After an 0-for-5 night at the plate, J.J. Hardy finally found a hole in the infield to end the game that nobody seemed to want to win.
Both teams squandered chances all night and flashed some pretty good leather in the process. Yesterday, akittell noted that Kevin Kouzmanoff handled third base well Thursday night. The Crushin Russian was at it again Friday night, robbing Ryan Braun of extra bases on a sweet diving stab down the line. He also started the 6-3 double play that got the Padres out of trouble in the bottom of the 10th.
Not to be outdone, CC Sabathia showed his athleticism on the mound. Remember Andy LaRoche's slow dribbler to the mound? The big lefty got Chase Headley to do the same, but went sans glove again. This time he secured the out and ended the inning with a beautiful bare-handed play. Lesson learned, I suppose.
Every game, I find another reason to perhaps include CC in the NL Cy Young talk. Either Brandon Webb struggles a bit on the mound, or CC throws a controversial no-hitter, or the southpaw delivers in multiple ways Friday night. He not only made the beautiful fielding play in the fourth inning, but also chipped in with an RBI single in the fourth inning. All of this while pitching seven innings of one-run ball and striking out nine Padres. All in a day's work for Mr. Sabathia. Enjoy every minute he's on the mound, Brewers fans. He is something special.
The offense didn't do much Friday. The Crew pounded out 12 hits, but could only plate three. They grounded into three double plays...none any bigger than Corey Hart's GIDP in the bottom of the 10th. I was extremely surprised to see Corey struggle that much with putting a bunt down. I cannot help but think he was somewhat trying for a bunt hit, as he was squaring up late and almost jabbing at the pitches. Either that, or he is inept at sac bunting.
Breaking news. Eric Gagne is terrible. He should not be the eighth inning man, no matter what Ned Yost says. You can argue he only made one bad pitch (false), but he seems to be doing that quite a bit lately. In fact, he has made one bad pitch 11 times in 37.2 innings pitched. I'd say that's more than a trend. His home run tendencies are a flat-out rule. He and David Riske should be given the Guillermo Mota treatment until further notice. Before Friday's game, Gagne was on pace to give up 57 home runs in a 200 inning season. That rate has gone up dramatically now. That's pathetic.
Who should get the set-up duties then?
I would argue that no one pitcher should get the eighth inning duties all the time. Play your match-ups and give time to Carlos Villanueva, Mitch Stetter, and Guillermo Mota. Yes, I said Mota. After working on a mechanical fix in the middle of the season Guillermo has turned his season around. He has a 0.56 ERA in the second half of the season, which equates to 16 innings of work. The right-hander is throwing the ball extremely well right now, and Ned has been giving him more time in high leverage situations as of late. It will be interesting to see how much confidence Milwaukee's manager has in Mota. Brewers fans might mutiny if the Brewers' skipper trots out Gagne again in the eighth tomorrow.
Records: Brewers (81-60); Padres (54-87)
Countdown to 92: 11 wins, 21 to play
Scoreboard Watching
Chicago Cubs (4.0 GU): Loss -- CHC 2, CIN 10
Philadelphia Phillies (4.0 GB): Win -- PHI 3, NYM 0
St. Louis Cardinals (6.0 GB): Loss -- STL 1, FLA 4
Houston Astros (7.0 GB): Loss -- HOU 3, COL 5
Florida Marlins (9.0 GB): Win -- FLA 4, STL 1
Down on the Farm
The West Virginia Power pounded the Lake County Captains and extended the three-game series with a 10-0 victory. Evan Anundsen, Corey Pasma, and Robert Wooten combined for a two-hit shutout. Anundsen had the strikeout pitch working Friday, as the sinkerballer whiffed six batters through seven very strong innings. He has been hit or miss down the stretch, but the right-hander has put together some very good outings in the past couple weeks. It's too bad most have been coupled with horrendous outings.
The offense showed up for WV too, as Lee Haydel and Zelous Wheeler both went deep to secure the victory. Every Power hitter but Eric Fryer joined in the hit parade, with Caleb Gindl going 3-for-4 with a walk to lead the way. That young man has improved every single month in 2008. I'm extremely excited to see what he does in Brevard County next season. If he can continue to keep the offensive numbers respectable in the tough FSL, he may become a top-five prospect by the end of 2009. He needs to keep the power coming though, as his defense may keep him limited to a corner outfield slot.
One other team played for Milwaukee's system Friday night, and that was the Helena Brewers. Cody Adams spun a gem for the Crew, going eight innings of two-run ball. He struck out five and walked two. Milwaukee seemed committed to keeping Cody in a relief role after drafting him on the first day of the 2008 MLB Draft, but he has made his last few appearances as a starter. If he can go eight innings, however, endurance is not a problem. His strikeout rate could be pretty impressive if he can stick it out as a starter. I can only assume Cody will get the call to Low-A ball next season...wherever that may be.