Brewers 1, Diamondbacks 9: Beware Of Snakes

Box Score

Starting Pitcher: Corbin Burnes - 5.0 IP, 8 H, 7 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, 86 pitches, 53 strikes (61.6%)
Home Runs: None
Top 3 WPA: Brian Anderson (.031), Christian Yelich (.025), Blake Perkins (.000) 
Bottom 3 WPA: Corbin Burnes (-.400), Victor Caratini (-.039), Rowdy Tellez (-.029) 

Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs)

Burnes Gets Burned In The First
It didn’t take long for the Diamondbacks to gain an insurmountable lead, scoring six runs in the first inning alone. Let’s take a look at the series of unfortunate events.

1. Geraldo Perdomo hit a double.
2. Ketel Marte hit a single. Perdomo moved to third.
3. Corbin Carroll walked to load the bases.
4. Christian Walker hit a single, scoring Perdomo and loading the bases again. 
5. Lourdes Gurriel Jr./strong>. hit a single, scoring Marte and Carroll. Walker moved to third. 
6. Emmanuel Rivera made it to first on a fielder’s choice while scoring Walker. 
7. Gabriel Moreno struck out
8. Alek Thomas hit a two-run home run.
9. Jake McCarthy grounded out

By the time he had recorded his first out, Burnes had already given the Diamondbacks a 4-0 lead. By the time he recorded his third out, the game was all but over. Heading into the bottom of the first inning, the Brewers had just a 9.3% chance to win the game.

This was one of Burnes’s worst performances of the season and there wasn’t much the lineup could do after a crushing start to the game.

Houser Takes On Entire Second Half
By the time Adrian Houser took the mound in the sixth inning of the game, the score was 7-1 and Craig Counsell didn’t really feel like wasting any bullpen arms, using Houser to eat up the last few innings of the game.

He pitched well, giving up just three hits and one unearned run in his four innings of work. Most importantly, he gave his teammates an important day off to give his team a better chance of taking the remaining games in the series following this blowout.

Low Morale, Low Offense
After a brutal first inning, the Brewers strung together just three hits for the entirety of the game, plating one runner in the process. After a Brian Anderson walk in the third inning, he would get sent home by a Christian Yelich triple but it was too little too late. The team seemed unwilling or unable to fight the uphill battle that was in front of them.

What’s Next? 
Colin Rea will try to help the Brewers put this ugly game behind them as they move to the second game of the series. Diamondbacks starter Ryne Nelson may be a bit of an easier test than Merrill Kelly was today but the team will have to put up a competitive effort on both sides if they hope to take down the current leaders of the NL West.

With the Brewers’ loss and the Reds’ victory, Milwaukee now lags behind Cinicinnati by 0.5 games for control of the NL Central.

Postgame Interviews

Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet

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