Milwaukee Brewers sit sluggers, break out bats to beat Cardinals
By Phil Watson
Baby steps.
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Given how the Milwaukee Brewers have played in the first month of the season, you have to celebrate the small triumphs if only because there have been so few of them.
The Brewers won two games in a Monday through Sunday calendar week for the first time this season, avoiding being swept at home by the St. Louis Cardinals on Sunday with a 6-3 victory at Miller Park.
Milwaukee (4-15) created some actual offense, scoring six runs off Cardinals starter Lance Lynn (1-2) in five innings and going 4-for-7 with runners in scoring position.
The pitching staff, meanwhile, made up for allowing 17 baserunners by making big pitches when they had to, stranding 14 St. Louis runners on base.
Starter Mike Fiers lasted just four innings, yanked after throwing 89 pitches to get just that far. He allowed two runs—one earned—on nine hits with two walks and six strikeouts. Michael Blazek (1-0) got his first major-league win with two innings of shutout relief, walking one and allowing a hit with a strikeout.
Jeremy Jeffress worked around a hit in a scoreless seventh, Jonathan Broxton surrendered a run on two hits and a walk in the eighth and Francisco Rodriguez worked a perfect ninth to get his third save.
And, as if anything this month would make sense, the Brewers did this on Sunday after sluggers Ryan Braun and Aramis Ramirez asked out of the lineup.
“It’s not something I want to do, rest them,” manager Ron Roenicke told MLB.com before the game. “I need these guys in here playing, trying to win. But when someone tells me they need a day off, they need a day off.”
So it wasn’t exactly the lineup the Brewers expected to put on the field with Braun and Ramirez resting and Carlos Gomez, Jonathan Lucroy and Scooter Gennett all on the disabled list.
But it was the Crew that struck first, plating three runs in the bottom of the third.
Apr 26, 2015; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Milwaukee Brewers second baseman Elian Herrera (3) tries to complete a double play after forcing out St. Louis Cardinals shortstop Jhonny Peralta (27) in the eighth inning at Miller Park. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports
Logan Schafer reached on a one-out infield hit and Gerardo Parra followed with a triple into right field.
Cardinals right fielder Jason Heyward injured his groin running after the ball and was replaced by Jon Jay.
After the delay, Adam Lind followed by launching his team-best third home run of the season over the wall in right-center for a 3-0 lead.
Jhonny Peralta’s RBI single in the top of the fourth cut the Milwaukee lead to 3-1, helped by Lind’s error on a pickoff attempt of Jay at first base, and former Brewer Mark Reynolds led off the top of the fifth with a solo homer—his first of the season—that chased Fiers and made it a 3-2 game.
In the bottom of the fifth, however, the Brewers strung a long rally together. Parra stroked a one-out double to center and after Lind flied out, Khris Davis stung a ground-rule double to center that made it a 4-2 game.
Elias Herrera then doubled to left to plate Davis for a 5-2 lead and Hector Gomez, starting at third base, singled to left to plate Herrera and put the Crew up 6-2.
In the eighth, Broxton loaded the bases on two singles and a walk, with Matt Adams driving in a run with a grounder to short. The Brewers took the force play at second base.
Broxton got Reynolds to fly out to end the threat.
Despite his struggles, Roenicke said Fiers will keep his spot in the starting rotation.
“We talk about things all the time but Fiers has proven for a couple different years that he deserves the opportunity,” Roenicke told MLB.com. “How far that opportunity takes you, I’m not sure, but the conversations haven’t been there yet.”
Apr 26, 2015; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Milwaukee Brewers right fielder Gerardo Parra (28) hits a triple to drive in a run as St. Louis Cardinals catcher Tony Cruz (48) watches in the third inning at Miller Park. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports
Fiers got out of two bases-loaded jams in the first three innings.
“I made some big pitches when it really mattered and got out of some tough innings,” Fiers said. “I just got back to being me, using my fastball. I think early on, I was messing around too much, trying to fool them and trick them instead of going right after them.”
Schafer, who started the game in center field with Parra taking Braun’s spot in right, said he sees positive signs.
“I Feel like we’ve been playing better baseball lately, the last couple of days,” Schafer said. “That’s what we need to do—when we get into trouble we need to be able to get ourselves out of it.
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“We had back-to-back hits with two outs and a runner on base and those are the little things we need to be able to do to scratch out some wins.”
The Cardinals fell to 12-5 on the season and had a four-game winning streak snapped.
Schafer, Parra, Davis and Herrera were each 2-for-4 for the Brewers, who head to Cincinnati to open a series against the Reds (8-10) at Great American Ballpark on Monday at 6:10 p.m. Central.
Jimmy Nelson (1-1, 1.35) makes the start for Milwaukee against right-hander Jason Marquis (1-1, 7.20).
The Brewers and Reds will also play Tuesday and Wednesday before Milwaukee heads to Wrigley Field for a three-game weekend series against the Chicago Cubs.