Rock bottom? Milwaukee Brewers fall to franchise-worst 2-10
By Phil Watson
Through good times and some really bad ones, no Milwaukee Brewers squad had ever opened a season by losing 10 of its first 12 games.
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Until Sunday.
The Pittsburgh Pirates completed a three-game sweep of the Brewers at PNC Park on Sunday with a 5-2 victory—Milwaukee’s fifth straight loss—to drop the 2015 Brewers a game behind the pace of the moribund 2002 club that finished 56-106.
The start of the season has featured everything one would expect from a team on the skids: bad pitching, poor hitting, tons of runners left on base and—just for giggles—the occasional gaffe in the field.
Milwaukee’s Sunday looked frustratingly familiar to many of its recent outings—the Brewers didn’t cash in on early opportunities. Then they went cold later in the game while the pitching failed to keep the opposition in check.
Ugly seems too kind a word to describe things for the Brewers right now.
But manager Ron Roenicke isn’t panicking, despite the fact his club is 8-32 in its last 40 regular-season games since last Sept. 1—a not-so-hot winning percentage of a frigidly cool .200.
“They’re tired of it,” Roenicke told MLB.com. “We’re tired of it. We need it to change. Whatever you have to do to just get the job done. These are good players and we need to get it done.”
They hardly resemble good players, however, not having been outscored by 35 runs in 12 games—the worst differential in the big leagues.
Milwaukee has scored 30 runs in 12 games, an average of just 2.5 per outing, while surrendering 65, or 5.4 a game.
The Brewers on Sunday loaded the bases in the top of the first when Jonathan Lucroy reached on an error, Adam Lind grounded a two-out single up the middle and Khris Davis walked.
But Gerardo Parra hit the ball on the screws—pretty much right at left fielder Starling Marte as Gerrit Cole and the Pirates (6-6) wiggled off the hook.
And, of course, Pittsburgh took advantage with two runs in the bottom of the first, taking a 1-0 lead when Josh Harrison scored on a wild pitch by starter Matt Garza (1-2) and making it 2-0 on Andrew McCutchen’s RBI single.
Apr 19, 2015; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Milwaukee Brewers first baseman Adam Lind (24) greets third baseman Luis Jimenez (14) after Jimenez scored a run against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the second inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Milwaukee struck back for two in the top of the second. Scooter Gennett and Luis Jimenez opened the inning with back-to-back singles to put runners at second and third when Pittsburgh tried to get Gennett at third.
Jean Segura drove in a run with a groundout and Lucroy singled to third to score Jimenez, tying the game.
Pedro Alvarez gave the Pirates the lead for good in the bottom of the third with his fourth home run of the season.
Chris Stewart provided a couple of insurance runs with a two-run single in the sixth.
Garza allowed five runs on seven hits with three walks and three strikeouts in six innings, swelling his ERA to 5.40. Neal Cotts pitched a perfect seventh for the Brewers and Michael Blazek walked one and fanned one in the eighth.
Lucroy at least showed signs of life, going 2-for-4 to raise his average to .167.
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“I think the one positive we can take from what’s happened is that we’re doing everything poorly, so hopefully we start doing everything well at the same time,” Ryan Braun said. “Obviously this isn’t any fun for anybody.”
The Brewers return home—where they are 1-5 this season—on Monday, hosting the Cincinnati Reds at 6:20 p.m. Wily Peralta (0-1, 4.50 ERA) is scheduled to start for Milwaukee, with right-hander Anthony DeSclafani (1-0, 1.38) set to go for the Reds.
“We’re not going to panic, but these guys need to get it going,” Roenicke said. “Not all the time do you start the way you want to. That’s fine. But we shouldn’t be doing this every night. And something needs to change.
“We’ll get it going, but how far do you stay patient to where you’re two weeks into the season and things aren’t getting better?”
A question the Brewers may have to confront if things don’t take a 180-degree turn … like, pronto.