After tearing a ligament in his right knee May 1 at Wrigley Field, Yovani Gallardo waited nearly five months to step onto the mound -- and into the spotlight -- for the Brewers.

He didn't allow himself to get frantic, frazzled or frustrated.

Five extra minutes certainly wasn't going to faze him.

When Gallardo emerged from the shower Thursday night, he saw a swarm of reporters gathered around his locker. They were there talking to his clubhouse neighbor -- leftfielder Ryan Braun, whose game-winning grand slam in the bottom of the tenth capped an electrifying and possibly season-saving 5-1 victory over Pittsburgh before a supercharged crowd of 40,102.

Braun's homer, which represented Milwaukee's first grand slam of the season and pulled the Brewers back into a tie with New York for the National League wild-card lead, will go down as one of the more exciting moments of the season. As Braun talked to reporters about it, Gallardo stood patiently and waited for the mob to dissipate.

After ducking near his locker and dressing quickly, Gallardo faced reporters to talk about his effort -- a four-inning, one-run outing that will go down as one of the more courageous comebacks in franchise history. Think Curt Schilling, but without the Boston-New York hype or the bloody sock.

"Obviously, he pitched awesome," manager Dale Sveum said of Gallardo, who overcame some shaky defense and allowed three hits, walked two and struck out seven.

"We were hoping for three or four innings. Five would have been awesome. He gave us what we wanted."

When Gallardo crumpled to the ground after a baseline mishap and was later diagnosed with a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), most fans and team insiders figured he was done for the season.

Gallardo had other ideas. He approached his rehabilitation with a "one day at a time" outlook, marking progress in small increments and resisting the urge to ask the doctors if a comeback this season was possible.

"I didn't want to ask," he said, smiling. "But, I always had (a return) in my mind. I was going to do everything possible -- the correct way -- to make that happen."

When manager Dale Sveum and pitching coach Mike Maddux approached Gallardo Wednesday afternoon and told him he'd be getting the ball against Pittsburgh, Gallardo showed his excitement in the usual way, which is to say that he walked around like a guy looking for a place to nap.

"I was excited," he said, referring to the aftermath of the assignment and the warmup session in the bullpen before the game. "But, I did my best to kind of hold it in."

The ability to do that, Maddux said, is what sets the 22-year-old right-hander apart.

"The guy has no heartbeat," Maddux said. "He's something special."

Gallardo, who showed no signs of rustiness, didn't panic when the Pirates touched him for a pair of cheap hits in the first inning. He struck out Adam LaRoche and Steve Pearce to end the threat.

After retiring the side in order in the second, he walked Piraets pitcher Zach Duke to open the third, but calmly struck out the side.

With one out in the fourth and his pitch count creeping toward 60, 10 below his expected limit for the night, Gallardo grooved a 1-0 pitch to Pearce, who belted a game-tying homer.

"It looked like he got a little tired," Sveum said.

Gallardo walked Andy LaRoche and fell behind in the count to Ronny Paulino, 3-1, before getting him to ground into an inning-ending double play and exiting to a huge ovation.

Gallardo, always a standup guy after his starts, attributed the homer to a poorly placed pitch and not fatigue.

"I felt really good out there," he said. "My arm is in great shape. I had my fastball, curveball. I was able to command everything."

Rather than worrying about re-injuring himself while on the mound, Gallardo thought about the long hours of rehab work that allowed him to get there.

"The day after surgery, the most important thing was just getting range of motion back," he said. "After that, it was strengthening the quad and the hamstring. I just took it day by day. I'm pretty proud of myself for getting here."

Maddux, who was dazzled the first time he saw Gallardo face a touring Japanese team during spring training in 2006, said the pride was justified.

"He should be proud of himself," Maddux said. "And, you have to give credit to our trainers, who helped him get back out there."

While the media feeding frenzy continued in front of Gallardo's locker, a much different scene played out on the other side of the room.

Veteran Ben Sheets, who is battling an elbow problem that seems likely to prevent him pitching one of the final three games of the season, dressed quietly and exited. His clubhouse neighbor, Jeff Suppan, a veteran who has struggled so much in his four most recent starts (0-3, 10.47 ERA in his last four games) that the Brewers are sending him to the mound Friday night against the Cubs primarily as a last resort, shuffled out as the last reporters were leaving Gallardo's side.

If the Brewers want to outlast the Mets in this sprint to the finish, it would help if Sheets, Suppan -- or both -- could harness some of the magic that Gallardo conjured in a short stint Thursday.

"The guy is just special," Maddux said, looking at Gallardo. "He walked out there tonight and didn't miss a beat. The only thing that got him was the pitch count.

"He's just a special kid."