Thursday- Still alive

 
Some things to read while staying here.

The Milwaukee Brewers needed a win on Wednesday to prolong their faint playoff hopes, and Kyle Lohse delivered. He pitched a two-hit shutout and drove in a run in a 5-0 win over the Cincinnati Reds. Jordan Mader of Brew Crew Ball has a recap, if you missed it. With the win, the Brewers will finish at or above .500 for just the 16th time in 46 seasons in franchise history.

Meanwhile in Los Angeles, the San Francisco Giants ran out to an early 1-0 lead but the Los Angeles Dodgers scored nine unanswered runs to earn likely NL Cy Young and potential NL MVP Clayton Kershaw his 21st win. The Giants’ loss kept the Brewers alive in the playoff chase for at least one more day. Here are today’s updated Wild Card standings and probables:

The Brewers will be eliminated with a loss or a Giants win today. As of this writing, Baseball Prospectus gives them a .3 percent chance of reaching the postseason. That’s not much, but it’s tripled since Wednesday morning.

• The Brewers had scored zero runs or one run in 79 consecutive innings before scoring three in the eighth on Wednesday (h/t @AdamMcCalvy).
• Barring an unlikely relief appearance, Kyle Lohse will finish the season just short of 200 innings and no other Brewer will reach that mark. This is the second consecutive season in which the Brewers have not had a 200-inning pitcher.
• Lohse’s two-hit shutout was the 25th in franchise history but only the fourth in the last 11 years (h/t @AdamMcCalvy).
• Assuming he doesn’t pitch again, this will be the second consecutive season in which Lohse has pitched a complete game and shut out the opponent in his final start (h/t @Haudricourt). 
• The Brewers set a new season high by drawing 10 walks on Wednesday (h/t Milwaukee Journal Sentinel). They last achieved that feat in May of 2012 against the Cubs.
• Reds outfielder Billy Hamilton made a great play at the wall to rob Ryan Braun of a home run in the third inning, but Hamilton later left the game with a concussion.
• The Brewers tumblr has a gif of Rickie Weeks making a great play on a ball hit behind second base in the seventh inning.
• The Reds won a replay challenge in the second inning when Rickie Weeks was initially called safe on a force play at second base, but the call was reversed.

As noted above, the Brewers and Reds wrap up the series with an 11:35 a.m. matinee today. Manny Randhawa has the MLB.com preview. The Brewers are 9-9 against the Reds this season, and could beat the Reds in a season series for the first time since 2006.

Ryan Braun went 0-for-4 on Wednesday and continues to struggle in the second half. He told Adam McCalvy of MLB.com, however, that he’s not considering shutting down early to rest his sore thumb. Braun is hitting just .214 with five home runs in his last 51 games.

Scoring five runs on Wednesday represented something of a breakthrough for the Brewers, who had scored just six in their previous six games combined. AK of Ron Roenicke Stole My Baseball notes that nearly all of the Brewers regulars have struggled recently, while Rickie Weeks has thrived. Right on cue, Weeks started and got on base three times in the win.

Jonathan Lucroy didn’t have a hit or score a run on Wednesday, but he did draw three walks to raise his on-base percentage to .373. Will Leitch of Sports on Earth says Lucroy is the Brewers’ most valuable player this season.

The Brewers have a few more days to wrap up the 2014 season before we all turn our attention to 2015. Nick Michalski of The Brewers Bar makes the case that next season should be another “win-now” year for Mark Attanasio and the front office.

Many of us will likely spend this winter trying to get over the disappointment of a third-place finish from a team that led the National League Central for 150 days. Dave Cieslewicz of The Isthmus is encouraging Brewers fans to remember this season’s good times. Jacob Ahlmann of Dairyland Express says he’s “not mad, just disappointed” with the way the year has turned out.

In the minors:

• John Sickels of Minor League Ball has a look back at his preseason list of the top 20 prospects in the Brewers organization and noticed strong seasons for Wisconsin catcher/DH Clint Coulter, Brevard County shortstop Orlando Arcia, Nashville pitcher Taylor Jungmann and others. 
• Jason Mast of Grading on the Curve has a look at how the Brewers’ recent struggles in the minors contributed to Nashville’s decision to move on and affiliate with another team this offseason.

Closer to home, magician Justin Sight stopped by the Brewers’ clubhouse before Wednesday’s game to show some tricks to Carlos Gomez. The video is on Youtube, and it’s excellent.
 
Around baseball:

Pirates: Claimed reliever Chaz Roe off waivers from the Yankees.

Let’s go around the NL Central:

• The Cardinals lost their second consecutive game on Wednesday, falling 3-1 to the Cubs in the final regular season game at Wrigley Field. Jake Arrieta allowed a single run on two hits for Chicago, walking one and striking out 10.
• The Pirates failed to capitalize on an opportunity to gain ground, losing 6-2 to the Braves. Pittsburgh catcher Russell Martin left the game in the fourth inning with hamstring tightness.
• The Brewers, as you likely know, beat the Reds 5-0.