Week in Review: The Hits Kept Coming

NEWS AND NOTES

As expected, Luis Urías is continuing to nurse the leg injury he suffered last week, and could potentially return to the lineup late next month. Expect more updates following the series in Arizona.

Unfortunate news for Aaron Ashby, as he underwent an arthroscopic procedure last week, putting his season in question. While the Brewers reported the surgery went well, it’s unlikely Ashby will return this season. The future beyond this year doesn't look bright either, as the surgery has had varying effects on pitchers over the years.

Adrian Houser started his rehab assignment Sunday, where he is expected to make multiple multi-inning relief appearances. The plan is for him to fill a similar role when he’s back with the Brewers, but the timetable is unknown. Luckily for the Brewers, Bryse Wilson has been filling in the long relief role with desirable results.

HIGHLIGHTS

Where do I even start? The Brewers offense put up 36 runs this week, while the pitching staff recorded shutouts in three games. It was a team effort to win five of six this past week, but there are some particularly notable individual highlights.

The rookie trio of Joey Wiemer, Brice Turang, and Garret Mitchell continued to post their share of both defensive and offensive highlights. Turang and Wiemer both continued to hit with consistency over the week, while Mitchell more than doubled his career home runs over the span of a few days, hitting two against the Mets on Tuesday, and adding a walk-off jolt the next day to help complete the series sweep.

Newcomers Jesse Winker and William Contreras had solid weeks with the bat too, with Winker slashing .308/.387/.385 in the early season, and Contreras posting a similar .308/.379/.346 slash line thus far. Both are still looking for their first homers of the season, but there certainly isn't any complaints with how the two have been producing so far.

The Bullpen was fantastic yet again, and they find themselves at the top of almost every pitching category in the major leagues. Through the first nine games of the season, the unit has posted a 0.77 ERA, 0.97 WHIP, and 23 K in 35 innings. Relievers Hoby Milner, Matt Bush, Peter Strzelecki, Devin Williams, and Gus Varland have yet to surrender a run.

Brandon Woodruff continued to build on his excellent first outing from last week, tossing 5.1 innings of scoreless baseball in the series opener against St. Louis. Freddy Peralta was excellent in his first two outings of the season. He logged 6 innings in each of his starts this week, and only surrendered one run. Even Wade Miley got in on the fun, throwing 6 shutout innings in his first outing since returning to the Brewers. That start also gave Miley the win he needed to reach the century mark in career victories.

Perhaps the top performer of the week was Brian Anderson. Getting everyday playing time at both 3B and RF, Anderson has been the biggest surprise for the Brewers so far. He was part of the offensive explosion in the Mets series, going 6-10 with 3 HRs, 3 BBs, and 9 RBIs. 

LOWLIGHTS

The production from first base has been spotty at best through nine games, with Rowdy Tellez and Luke Voit sharing the time. Both men have combined for just six hits so far, and both find themselves hitting under .200. It’s too early to panic about either, but it is something to note.

Shockingly, Corbin Burnes is the lone blemish on the pitching staff so far this season. The former Cy-Young winner has given up 10 runs in his two starts, with a particularly poor performance against the Mets in the 7-6 win last week.

Eric Lauer was the only pitcher to record a loss last week, where he got hit around for six runs against the Cardinals. There is some concern with Lauer missing some velocity on his pitches, but he has shown in the past he doesn’t need speed to be effective.

TRENDING STORYLINE

The Brewers had major problems with left-handed pitching last year, and so far that continued. The Brewers had a good showing against Mets starter David Peterson, but have failed to muster any offense against the other two lefties they’ve faced, Justin Steele and Jordan Montgomery. So far, Brewers skipper Craig Counsell has called upon Mike Brosseau, Luke Voit, and Owen Miller to face left-handed hurlers, and none of the three have produced much. 

LOOKING AHEAD

Christian Yelich had a tough week, hitting just .200 before Sunday's. game, but picked up 3 hits Sunday, including a home run. If the former MVP is able to start contributing to the already hot offense, the Brewers are going to have another successful week.

The Brewers are playing their first full week of baseball starting Monday, and will be immediately faced with an early season Cy Young candidate in Zac Gallen. Both the Padres and Diamondbacks have gotten off to solid starts this season, so it would be in the Brewers' best interest to bring their A-game to the West Coast this week.

MONDAY, 4/10: BREWERS @ D-BACKS - LHP Wade Miley vs. RHP Zac Gallen

TUESDAY, 4/11: BREWERS @ D-BACKS - RHP Corbin Burnes vs. RHP Merrill Kelly

WEDNESDAY, 4/12 BREWERS@ D-BACKS - RHP Brandon Woodruff vs. TBA

THURSDAY, 4/13: BREWERS @ PADRES - LHP Eric Lauer vs. TBA

FRIDAY, 4/14: BREWERS @ PADRES - RHP Freddy Peralta vs. TBA

SATURDAY, 4/15: BREWERS @ PADRES - LHP Wade Miley vs. TBA

SUNDAY, 4/16: BREWERS @ PADRES - RHP Corbin Burnes vs. TBA