Cool Hand Lucroy

0-4 start with RISP. So much randomness with that stat. Nice, quick inning for Wilson. Let's put up some runs please. I would like to not still be thinking about yesterday's game tomorrow.

We've seen a lot of innings like that lately. Lots of really good ABs, runners on, dude throws 30 pitches, and no runs. Just got to keep at it because at some point it's going to pay off.

I mean, the division is going to be tight at the end. We've been the best team, but we're not 6 games better than everyone else.

His offspeed stuff is just completely noncompetitive. And the fastball isn't very consistent either. Someone suggesting he was maybe tipping again, but I think he's just really fighting it.

Yup. Strike 1 was horrible too. Been a frustrating game. Lots of baserunners, no big hit, Freddy struggling. Reds are playing good baseball, but you have to take advantage of the Elly double error there, even if it's just getting to 5-3.

Bad time for a bad called third.

He is a better pitcher than this. He cannot locate his offspeed pitches right now, and the fastball at 93-94 is leaking all over the place.

Freddy walking a fine line tonight. Keeping them in it, anyway.

Jonathan India, Brewer killer.

If you had Freddy at 42 pitches through 3, Greene at 48 pitches through 2, and the Reds winning, hats off. Some good ABs from the Crew, so hoping they can build on that 2nd time through.

Yeah, the soccer uniforms take some getting used to, though I don't notice the absurdity as much anymore. I think the reverse is stadium naming rights. There are exceptions, but most soccer clubs are playing at places called "Elland Road" or "Anfield" or "Goodison Park" instead of "American Family Field" or "LoanDepot Park" or "Guaranteed Rate Field." Maybe just a weird cultural quirk.

This is where I'm at for sure. The best way for the Brewers to balance winning and making postseason runs and keeping the team competitive for long stretches of time is to (mostly) develop position players and to reclamation the crap out of mid-tier starting pitchers (and trying to turn fringe or back-end starters into elite bullpen arms). It's just really, really hard to have pitchers and position players all developing at the same time, and we saw this with Woody and Burnes. They got really good, but the next crop of offensive talent was just not ready. I actually think Woody and Burnes (and Freddy, plus Hader and Devin) completely bailed out the Brewers in terms of playing winning baseball from 2019 to 2023 because the team really struggled to produce or acquire quality position players after the incredible Yelich-Cain infusion. Those pitchers are more the exception than the rule. I'm more confident in this strategic approach is what I'm saying. Focus on position players like Turang, good defense with a strong contact profile, guys who maybe lack power but can run and field and put the ball in play. The Brewers win with AVG and OBP and playing great defense and adding value on the bases. AND they win with the "out-getters" approach, plus acquiring some lottery ticket, Freddy Peralta types for guys like Adam Lind, plus some shrewd trading that can net you your Adameses and Contrerases. A lot of whether I want them to add any kind of starter this year comes down to if/when/how we get Junis and Hall and Ross back. I still have a lot of hope for Hall. We'll see how that pans out. Bottom line, for me, is I just think this team is being run very responsibly by a lot of people who are right more often than they're wrong. My sense is that they're not going to make a big deadline splash, and, honestly, I'm hoping they don't, especially when we're going to be the 3-seed in the NL at best. Trading away guys who can help in this current 5-year window for what? A 5 percent increase in the odds of winning a 3-game baseball series? Not for me. I might think a little differently if we were guaranteed an NLDS, but, even then, there's so much randomness that I think a lot of teams, even the big-market ones, are much more reluctant to part with prospect capital to acquire half-season players, even elite ones.

This is my thinking too. The Brewers are going to bullpen their way through the playoffs should they get there. Peralta is going to figure it out and be their big starter. Rea will be there. Maybe someone else emerges or gets healthy or they acquire a decent guy. But we're not going to see a big prospect or core piece get dealt, and I don't think we should. My possibly too hot take is that I might actually prefer a bat to a pitcher. You have to hit in October. You have to hit good pitching. Inwant the Brewers to be positioned to do that because Devin Williams is going to be our big deadline add. We're going to have one or two guys we can hope get 15-18 outs at a time. And then like 7 or 8 guys who can get 3-6 outs at a time. You need to get 54 outs to win a first-round series, and that's enough to do that. Beyond that, I think the 2015 Royals and 2018 Brewers show that you can get deep into the playoffs without big-time ace starters.

Yikes. Gotta bear down and preserve this one.

That is a tough AB for Bauers. He saw 5 pitches, swung at the only strike, and K'd.

Imagine Ortiz gets another day with the off day tomorrow. Might as well give him three days off.

Kikuchi has thrown a ton of pitches, so at least there's that. Bullpen going to have to get 12 outs at least, you would think.

Welp, third time through hurts Wilson. Hope they can battle back, but a 2-4 road trip isn't the end of the world. Big homestand coming up. Get an off day between the Jays and the surging Reds.

I like when they use him that way, but I'm not sure it's made much difference the last couple times.

Wilson sure has settled down, as he tends to.

Does Frelick go down when Mitchell is ready? Do they let Mitchell play for a while in Nashville? Do we lose Monasterio and finally see Sal at third? Doesn't really feel like there's an easy, clear choice.

Good pitch count work this inning from the Crew. Great AB from Jackson, just a better play on the other end. I love how this team just keeps coming at people. Makes them a lot of fun.

Yeah, that's a tough choice. Given injury rates, I'd be real hesitant to do an extension. I could see an argument for either just keeping him like we seem to be doing with Willy, or trading him sooner than later.

I know the Tigers have been pretty decent this year (good for them--I'm a Central division fan, whether the NL or the AL, and I think the Royals are definitely my 2nd favorite MLB team), but Canha as your #3 hitter is tough. I like the guy, but tough to really score when you're lineup looks like that.

Skubal tossing 102. WHOA.