Derek Shelton admitted he didn’t sleep much following Friday’s 19-2 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers, as his decision to let Cam Vieaux throw 56 pitches in one inning weighed on the Pittsburgh Pirates manager.

Where Shelton was criticized for leaving the left-hander in too long, Vieaux had a different view of his eight-run eighth inning that saw the 28-year-old rookie reliever allow six hits — including two doubles and a grand slam home run — two walks and endure an error and a passed ball.

Spare the sympathy.

“I’m appreciative of him leaving me in to let me get out of that, because I think I would’ve been a lot more (ticked) off last night if I came out with no outs throwing 40 pitches and giving up a grand slam,” Vieaux said Saturday at PNC Park. “I was able to calm myself down in an inning out there and figure out a way to get through it.”

That didn’t stop Shelton from having multiple conversations with Vieaux to address the decision, including one in his office with members of the bullpen before Saturday’s game against the Brewers where he allowed an open forum for feedback.

The good news for Vieaux is that he survived a roster move. To make room on the 26-man roster for Saturday’s starter, Bryse Wilson, the Pirates optioned lefty reliever Aaron Fletcher to Triple-A Indianapolis instead. That gives Vieaux a few days to recover on a major league salary, even if he could be the odd man out when lefty Dillon Peters returns from a rehabilitation assignment.

Shelton repeatedly said he hoped he would never have to make another decision like that again. He noted that Vieaux showed no signs of wear during the game, maintaining his velocity and throwing 32 of his 56 pitches for strikes. The Brewers just hit him hard.

“I try to learn from all situations,” Shelton said. “This is another one that I will learn through.”

When Vieaux entered a game where the Pirates already were losing 9-1, he couldn’t have imagined he would have a worse outing — or throw more pitches — than rookie right-hander Roansy Contreras. The Brewers scored seven runs in the second inning off Contreras, who threw four fewer pitches than Vieaux in 1 2/3 innings.

But the Brewers blasted Vieaux from the beginning, as Luis Urias hit a leadoff ground-rule double. Vieaux walked Omar Narvaez, gave up a single to Kestone Hiura and allowed a run to score when a pitch tipped off the glove of catcher Michael Perez for a passed ball. Vieaux walked Jonathan Davis and gave up an RBI single to Christian Yelich before serving up the grand slam to Willy Adames.

At that point, Vieaux still hadn’t recorded an out. He got Rowdy Tellez, who had hit a three-run homer and a two-run double, to a hit a pop fly, but shortstop Oneil Cruz dropped it in shallow center.

Even so, Shelton didn’t pull Vieaux.

Wil Crowe, Chris Stratton, David Bednar and Yerry De Los Santos had pitched the previous night, and Austin Brice tossed 2 1/3 innings and Aaron Fletcher three innings before Vieaux entered the game so the bullpen was short on pitchers.

“I knew that we didn’t have anyone behind me and that it was my job to wear it,” Vieaux said. “I just couldn’t be as efficient as I wanted to.”

Shelton didn’t want to turn to a position player mid-inning, so he left Vieaux in the game. Vieaux stole a few glances at the scoreboard and saw his pitch count was nearing a career-high total. The Brewers took advantage, as Andrew McCutchen singled, pinch hitter Mike Brosseau hit a two-run double and Urias drew a walk.

Not until the Brewers’ 11th batter of the inning, Omar Narvaez, lined out to center, did Vieaux get his first out. It required 48 pitches. He struck out Hiura, then finally got the final out when Davis flew out to center.

“I talked to him as soon as he came out and told him, personally I appreciated the fact that he grinded through that inning because it was not a pretty inning,” Shelton said. “He took accountability for execution of pitches.”

Instead of being shattered over how his sixth major league appearance turned out — raising his ERA from 2.25 to 14.40 — Vieaux treated it as a valuable learning experience.

“It was a blowout game anyway,” Vieaux said. “I wanted to see what I was made of and what I could do to get out of it. I’m proud of myself for figuring out a way to get through it and get out of it. Now, I probably will never go through a situation like that again on the baseball field. So, I’ve got that one out of the way.”

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