Jason Wang

He's been brutal in the majors so far, posting an 8.08 ERA over 39.0 innings pitched. He's been optioned since May but HOPEFULLY this is a chance for the team to score some runs off of a relatively green pitcher.

The Brewers struck down the Mets in the first game of a series in Queens, thanks to one mighty jolt by your favorite mullet-wearing rookie. Image courtesy of © Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports Box Score Starting Pitcher: Colin Rea - 6.1 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, 86 pitches, 59 strikes (68.6%) Home Runs: Joey Wiemer (11) Top 3 WPA: Joey Wiemer (.299), Colin Rea (.220), Devin Williams (.178) Bottom 3 WPA: Owen Miller (-.166), Willy Adames (-.103), Jesse Winker (-.095) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) Rea Stretches Out And Reaches For Six And A Third In one of his longest starts this season, Rea went past six innings while giving up just one earned run, one of his best performances for the Brewers. He’s averaging right around 5 1/3 innings in his 13 starts this season, but after making quick work of the Mets early, he was able to find a few more outs. His one earned run came by way of a Starling Marte single, followed by a stolen base and a throwing error by William Contreras that allowed Marte to move to third, eventually scoring on a sacrifice fly by Francisco Lindor. Overall, incredible stuff by Rea, as his pitching was an integral part of holding the Mets to just three hits and one run all game. His veteran craftiness and use of six different pitches kept the Mets dazed and confused enough for the Brewers to steal away the victory. He currently holds a 4.57 ERA and 1.22 WHIP over 69 innings pitched this season, just barely under his career averages of 4.80 and 1.32. Bullpen Turns Off The Lights In Queens It was another dazzling performance by one of the hottest bullpens in baseball. Hoby Milner, Elvis Peguero, and Devin Williams combined for a perfect 2 2/3 innings pitched, striking out two along the way. Despite their best efforts, the Mets simply could not make good contact and found themselves grounding and lining out five times. Williams was able to record his 14th save of the season, currently fifth in the National League. The bullpen currently has five relievers with ERA below 3.00: Devin Williams - 1.69 Joel Payamps - 2.29 Hoby Milner - 2.61 Bryse Wilson - 2.75 Elvis Peguero - 2.86 Wiemer Takes The Lead And Keeps It The Brewers only scored in one inning, but it was enough. In the sixth inning, Drew Smith replaced Justin Verlander on the mound and gave up a single to Jesse Winker before recording two outs. Powered by whatever performance-enhancing substance is in that hair of his, Joey Wiemer hit yet another clutch home run, sending Winker and himself to home plate with a missile to center field. The ball had an exit velocity of 108.4 mph and traveled 422 feet, nearly enough for it to land in the East River. That was, ultimately, the nail in the coffin for the home team, as the Brewers' incredible relief pitching made up for the lack of late offense as the team would maintain their precious 2-1 lead until the very last out. What’s Next? Julio Teheran will seek to replicate Rea’s stellar outing as a fellow come-out-of-nowhere star, taking the mound against lefty David Peterson in the second game of the series. With today’s crucial win and recent momentum, the Brewers have reclaimed the lead in the NL Central, with half a game separating them and the second-place Cincinnati Reds and three games separating them from the third-place Chicago Cubs. Postgame Interviews Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet THU FRI SAT SUN MON TOT Strzelecki 0 20 22 0 0 42 Milner 0 0 14 3 15 32 Peguero 0 0 3 19 6 28 Bush 0 9 19 0 0 28 Payamps 0 0 0 26 0 26 Williams 0 0 0 16 6 22 Houser 0 19 0 0 0 19 B Wilson 0 0 0 0 0 0 Tweet Highlight View full article

Owen Miller and Elvis Peguero stepped up in the 10th inning to give the Brewers the victory, in a very competitive final game of the Crew's weekend series in Cleveland. Image courtesy of © Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports Box Score Starting Pitcher: Corbin Burnes - 5.2 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, 99 pitches, 66 strikes (66.7%) Home Runs: None Top 3 WPA: Owen Miller (.314), Christian Yelich (.211), Elvis Peguero (.195) Bottom 3 WPA: Corbin Burnes (-.273), Brian Anderson (-.154), Willy Adames (-.136) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) Burnes Burns Out In The Sixth Corbin Burnes was having a fine outing, giving up just one run in his first five innings of work. In the sixth inning, however, cracks began to show. After a leadoff walk by Jose Ramirez, Andres Gimenez hit a triple to right field, allowing Ramirez to score Cleveland’s second run of the game. Burnes would then walk Tyler Freeman and throw a wild pitch, allowing Gimenez to come home and Freeman to advance to third. Next, he gave up an RBI single to Will Brennan, tying the game at 4-4. After a pop out by Gabriel Arias, he conceded yet another single to Bo Naylor, finally showing enough to prompt Craig Counsell to remove him from the game. There were some flashes of the old Burnes, but overall, it was not the best outing from the team's ace. His ERA and WHIP for the season stand at 4.10 and 1.19, respectively, over 94 innings pitched. What A Relief! Despite a shaky start, the bullpen stepped up in the best way possible. Hoby Milner stepped in to face Steven Kwan and record the final out of the sixth inning, getting him to ground out. Joel Payamps would pitch in the seventh and eighth innings, giving up two hits and zero earned runs, and Devin Williams would pitch in the ninth, allowing no base runners and taking the game into extras. With the game on the line, Elvis Peguero took the mound in the 10th, striking out two and giving up zero baserunners to close out the game after the Brewers took a 5-4 lead in the top of the frame. Big Third, Big Tenth After Cleveland took a 1-0 lead in the second inning, Milwaukee started getting to work in the third inning. After Joey Wiemer hit a leadoff single, Christian Yelich and Owen Miller hit back-to-back singles, giving the Brewers the lead at 2-1. With Miller on second base, Rowdy Tellez hit an RBI single to bring the lead to 3-1. After the Guardians tied the game in the sixth, Milwaukee surprised everyone by striking first in extras. Miller hit a crucial go-ahead double to score Joey Wiemer who had started on second base. While it was the only hit they got, it was the only one they needed. What’s Next? Colin Rea will make the first start in a four-game series against the New York Mets, who will send Justin Verlander to the mound. The Mets have struggled all season, currently posting a record of 35-42 and having even more pitching issues than the Brewers. With this win, the Brewers stand just 0.5 games behind the Cincinnati Reds for the lead in the NL Central and 3.0 games above the Chicago Cubs. Postgame Interviews Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet WED THU FRI SAT SUN TOT Strzelecki 29 0 20 22 0 71 Peguero 24 0 0 3 19 46 Bush 0 0 9 19 0 28 Payamps 0 0 0 0 26 26 Milner 3 0 0 14 3 20 Houser 0 0 19 0 0 19 Williams 0 0 0 0 16 16 B Wilson 10 0 0 0 0 10 Tweet Highlight View full article

After two runs by Christian Yelich in the first few innings, the Brewers offense completely falls off the face of the Earth and the team fails to come back from a late two-run deficit. Image courtesy of © Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports Box Score Starting Pitcher: Freddy Peralta - 5.0 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 5 K, 98 pitches, 58 strikes (59.2%) Home Runs: None Top 3 WPA: Christian Yelich (.085), Peter Strzelecki (.035), Freddy Peralta (.019) Bottom 3 WPA: Elvis Peguero (-.135), Raimel Tapia (-.118), Luis Urias (-.111) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) Peralta’s Pitching Continues To Be Satisfactory Today was another typical day for Freddy, giving up a few earned runs but avoiding any irreparable damage. His first earned run came in the fourth inning after a single and two walks loaded the bases before a single out was recorded. Josh Naylor would save him some trouble by grounding into a double play but Steven Kwan would score. The bases would stay loaded after Peralta would walk Josh Bell and hit Andres Gimenez with a pitch, but a strikeout of David Fry allowed him to escape the jam. In the sixth inning, Peralta would give up back-to-back singles before being replaced by Hoby Milner. Unfortunately, these baserunners would both score off of more singles by Josh Naylor and David Fry. Peralta’s pitching is far from extraordinary but he’s somewhat able to get the job done these days. He’s still got electric stuff, boasting an 80th percentile Whiff%, but boy does he give up some hard contact. He currently has a 26th percentile Barrel% at 9.9%, the highest clip that he’s had in his career thus far. He also has a 24th percentile Chase Rate and a 38th percentile walk rate, meaning if he’s not blowing past batters with his fastball, they’re not really biting on his pitches outside of the zone, culminating in too many free trips to first base. It Takes Four A combined effort from Hoby Milner, Elvis Peguero, Peter Strzelecki, and Matt Bush would finish the final three innings of the game. After Milner gave up the RBI single to Josh Naylor to tie the game at 2-2, he would record two more outs before being replaced by Peguero. Peguero gave up an RBI single to David Fry to give the Guardians the lead at 3-2 before getting Bo Naylor to ground out to end the inning. While Strzelecki had a pretty straightforward inning in which he gave up zero earned runs, Matt Bush would give up a double to Josh Bell and an RBI single to Andres Gimenez to bring the score to 4-2. Guardians Score Half the Brewers Runs After a leadoff single by Christian Yelich in the first inning, a wild-pitch strikeout of William Contreras allowed Yelich to advance to second. Rowdy Tellez hit what seemed to be a routine fly ball to right field until David Fry completely missed the catch, allowing Yelich to round third and head home, giving the Brewers a first inning lead. Unfortunately, Milwaukee didn’t do much of anything else. Yelich hit another single in the third before stealing second base and reaching home off of a Contreras single to give the Brewers their second run, but that was really it for the team. In total, the team put up just four hits and four walks, not nearly enough to win. What’s Next? Corbin Burnes will make the start in the final game of the series against Aaron Civale. Burnes is trying to bounce back from a horrid last start against the Arizona Diamondbacks that saw him give up seven earned runs in just five innings of work while the team hopes to clinch the series. The Cincinnati Reds finally snapped their winning streak at 12 games, meaning they are still just 1.5 games ahead of the Brewers, who are also 1.5 games ahead of the Chicago Cubs. Postgame Interviews Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet TUE WED THU FRI SAT TOT Strzelecki 0 29 0 20 22 71 Milner 17 3 0 0 14 34 Bush 0 0 0 9 19 28 Peguero 0 24 0 0 3 27 Houser 0 0 0 19 0 19 Payamps 16 0 0 0 0 16 Williams 14 0 0 0 0 14 B Wilson 3 10 0 0 0 13 Tweet Highlight View full article

The Brewers have a massive outburst of offense in the second half of the game to take a dominant victory over the Guardians in the first game of the series. Image courtesy of © Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports Box Score Starting Pitcher: Wade Miley - 6.0 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K, 67 pitches, 49 strikes (73.1%) Home Runs: Willy Adames 2 (12) Top 3 WPA: Wade Miley (.315), Willy Adames (.189), William Contreras (.084) Bottom 3 WPA: Raimel Tapia (-.038), Jesse Winker (-.036), Christian Yelich (-.030) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) Miley Pitches With Lethal Efficiency Of pitchers with at least 150 plate appearances, Wade Miley has the 13th lowest strikeout rate. Wade Miley also has an ERA of 2.91 and a WHIP of 1.03, proving his elite ability to draw weak contact and save himself the effort of trying to get three strikes on the young whippersnappers of today’s game. Today was an excellent example, as he used just 67 pitches to record his 18 outs while giving up three hits and no earned runs. While he did sometimes bring out his blazing 91 mph velocity to get a few strikeouts, he got seven lineouts, three groundouts, two pop outs, a flyout, and a double play to retire most of his batters faced. He likely would’ve extended his start if not for some cramping that he felt towards the end of his start, choosing to complete his quality start while preventing a potential future IL stint. Strzelecki Slips, Houser Holds, Bush is Back The sole run earned by Cleveland occurred in the seventh inning when Jose Ramirez hammered a long ball to right center field off of Peter Strzelecki. While it wasn’t the greatest way to lead off his relief appearance, Strzelecki promptly retired the next three batters in order. Adrian Houser and Matt Bush would pitch two scoreless innings. Houser gave up two hits but was able to keep them as infield singles and recorded the third out without too much issue. Matt Bush was perfect in the ninth inning, giving up no base runners and striking out Josh Bell to end the game. Boy Oh Boy, What A Sixth! The Brewers took a one-run lead in the first inning after a double by William Contreras was followed by an RBI single by Willy Adames. After that mistake, Shane Bieber would cruise through the remainder of the first half before hitting a wall in the sixth inning. It started off with a single by William Contreras. A double by Rowdy Tellez put two runners in scoring position, both being sent home by a dinger to left field by Willy Adames, bringing the score to 4-0 in favor of Milwaukee. A no-doubter that left the bat at 109.2 mph, it sure was a pretty sight to behold. Oh, it also traveled 423 feet and casually sailed out of Progressive Field. After what had already been a pretty long night for Bieber, he was replaced by Tim Herrin. Unfortunately, the Brewers were not finished. After recording two outs, Herrin gave up a single to Blake Perkins and hit Luis Urias with a pitch. Joey Wiemer would send Perkins home with a single, making the score 5-0. Christian Yelich piled on the pain with a single to score Urias and bring the score to 6-0 before Contreras would finally ground out to end the inning. Just for the sake of insurance, Willy Adames also hit another home run in the ninth inning, a solo shot to center field that traveled 397 feet. A beneficiary of ballpark conditions, Progressive Field was one of just eight fields where the ball would’ve ended up in the stands. What’s Next? Freddy Peralta will toe the slab against Tanner Bibee in the second game of this series. He’s looking to iron himself out after a recent trend of rough outings, posting a 6.06 ERA over his last seven games. Unfortunately for the Brewers, the Cincinnati Reds won their barnburner of a game against the Atlanta Braves to maintain their lead in the NL Central, 1.5 games ahead of Milwaukee. The Brewers are also 2.5 games ahead of the third-place Chicago Cubs. Postgame Interviews Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet MON TUE WED THU FRI TOT Houser 77 0 0 0 19 96 Strzelecki 0 0 29 0 20 49 Megill 0 0 34 0 0 34 Peguero 0 0 24 0 0 24 Milner 0 17 3 0 0 20 Payamps 0 16 0 0 0 16 Williams 0 14 0 0 0 14 B Wilson 0 3 10 0 0 13 Bush 0 0 0 0 9 9 Tweet Highlight View full article

The Diamondbacks are also one of the most well-rounded team in the MLB, placing 4th in team OPS at .771, To skirt by while giving up zero runs is undoubtedly an impressive accomplishment. Now if only our own offense weren't 27th in MLB in offense...

After walking nine batters and falling behind late, the Milwaukee could do nothing but watch as the Diamondbacks clinched the series in the third game. Image courtesy of © Michael McLoone-USA TODAY Sports Box Score Starting Pitcher: Julio Teheran - 5.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 4 BB, 3 K, 88 pitches, 50 strikes (56.8%) Home Runs: Raimel Tapia (2) Top 3 WPA: Julio Teheran (.280), Raimel Tapia (.115), Peter Strzelecki (.055) Bottom 3 WPA: Elvis Peguero (-.296), Owen Miller (-.197), Trevor Megill (-.189) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) Teheran Gives Up A Few Free Bases But Avoids Damage Julio Teheran didn’t have the cleanest start but was overall able to prevent any runs from being scored. He got into trouble immediately, having to escape a bases loaded jam in the first inning after giving up two walks and a single. Teheran seemed to have an issue with control in particular, walking four batters and hitting Ketel Marte with a pitch while striking out only three. He hasn’t been much of a strikeout pitcher this season, posting a 5.86 K/9 vs. the league-average figure of 8.70. When he does get strikeouts, it’s usually through deception and mischief rather than raw velocity and athleticism. Nonetheless, his incredible ERA of 1.53 proves that soft contact can be just as good, if not better, at limiting scoring and giving your team the defensive edge needed to win games. Scary Scenes For Peguero & Strzelecki Elvis Peguero took the mound in the sixth inning and ended up giving the Diamondbacks the lead. After a walk by Pavin Smith, Emmanuel Rivera hit what seemed to be a routine single to center field. However, Joey Wiemer failed to get a proper handle on the ball, allowing Smith to round third and head home, scoring the Diamondbacks’ first run. While Smith’s run was unearned, Peguero's lone earned run would come by way of an Alek Thomas single that would score Rivera and give Arizona a 2-1 lead. Peter Strzelecki got into his own jam, walking three batters in a row to load the bases after getting two outs. After some struggles with a particularly tight zone, he finally got Emmanuel Rivera to strike out swinging on a four-seam fastball. Megill Just Makes It Worse Trevor Megill was originally intended to take over the final two innings of the game following a recently intensive workload for the bullpen. However, following three earned runs in 1.1 innings of work, he was replaced by Bryse Wilson. Despite his brief relief appearance, he gave up five hits and one walk. Wilson would complete the final two outs of the ninth inning without issue. Tapia Time! Raimel Tapia scored the first run of the game for the Brewers, sending a ball 401 feet to right center field. Unfortunately for Milwaukee, that was really all they could muster by way of offense. Notching just three hits in this game, Zac Gallen and Scott McGough simply outmatched the best efforts of the lineup. In the ninth inning, with a four-run deficit, the Brewers were retired in order. What’s Next? The Brewers will have a day off before heading to Cleveland to play a three-game series against the Guardians. The first pitching matchup will be between Wade Miley and Shane Bieber. With the Reds continuing their win streak, the Brewers are now 1.5 games behind the division lead and ahead of the Chicago Cubs by 1.5 games. Postgame Interviews Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet SAT SUN MON TUE WED TOT Megill 22 7 0 0 34 63 Strzelecki 21 0 0 0 29 50 Milner 12 9 0 17 3 41 Peguero 8 0 0 0 24 32 Williams 0 11 0 14 0 25 Payamps 0 0 0 16 0 16 B Wilson 0 0 0 3 10 13 Tweet Highlight View full article

The Brewers overcome an early four-run deficit with some late but timely hitting. Overall, it was an exhilarating bounce-back performance following a blowout against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Image courtesy of © Michael McLoone-USA TODAY Sports Box Score Starting Pitcher: Colin Rea - 5.1 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, 74 pitches, 49 strikes (66.2%) Home Runs: Jesse Winker (1) Top 3 WPA: William Contreras (.203), Luis Urias (.183), Jesse Winker (.120) Bottom 3 WPA: Colin Rea (-.165), Christian Yelich (-.057), Hoby Milner (-.054) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) Rea Gets Hit Up Early All four of Rea’s earned runs were given up in the first two innings. After a one-run first inning, Rea started off the second inning by giving up a double to Carson Kelly and a walk to Jake McCarthy before allowing all of them to score by giving up a home run to Ketel Marte. Rea was able to collect himself for the remainder of his five innings, retiring the Diamondbacks in order in the third and fourth inning and giving up just one baserunner in the fifth inning. He was pulled after getting Lourdes Gurriel Jr. to pop out and giving up a single to Evan Longoria. Rea is sitting right around his career averages, posting a 4.88 ERA and a 1.28 WHIP over 62.2 innings pitched this season. Over his 217.0 total innings pitched as a big-leaguer, his ERA and WHIP are 4.89 and 1.34. Relievers Keep On Relievin’ Hoby Milner was the first pitcher to come out of the bullpen but quickly ran into trouble after Alek Thomas made it to first on a fielder’s choice but was able to advance to third after a Carson Kelly groundball resulted in a throwing error by Willy Adames. Jake McCarthy would hit another RBI single to score Arizona’s fifth run but Milner would get Geraldo Perdomo to hit a weak grounder to end the inning. Bryse Wilson, Joel Payamps, and Devin Williams would take on the final 2.1 innings of the game, giving up just one hit and one walk between them. Joel Payamps in particular had a spectacular outing, recording all three of his outs by strikeout. Williams' ninth inning earned him his 13th save of the season, the fifth most in the National League. Warming Up In Wisconsin While the Brewers had bits and pieces of offense in the first half of the game, they entered the seventh inning down 5-3. Many fans will attest to the fact that the Brewers often tend to disappear in the later parts of the game. In fact, the team’s OPS is just .632 in the seventh inning and later, 26th of all MLB teams. But tonight was different. Milwaukee started with three consecutive baserunners, with Luis Urias drawing a walk followed by back-to-back singles by Blake Perkins and Joey Wiemer to load the bases. Christian Yelich hit a soft grounder to record the first out but scored Urias, bringing the score to 5-4. Then, a huge double by William Contreras sent Perkins and Wiemer home, taking the lead and putting the score at 6-5. Owen Miller came up with a single to advance Contreras to third base and Willy Adames would put the nail in the coffin for the Diamondbacks, hitting a ground out that allowed Contreras to score the seventh run of the game for the Brewers. In other news, Jesse Winker hit his first home run of the season, a 416-foot, 107.1 mph, 2-RBI shot to center field in the fourth inning. Winker’s still got it, folks! What’s Next? Julio Teheran will make the start in the deciding game of the series against NL Cy Young frontrunner Zac Gallen. With the red-hot Reds extending their win streak to ten games, the Brewers are still behind by 0.5 games but are holding their own in the division thus far. In contrast, the former division leaders, the Pittsburgh Pirates, are now second-to-last in the division. Postgame Interviews Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet FRI SAT SUN MON TUE TOT Williams 23 0 11 0 14 48 Milner 0 12 9 0 17 38 Megill 0 22 7 0 0 29 Payamps 13 0 0 0 16 29 Peguero 17 8 0 0 0 25 Strzelecki 0 21 0 0 0 21 B Wilson 0 0 0 0 3 3 Tweet Highlight View full article

guys just wait until he learns the slutter

The Brewers have a horrid first game against the Arizona Diamondbacks, throwing away their chance of victory in the first inning. Image courtesy of © Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports 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. Geraldo Perdomo hit a double. Ketel Marte hit a single. Perdomo moved to third. Corbin Carroll walked to load the bases. Christian Walker hit a single, scoring Perdomo and loading the bases again. Lourdes Gurriel Jr./strong>. hit a single, scoring Marte and Carroll. Walker moved to third. Emmanuel Rivera made it to first on a fielder’s choice while scoring Walker. Gabriel Moreno struck out Alek Thomas hit a two-run home run. 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 THU FRI SAT SUN MON TOT Williams 0 23 0 11 0 34 Megill 0 0 22 7 0 29 Peguero 0 17 8 0 0 25 Milner 0 0 12 9 0 21 Strzelecki 0 0 21 0 0 21 Payamps 0 13 0 0 0 13 B Wilson 0 0 0 0 0 0 Tweet Highlight View full article

Entering the weekend, both the Pirates and the Brewers were limping, and neither seemed especially secure in their grip on the top rungs of the NL Central ladder. By Sunday, the Crew made it clear that they are (at least among these two clubs) the real deal. Image courtesy of © Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports Box Score Starting Pitcher: Freddy Peralta - 6.0 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 9 K, 103 pitches, 58 strikes (56.3%) Home Runs: None Top 3 WPA: William Contreras (.456), Jesse Winker (.219), Christian Yelich (.138) Bottom 3 WPA: Rowdy Tellez (-.258), Owen Miller (-.098), Joey Wiemer (-.093) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) Peralta Puts Up Power Performance Freddy Peralta’s nine strikeouts were incredible to watch over his six innings. He was able to get up to 98.0 mph with his fastball and still reached 96.6 mph on his 100th pitch. Despite his spectacular strikeout abilities, he still has issues with walks and giving up hard hits. Today’s two earned runs came by way of a two-run homer by Bryan Reynolds, a 415-foot rocket ship that left the bat at 110 mph. Peralta’s HR/9 and BB/9 currently stand at 1.6 and 3.5, respectively. Compared to the league-average figures of 1.2 and 3.4, Peralta is a subpar pitcher when looking at these figures. He is able to make up for it by having an above-average K/9 figure of 9.9, but his seasonal ERA of 4.60 is not quite what Brewers fans would expect from such a talented player. Relievers Lock It Up Hoby Milner, Trevor Megill, and Devin Williams kept up the recent trend of near-invincibility by the Brewers bullpen, pitching three scoreless innings while giving up just two hits and zero walks. Williams, in particular, chose to lean on his four-seam fastball today, instead of his usual changeup, using the Airbender just twice. After a three-pitch strikeout of Carlos Santana, he threw five consecutive four-seamers to Connor Joe, striking him out with an off-speed pitch. After getting Tucupita Marcano to fly out, he was able to get his 12th save of the season. Turns Out The Brewers Can Indeed Hit Baseballs After the Pirates took an early 2-0 lead in the third inning, it seemed like this game would be another episode of Milwaukee’s often disappointing offense. In the fifth inning, the Brewers would score on a Jesse Winker RBI single, but it seemed like a futile effort. For the whole season, the Brewers seemed to really struggle in the second half of games. The eighth inning was a welcome twist. The Brewers started with two consecutive walks by Winker and Willy Adames. A William Contreras single pushed home Winker to tie the game at 2-2, before another walk by Owen Miller loaded the bases. Raimel Tapia hit a go-ahead sacrifice fly to record the second out and put the score at 3-2. Finally, a crucial single by Luis Urias would score Contreras and Miller, putting the Brewers in a dominant position at 5-2 heading into the ninth inning. What’s Next? While this series sweep was crucial for creating separation between the Brewers and the Pirates in the NL Central standings, the Cincinnati Reds have become the new threat, dominating the Astros and completing a sweep this past weekend to stay just 0.5 games behind Milwaukee for the division lead. Corbin Burnes will make the start tomorrow at home against Merrill Kelly of the Arizona Diamondbacks, while the Reds will start a series against the (likely) less challenging Colorado Rockies. Postgame Interviews Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet WED THU FRI SAT SUN TOT Williams 0 0 23 0 11 34 Milner 12 0 0 12 9 33 Megill 0 0 0 22 7 29 Peguero 0 0 17 8 0 25 B Wilson 23 0 0 0 0 23 Strzelecki 0 0 0 21 0 21 Payamps 0 0 13 0 0 13 Tweet Highlight View full article

Against the Pirates' ace, the Brewers were undaunted. They climbed out to an early lead, extended it, and cruised to a Sunday win on a Saturday. Image courtesy of © Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports Box Score Starting Pitcher: Wade Miley - 5.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 77 pitches, 46 strikes (59.7%) Home Runs: Joey Wiemer (10), Blake Perkins (2) Top 3 WPA: Wade Miley (.270), Joey Wiemer (.157), Rowdy Tellez (.080) Bottom 3 WPA: Jesse Winker (-.058), Raimel Tapia (-.038), Luis Urias (-.038) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) Miley Masterpiece Wade Miley was untouchable over five innings, shutting out the Pirates in his start despite giving up a few baserunners here and there. Having just returned from the 15-day IL following a lat strain, this was an encouraging return to early-season form. After posting a 5.43 ERA in his last five starts (over 23 2/3 innings), the rest seemed to have done wonders for Miley’s pitching abilities. As usual, he wasn’t overpowering batters, just outwitting them. While he recorded just four swinging strikes, he earned 17 called strikes. He also used his cutter brilliantly, painting the edge of the strike zone and producing six instances of soft contact to get batters out. To make space for Miley’s return, Tyson Miller was optioned back to Triple-A. Miley currently has a 3.28 ERA and 1.09 WHIP over his 47 innings pitched. Bullpen Keeps The Buccos In The Dark Peter Strzelecki stepped in for 1.2 innings of relief, giving up just one hit and zero earned runs along the way. He followed Miley’s trend of soft contact, using his sinker and changeup to get three flyouts and a groundout. Hoby Milner recorded just one out in the seventh inning, giving up a hit and a walk along the way. Elvis Peguero and Trevor Megill would keep the Pirates scoreless for the remainder of the game, including Megill striking out three batters to finish the game in dominant fashion. Did I mention that he threw three pitches that clocked in at triple-digit velocity? It’s Big Boy Season For Tellez and Wiemer Joey Wiemer would score the first runs of the game, hitting a 366-foot, two-run home run to right field. More Milwaukee offense would come in the fifth inning when a walk by Christian Yelich and a single by Willy Adames would result in two more runs on a Rowdy Tellez double, bringing the score to 4-0. Finally, to tack on a final insurance run, Blake Perkins hit his second home run of the season while pinch hitting for outfield newcomer Raimel Tapia. It was an absolute moonshot, traveling 423 feet and being counted as a home run in all 30 ballparks. It seems the Brewers offense is starting to thaw out and warm up in this series, but there are still some clear issues. Many players, including Wiemer and Tellez, are able to hit for power but have low batting averages that drag down their offensive production. What’s Next? In the final game of the series, Freddy Peralta will take the ball against Luis Ortiz. Peralta, whose ERA and WHIP currently stand at 4.73 and 1.36, is hoping to bring his statistics closer to his career averages of 3.95 and 1.16. In the meantime, the Cincinnati Reds have officially relegated the Pittsburgh Pirates to third place as they now sit just 0.5 games behind the Brewers for control of the NL Central. Postgame Interviews Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet TUE WED THU FRI SAT TOT Payamps 25 0 0 13 0 38 Williams 14 0 0 23 0 37 Milner 11 12 0 0 12 35 Peguero 6 0 0 17 8 31 B Wilson 0 23 0 0 0 23 Megill 0 0 0 0 22 22 Strzelecki 0 0 0 0 21 21 Sousa 0 0 0 0 0 0 Tweet Highlight View full article

Haha, glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for the kind words.