Brewers fall to Giants 8-7

The Milwaukee Brewers fell to the San Francisco Giants in game two of a three-game set 8-7 on Saturday. The Brewers had a 5-1 lead through the top-half of the fifth inning but couldn’t hold on to it.

Jimmy Nelson and Adrian Houser walked four straight batters in the bottom of the fifth allowing San Francisco’s offense to find life. Milwaukee took back the lead in the seventh before giving it back in the bottom of the frame behind Junior Guerra.

Christian Yelich hit a two-out home run in the ninth for his MLB-leading 26th of the year. However, that was as close as the Brewers could get as Will Smith shut the door after to pick up the save.

Next up, the Brewers (39-31) will look to avoid the sweep by the Giants (30-38) on Sunday. Chase Anderson (3|1, 3.80 ERA, 46 SO) will get the start opposite of Jeff Samardzija (3|5, 3.72 ERA, 56 SO). First pitch is scheduled for 3:05pm.

    Brewers give up three homers, fall to Giants 5-3

    The Milwaukee Brewers lost the series opener against the San Francisco Giants 5-3 Friday night. Surprisingly, it was the offense that pushed the Giants over the top. They blasted three homers against the Brewers leading to the victory.

    Pablo Sandoval and Kevin Pillar each went yard off starter Zach Davies. Also, Mike Yastrzemski blasted a two-run shot in the seventh inning providing the Giants with some much needed insurance to secure the win.

    The Brewers failed to capitalize with the bats. They went 1-for-8 with RISP and stranded 11 on base. Giants starter Drew Pomeranz entered with a 1-6 record and 7.16 earned run average but Milwaukee couldn’t take advantage.

    Davies went five innings allowing three earned runs on six hits while striking out two. He picked up his first loss of the season dropping to 7-1 on the year.

    Next up, the Brewers (39-30) will look to take game two of the three game set against the Giants (29-38) on Saturday. Jimmy Nelson (0|1, 12.00 ERA, 2 SO) will make his second start of the season opposite of Madison Bumgarner (3|6, 3.83 ERA, 84 SO). First pitch is scheduled for 3:05pm.

      Peralta gets roughed up in start, Brewers fall to Astros 10-8

      Freddy Peralta continues to struggle as a starter for the Brewers. It didn’t get any better Monday night in Houston. The Astros roughed him up pretty bad as they went on to top the Brewers 10-8.

      Peralta was coming off a good start against the Miami Marlins giving up only four hits and one run. That success didn’t carry over to Houston. He allowed eight hits and six runs in four-plus innings including two of the Astros’ four home runs. Peralta went to 3-3 with a 5.81 earned run average in 13 outings.

      Yasmani Grandal got the Brewers off to a good start in the first inning with a two-out single that plated a run. Milwaukee had a chance to do more damage with bases loaded but Jesus Aguilar grounded out.

      Christian Yelich continued his terrific season smacking a MLB-leading 25th home run. It was his fourth home run over his last nine games.

      The Brewers made it interesting in the ninth. They kept battling as Grandal smacked a three-run homer to pull them within two.

      Next up, the Brewers (38-29) will try to avoid the two-game sweep against the Astros (46-22). Brandon Woodruff (8|1, 3.87 ERA, 90 SO) will get the start for Milwaukee opposite of Justin Verlander (9|2, 2.31 ERA, 110 SO). First pitch is scheduled for 7:10pm.

        Brewers 5, Pirates 3: Last takes

        MILWAUKEE | The Milwaukee Brewers took game two of a three-game series over the Pittsburgh Pirates with a 5-3 win Saturday afternoon.

        Zach Davies improves to 7-0

        Davies became the first starter in Brewers franchise history to begin a season 7-0 and the second to win at least his first 7 decisions with the team in a season (CC Sabathia began his tenure with the team 9-0 in his first 13 starts after being acquired in 2008).

        Like everyone else in the clubhouse though, Davies is only worried about the team accomplishments.

        “I think after the season that will be a fun time to kind of reflect back on it,” Davies said on his 7-0 start. “Coming up a game short of the World Series last year I think that’s the goal for us and our focus is forward on that.”

        The most impressive moment for Davies came in the third inning. The Pirates had bases loaded with no outs and Davies was able to get out of the jam allowing just one run.

        “The third inning he did a great job,” manager Craig Counsell said. “Two lead-off hits, a swinging bunt, the Josh Bell up at the plate, he fell behind him 3-1 then he came back and got the sac fly and came out of the inning with one run. That just limited the damage and that’s just about keep making pitches and he kept making pitches.”

        Offensive contributions across the board

        Counsell mentioned how good the offense can be when everyone contributes. We witnessed that on Saturday. Milwaukee did leave 13 runners on base but the way they were able to get on base was terrific.

        9 batters reached base in one way or another. The Brewers drew nine walks as a team. Orlando Arcia got the Crew going in the second with an RBI-Double scoring Travis Shaw who walked on the previous at bat. Lorenzo Cain then drove in Arcia to the tie the game at 2-2.

        The Brewers were down again in the third inning before Mike Moustakas blasted his 19th home run of the season to knot it up at 3-3.

        Ryan Braun picked up an RBI in the fourth with a single driving in Lorenzo Cain. Their final run came in the eighth inning on Manny Pina’s second career pinch-hit home run.

        “That’s just good offense and that’s something we want to do every day,” Counsell said. “We’ve done a wonderful job of it days one and two in this series. Really the first three innings were almost a carbon copy of yesterday | forcing the starter to throw a lot of pitches, we’re already twice through the order in three innings. That’s just good offense, I think we stranded a bunch of runners today but that’s the offense you want.”

        Bullpen shuts the door

        The bullpen looked great. Counsell went to four different pitchers over the last four innings and got four scoreless innings out of them. Alex Claudio pitched a 1-2-3 sixth inning. Junior Guerra then came out in the seventh allowing one hit and striking out two batters.

        Jeremy Jeffress dominated the eighth mowing down three straight batters. Finally, Josh Hader struck out the side to pick up his 15th save of the year.

        “Good job by all of them for sure,” Counsell said. “We used four guys and they cleared their innings really nicely.”

        What’s next?

        The Brewers (37-28) will look for the sweep against the Pirates (30-33) on Sunday. Chase Anderson (3|1, 3.93 ERA, 40 SO) will get the start for Milwaukee. Pittsburgh will counter with Steven Brault (2|1, 5.45 ERA, 29 SO). First pitch is scheduled for 1:10pm.

          Brewers 10, Pirates 4: Last takes

          MILWAUKEE | The Milwaukee Brewers defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates 10-4 Friday night.

          Eric Thames gets the offense started

          Thames got Milwaukee rolling early in the second with a two-run homer to put them in front 2-0.

          “I think it shows what the offense is capable of when we get contributions from everyone,” manager Craig Counsell said. “A lot of guys had good nights tonight and did really good things.”

          Milwaukee finished with 10 runs on 14 hits. This is the kind of performance we expected the Brewers to have a lot this season. The offense has so much potential and they showed it Friday night.

          Brandon Woodruff ties strikeout career-high

          Woodruff was terrific Friday night striking out 10 Pirates. He pitched six innings of three-run ball on four hits. Woody was almost untouchable early striking out five of the first six batters he faced on 24 pitches. He found some trouble in the third inning but settled down the rest of the way.

          It was great to see the young right-hander perform at a high-level coming off his worst start of the season only a week ago.

          “I was ready to get back out there and face these guys again,” Woodruff said. “[I] went back and watched film from last game and I just wasn’t executing well enough…tonight was just all about getting out there and if I made a good pitch, make an even better pitch and I think for the most part I was able to do that and get through six innings.”

          He did allow a home-run in the sixth inning but recovered nicely retiring the next three batters to finish off his night.

          It was his fourth quality start of the year and is second in the National League with eight wins.

          “He’s been in a good groove here,” Counsell said. “He’s confident in what he’s doing and it’s mainly because of the fastball. I think the feedback that the league has given him has given him a lot of confidence…I was proud of him in the sixth inning. I thought he found an extra gear to finish that inning.”

          Ryan Braun bat-flip

          With the Brewers clinging to a one-run lead in the sixth, Ryan Braun came through in a big way. Entering the at-bat 0-3 with runners on the corners Braun blasted a three-run shot to put the Crew up 7-4.

          Braun also added an epic bat flip on his way to first base.

          “It was a big play, it changed the course of the game for sure,” Counsell said. “It was a good at bat. The guy fell behind 3-0, made a couple of pitches, and Ryan got a good pitch to hit down in the zone, did a nice job.”

          What’s next?

          The Brewers (36-28) will look to take game two from the Pirates 30-32) Saturday afternoon. Zach Davies (6|0, 2.20 ERA, 45 SO) will get the start opposite of Jordan Lyles (5|3, 3.38 ERA, 61 SO). First pitch is scheduled for 3:10pm.

            Marlins 8, Brewers 3: Last takes

            MILWAUKEE | The Milwaukee Brewers lost their second straight game to the Miami Marlins falling 8-3 Wednesday night.

            Jimmy Nelson struggles in return

            It was Nelson’s first start in the majors since 2017 and it didn’t go as planned. He got through the first two innings allowing only one run which was unearned. However, trouble started in the third inning.

            Nelson walked the opposing pitcher Sandy Alcántara to lead off the frame. Then, Nelson gave up a double and walked another Marlin to load the bases. Brian Anderson would take advantage blasting his first career grand slam to give Miami a 5-0 lead.

            “This is very uncharacteristic of how I’ve been throwing, even over the last couple of months,” Nelson said. “It’s not necessarily like a change in competition level. It was a decrease in the execution of my stuff for that one inning, at least.”

            Despite the performance from the returning pitcher, the crowd was happy to see him back out on the mound.

            “The reception from the fans and the excitement of all the teammates and staff here the last day or two is something I’ll always remember and always appreciate,” Nelson said. “That was the best moment of the day, obviously.”

            Marlins dominate in series so far

            Miami has outscored Milwaukee 24-3 over the first two games of the series. The Marlins defeated the Brewers 16-0 on Tuesday and showed much of the same Wednesday night. Some thought this was a series the Crew could walk through with ease as the Marlins currently are tied for the third-worst record in the league.

            “They are swinging the bats well, there’s no question,” manager Craig Counsell said. “We need to be better in all phases of the game. We haven’t been good in any phase of the game this series. They’re playing well, we’ve played two poor games and they’ve got two wins.”

            What’s next?

            The Brewers (34-28) will look to avoid the sweep against the Marlins (23-36) Thursday afternoon. Freddy Peralta (2|2, 5.68 ERA, 43 SO) will get the start for Milwaukee. Miami will counter with Caleb Smith (3|3, 3.10 ERA, 80 SO). First pitch is scheduled for 1:10pm.

              Arcia’s two-run homer propels Brewers past Twins 5-4

              It was an entertaining Memorial Day matchup at Target Field on Monday night. The Milwaukee Brewers and Minnesota Twins put on a show. The Twins entered the contest with the best record in the majors as they jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the second inning. The Brewers didn’t go away and battled back to get a 5-4 win.

              Orlando Arcia played hero for the crew blasting a two-run home run in the eighth inning to put the Crew ahead 5-4.

              Gio Gonzalez allowed four runs on seven hits while setting a season high in strikeouts (7) and pitches (102). Jeremy Jeffress, Junior Guerra, Corbin Burnes and Josh Hader all made appearances helping the Brewers finish it off.

              Next up, the Brewers (31-24) look for the two-game sweep of the Twins (36-17) on Tuesday. Zach Davies (5|0, 2.43 ERA, 38 SO) will get the start opposite of Martin Perez (7|1, 2.95 ERA, 56 SO). First pitch is scheduled for 7:10pm.

                Hiura debuts, Woodruff rolls, Brewers defeat Phillies 6-1

                Brandon Woodruff had his best outing of the season guiding the Milwaukee Brewers to a 6-1 win over the Philadelphia Phillies. The win snapped a three-game losing streak for the Brewers.

                Woodruff shutout the Phillies over six innings. He gave up just one hit and five walks. His finished retiring 11 batters in a row. Woodruff is now 6-1 with a 3.72 ERA on the year. Over his last four starts, he is 4-0 with a 1.23 ERA.

                The Keston Hiura era has begun. He made his major league debut and was effective right off the bat. He singled in his first at-bat in the second inning and finished 2-3 with a walk.

                As a team, Milwaukee’s bats were hot. Mike Moustakas and Jesus Aguilar got them started in the second with back-to-back singles. Then, Yasmani Grandal blasted a three-run homer for his seventh dinger of the season.

                Ryan Braun added to the score in the third with a two-run home run scoring Christian Yelich.

                Next up, the Brewers (25-19) will look for the series win over the Phillies (24-17). Gio Gonzalez (1|0, 1.69 ERA, 12 SO) will get the start opposite of Jake Arrieta (4|3, 3.78 ERA, 42 SO). First pitch at 6:05pm.

                  Brewers drop series finale to Cubs 4-1

                  Two of the National League’s best teams faced off on ESPN Sunday Night Baseball. It was the Brewers’ first appearance on the broadcast since 2013 and it didn’t go as planned.

                  The Cubs defeated the Brewers 4-1 as they took the series 2-1.

                  Jhoulys Cacin pitched well for the Crew going six innings of two-run ball on six hits. The two runs though would be all Jon Lester needed.

                  Milwaukee got the bat on the ball getting Lester to surrender nine hits but were only able to knock one extra-base hit. That was a Jesus Aguilar double which scored Christian Yelich for their only run of the night.

                  Next up, the Brewers (24-18) head out east to take on the Philadelphia Phillies (23-16). Freddy Peralta (2|1, 6.75 ERA, 30 SO) will get the start for Milwaukee. He pitched five scoreless innings behind an ‘opener’ in his last start. The Phillies will counter with Aaron Nola (3|0, 4.57 ERA, 45 SO). First pitch is scheduled for 6:05pm.

                    Brewers win fifth straight with 6-0 shutout of Nationals

                    The Milwaukee Brewers have tried to figure out Freddy Peralta’s early inning troubles. They may have found a way to counter it. Adrian Houser got the ball for the first two innings and then turned it over to Peralta for five more. The duo led the way on the mound leading to a 6-0 win over the Nationals for the team’s fifth straight win.

                    Lorenzo Cain got the offense on track in the seventh inning with a bases-clearing double. The Brewers scored all six of their runs in the seventh inning. Milwaukee is now a season-high-tying six games over .500.

                    Peralta finished the night with 80 pitches, giving up three hits and striking out five. Manager Craig Counsell said they may try using an “opener” again in Peralta’s next start if the bullpen lines up.

                    Next up, the Brewers will look for the sweep of the Nationals Wednesday afternoon. Brandon Woodruff (4-1, 4.71 ERA, 45 SO) will get the start, opposite of Jeremy Hellickson (2-0, 5.33 ERA, 22 SO). First pitch is scheduled for 12:10pm.