitch, Corey Hart's RBI double and a Damian Miller sacrifice fly.

The hits kept coming, and the Brewers added three in Duke's fourth and final inning that started off with a single, single, double and single.

Duke's 255 hits allowed were most in the National League last season, and the 11 yesterday raised his season total to 32 in just 19 innings.

Xavier Nady was the Pirates' offensive standout. He doubled and scored in the second, then hit a two-run home run -- his third -- in the sixth, then had an RBI single in the eighth.

The latter, off Milwaukee reliever Derrick Turnbow, cut the Brewers' lead to 7-4, and Jose Bautista's RBI single that followed made it 7-5.

The tying runners were on base, but that rally was quashed when Ronny Paulino, owner of a .196 average, was sent to pinch-hit for Humberto Cota and struck out swinging through a Derrick Turnbow fastball. The next pinch-hitter, Jose Castillo, grounded out to third.

Brewers closer Francisco Cordero came on for a breezy ninth, striking out Duffy, pinch-hitter Brad Eldred and Freddy Sanchez.

The Pirates, 2-2 on this road trip, begin a three-game set tonight in Los Angeles.

"We obviously didn't swing the bats very well here," Nady said. "But we've got three more on this trip. It's tough right now, but we can still have a good trip and go home feeling about ourselves. We can't be down."