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May 2009 - Posts
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W: Yovani Gallardo (5-2) L: Micah Owings (3-6) S: Trevor Hoffman (13) Home Runs CIN: Phillips, B (9) MIL: Cameron, M (11) Key Players RHP Yovani Gallardo: 5.1 IP, 7 H, 2 R (1 ER), 2 BB, 9 K CF Mike Cameron: 2-4, HR (11), 3 RBI, R, K -- .284 AVG 3B Mat Gamel: 2-3, RBI, K -- .214 AVG
Saturday marked a coming-out party for the Brewers bats, and the momentum carried over into the series finale. The Brewers jumped on Micah Owings for two runs in the first inning. Both runs came on two-out RBI singles by Mike Cameron and Mat Gamel. Gamel's RBI single particularly impressed me, as the young third baseman showed a willingness to go to the opposite field to score the run. Owings jammed him a bit with a cutter, but Gamel simply served it to left and it dropped for a hit. The runs kept coming in the second, as Jason Kendall scored on a sacrifice fly by J.J. Hardy. In the third, however, the Brewers broke it open on a two-run shot by Cameron, who has homered in consecutive games to raise his home run total to 11 for the season. He jumped all over a hanging changeup from Owings and banged it into the left-field bleachers to put the Brewers up 5-0. Cameron is enjoying a wonderful beginning to the season. His two-hit performance raised his batting average to .284, and he also owns a sparkling .379 OBP. He is consistently getting on base, and despite his (questionable) error on a ball in the gap by Jerry Hairston Jr. on Sunday, Cam is playing spectacular defense in center. Ryan Braun may make flashy plays like his diving stab in the fifth, but Cameron rarely is forced to sacrifice his body because of the superb jumps he gets in center. Watch Cameron in center. That is a master employing his craft day-in and day-out. The Cincinnati Reds tried to make it interesting in the fifth, as Brandon Phillips launched a down-and-in fastball into the Brewers dugout to cut the lead to 5-2. Cincy was unable to score for the remainder of the game, however, as the Brewers secured their first sweep of the Cincinnati Reds in Miller Park since 2006. Yovani Gallardo was a large part of that effort through the first five-plus innings. He was quite inefficient with his pitches, causing him to depart after just five and a third, but nine strikeouts will do that to a pitch count. Gallardo whiffed the first six outs of the contest, including back-to-back Ks to Ryan Hanigan and Micah Owings in the second to strand the bases loaded. The right-hander made big pitches when it counted and managed to work around seven hits and two walks to only surrender two runs (one earned). Gallardo left the game after allowing a 3-1 double to Ryan Hanigan and subsequently a single to Micah Owings. With runners on the corners with one out, however, Mitch Stetter got Chris Dickerson to groundout to the pitcher's mound. That caused Hanigan to freeze at third. Even though the Brewers were unable to turn the double play, Stetter got Jerry Hairston Jr. swinging to escape the inning unscathed. Mark DiFelice and Trevor Hoffman combined with Stetter to toss 3.2 scoreless innings. The Brewers bullpen did not surrender a single run throughout the three-game series against the Reds. The bullpen has been a large part of the Brewers' success in 2009. Coming into Sunday's contest, the 'pen owned a 3.30 ERA, which is good for the third-best mark in the majors. DiFelice now has a 1.16 ERA and Hoffman tossed his fifteenth-consecutive scoreless frame with Milwaukee. Along with Carlos Villanueva, who has a 1.46 ERA in the month of May, and Todd Coffey, the Brewers boast one of the best bullpens in the game. It sure makes the later innings more fun to watch. Hoffman's changeups to both Phillips and Bruce in the ninth were devastatingly wonderful.
NL Central Standings Milwaukee Brewers: (30-20), -- GB St. Louis Cardinals: (29-21), 1.0 GB Cincinnati Reds: (26-23), 3.5 GB Chicago Cubs: (25-23), 4.0 GB Pittsburgh Pirates: (22-28), 8.0 GB Houston Astros: (20-28), 9.0 GB
Game MVP: CF Mike Cameron -- +.185 WPA Game LVP: 1B Prince Fielder -- (-.052 WPA) On Tap The Milwaukee Brewers travel to Florida to face the Marlins. Jeff Suppan is scheduled to take the hill for the Crew, and he will face the young and highly-touted young hurler, Andrew Miller. Miller has a 1-2 record with a 4.55 ERA, but has pitched well as of late. He has posted quality starts in his previous two outings and looks to carry over that success against the suddenly rejuvinated Brewers offense. The first pitch will be at 6:10pm CT.
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HINT: No longer on the Milwaukee Brewers
[UPDATE] Since no one successfully identified the Brewer in this picture, I thought I would give you all another crack at it. I can give you all a clue a bit later if no one comes close. ------------------------------
Sorry for the late start this morning, but it is time to rock a Mystery Pitching Motion. Can you figure it out? Steve Mahne has been on a roll as of late.
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Nashville Sounds (27-24), -- GB | Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | | R | H | E | Omaha
| 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | | 2 | 4 | 0 | Nashville
| 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | X | | | | 6 | 8 | 0 |
RHP Matt Ginter: (W, 2-1) 5.0 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 2 K -- 2.96 ERA
LHP Chris Narveson: (S, 5) 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K -- 4.45 ERA
RF Brendan Katin: 2-3, 2 HR (8), 2 RBI, 2 R, K -- .285 AVG
3B Adam Heether: 1-3, HR (4), RBI, R -- .319 AVG
SS Alcides Escobar: 1-3, 2B, RBI -- .291 AVG | Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | | R | H | E | Omaha
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | | | | 2 | 3 | 0 | Nashville
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | | 1 | 4 | 0 |
RHP Josh Butler: (L, 0-1) 6.0 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 4 K, 1 HR -- 3.00 ERA
LHP R.J. Swindle: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K -- 0.46 ERA
1B Erick Almonte: 1-2, 2B, BB, K -- .330 AVG
SS Alcides Escobar: 1-4, 1B, K -- .290 AVG
Huntsville Stars (28-20), -- GB | Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | | R | H | E | Huntsville
| 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | | 10 | 12 | 1 | Tennessee
| 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | | 7 | 13 | 2 |
LHP David Welch: 3.1 IP, 9 H, 6 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, 1 HR -- 7.00 ERA
RHP Nicholas Bucci (?!?): (W, 1-0) 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K -- 0.00 ERA
RHP Omar Aguilar: (S, 6) 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K -- 5.28 ERA
C Jonathan Lucroy: 3-4, 2B, RBI, BB, 3 R -- .246 AVG
LF Drew Anderson: 3-4, 3B, 3 RBI, BB, R -- .336 AVG
RF Freddy Parejo: 1-3, 3B, 2 RBI, BB, R -- .226 AVG
Brevard County Manatees (29-13), -- GB RHP Mark Rogers: 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K -- 1.29 ERA
LHP Lucas Luetge: (L, 2-3) 4.0 IP, 8 H, 5 ER, 4 BB, 4 K -- 6.39 ERA
CF Logan Schafer: 2-3, 2 1B, K -- .315 AVG
3B Steffan Wilson: 2-4, 2 1B, SB (5), 2 K -- .306 AVG
LF-CF Lee Haydel: 1-4, RBI, K -- .293 AVG
Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (23-26), 7.0 GB LHP Daniel Meadows: (W, 8-0) 6.0 IP, 6 H, 3 R (2 ER), 2 BB, 4 K -- 3.00 ERA
RHP Liam Ohlmann: (S, 1) 3.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 3 K -- 4.00 ERA
2B Brett Lawrie: 2-4, HR (7), 3 RBI, R, E (10, fielding) -- .275 AVG
LF Brock Kjeldgaard: 1-3, 2B, BB -- .235 AVG
RF Chris Dennis: 0-2, 2 BB, 2 K -- .392 AVG
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Nashville Sounds (26-23), -- GB | Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | | R | H | E | Omaha
| 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | | 7 | 9 | 1 | Nashville
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | | 3 | 8 | 1 |
LHP Chase Wright: (L, 3-5) 5.1 IP, 7 H, 5 R (4 ER), 3 BB, 3 K -- 4.58 ERA
1B Joe Koshansky: 1-3, HR (10), RBI, BB, R, K -- .226 AVG
DH Erick Almonte: 2-3, BB, R, K -- .323 AVG
Huntsville Stars (27-20), -- GB RHP Mark Holliman: (W, 2-2) 6.0 IP, 10 H, 2 R (1 ER), 1 BB, 0 K -- 5.86 ERA
RHP Robert Hinton: (S, 4) 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K -- 4.34 ERA
1B Kevin Melillo: 2-3, 2B, RBI, BB, R -- .262 AVG
2B Shane Justis: 1-4, 2 RBI, R -- .318 AVG RHP Josh Wahpepah: 5.0 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 5 K -- 2.73 ERA
RHP Juan Sandoval: (W, 2-1) 2.0 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K -- 4.76 ERA
LF Drew Anderson: 1-3, HR (5), 2 RBI, BB, R, 2 K -- .324 AVG
CF Freddy Parejo: 1-3, HR (1), RBI, BB, R, K -- .223 AVG
C Jonathan Lucroy: 2-4, 2 1B -- .232 AVG
Brevard County Manatees (29-12), -- GB Game postponed due to rain.
Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (22-26), 7.0 GB LHP Evan Frederickson: (W, 2-3) 5.0 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 4 K -- 6.03 ERA
RHP Wily Peralta: 2.2 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K -- 3.26 ERA
RHP Jim Henderson: (S, 12) 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K -- 1.56 ERA
2B Brett Lawrie: 1-4, 2 RBI, K -- .269 AVG
LF Chris Dennis: 2-4, 2 2B, RBI -- .408 AVG
C Sean McCraw: 2-3, RBI, R, K -- .200 AVG
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W: Braden Looper (5-3) L: Johnny Cueto (4-3) S: Trevor Hoffman (12) Home Runs CIN: Hernandez, R (3) MIL: Fielder, P (11); Hart, C (5) Key Players RHP Braden Looper: 7.0 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 1 HR -- 4.24 ERA 1B Prince Fielder: 1-3, HR (11), 2 RBI, R -- .267 AVG RF Corey Hart: 1-3, HR (5), RBI, R, K -- .244 AVG
In a game without much offense, the Milwaukee Brewers needed great pitching and a couple key hits from their superstars. That is exactly what they got. Braden Looper tossed seven innings of two-run ball, with the only blemish coming on a two-run homer to Ramon Hernandez. The right-hander kept the ball down, pounded the strike zone, and gave the Brewers the quality start they desperately needed. 63 of his 95 pitches were strikes, and without a couple long at-bats against Jerry Hairston Jr. and Alex Gonzalez, Loop could have easily gone eight innings. Looper is not overly impressive on the mound, but he throws up consistent innings without fans even realizing it. One can easily watch a game and forget that the right-hander is entering the sixth or seventh inning with only one or two runs against. His ERA is down to 4.24 and has been a stabilizing force in the Brewers' rotation. Sure, he struggles with the long ball from time to time, but he consistently eats innings and keeps the Crew in the game. As I said earlier, the Milwaukee Brewers needed the strong start from Looper. Prince Fielder socked a bomb into the second deck in right during the first inning for a two-run homer. Johnny Cueto made a mistake with his fastball, and Prince made the young righty pay. It was a welcome sight to see the Brewers go deep early in a contest, as the long ball has been starkly absent from the offensive attack. Prince's shot put the Crew up 2-0 early. Things appeared poised to blow up in the bottom of the second. Cueto walked the bases loaded for J.J. Hardy with two outs. Hardy hit a slider and a four-seamer pretty hard in foul territory, but ended up bouncing out up the middle on a nice play by Hairston. Cueto threw 31 pitches in the frame and looked utterly lost on the mound. Too bad that did not last. Milwaukee was unable to record another hit until the sixth inning. Ryan Braun laced a double into the left-center gap. He moved up to third on Prince's fly-out to center. Mike Cameron then caught one a bit down on the trademark into shallow left. With the Brewers unable to figure out Cueto on the mound, Brad Fischer sent Braun to test the arm of Laynce Nix in left. It turned out to be a bad gamble. Nix unleashed an absolute laser to the plate. Braun was out by several steps. Still, not a bad choice with the offense struggling against Cueto. In the very next inning, however, Corey Hart took a hanging slider to left-center for a solo homer to put the Brewers on top, 3-2. Friday morning, I mentioned that Corey needed to stay patient at the plate and prove that he could drive the slider to all fields. Bombing a hanging slider is not too impressive, but it is a start for the ice-cold Hart. That solo shot proved to be the difference in the game. Can someone tell Jody Gerut that he is allowed to take a couple pitches at the plate?
Todd Coffey gave up back-to-back singles to kick off the eighth. Dusty Baker then elected to send Chris Dickerson to pinch-hit with two-on and two-out. Inexplicably, Dickerson was not sent up to bunt. Instead, he grounded into a double play to Craig Counsell at second. Coffey then got Willy Taveras to ground out and preserve the one-run lead. Trevor Hoffman then gave up a hit, but escaped any damage to record his 12th save of the season. To end the game, Hoffman fed Jay Bruce four-straight changeups and made the young outfielder look helpless. The 41-year old closer is 12-for-12 in save opportunities and has thrown 14 scoreless frames. His WHIP is an unbelievable 0.43. The change of scenery has worked rather nicely for the All-Time Saves Leader. Records: Brewers (28-20); Reds (26-21) Game MVP: RHP Braden Looper -- +.222 WPA Game LVP: CF Mike Cameron -- (-.110 WPA) On Tap The Milwaukee Brewers will trot out Dave Bush to the mound to try for the first series win in the past three. He will face Aaron Harang, who has enjoyed a nice rebound season after a horrendous 2008. Harang has a career 3.55 ERA at Miller Park, so a win could be a tall order for the struggling Brewers offense. The first pitch is at 6:05pm CT.
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