Thursday- Beat the Mets

Some things to read while dealing with an epidemic.

The Milwaukee Brewers have been pretty good at avoiding extended slumps this season, and Wednesday night’s game was a case in point. A night after an ugly loss, they beat the New York Mets 3-1 at Citi Field. Noah Jarosh of Brew Crew Ball has the recap, if you missed it.

Wily Peralta gave the Brewers a strong start in the victory, working 6 1/3 innings and allowing a single run on four hits with four strikeouts. After the game, @Todd_Rosiak reported that he’s headed back to the Dominican Republic today to tend to a family matter, but is expected to rejoin the team at home on Saturday.

The game was also a big one for Francisco Rodriguez, who pitched a perfect ninth to record the save against his former team. Chris McShane of Amazin’ Avenue has a story on how the Mets almost brought K-Rod back to New York this winter. Rodriguez is now tied for the MLB lead with 20 saves on the season.

• Carlos Gomez had two hits to extend his hitting streak to nine games and has reached base in 26 consecutive games (h/t @Todd_Rosiak).
• With the win, the Brewers improved to 20-9 on the season when Gomez, Ryan Braun and Aramis Ramirez all play. They’re 19-18 when one or more of that trio sits out (h/t @joe_block).
• The Brewers tumblr has a gif of Mark Reynolds’ diving play to secure the game’s final out.
• Mets manager Terry Collins was ejected in the fifth inning for arguing an upheld call after a replay review.
• Scooter Gennett went 2-for-5 and scored a run in his second consecutive start in the leadoff spot.
• Former Brewer Dana Eveland, now a member of the Mets, struck out Lyle Overbay in an eighth-inning matchup of members of the 2005 Brewers (h/t @Todd_Rosiak).

The series wraps up at Citi Field tonight, with Kyle Lohse taking on Jon Niese at 6:10 p.m. Caitlin Sweica has the MLB.com preview.

Will Smith pitched a scoreless eighth inning on Wednesday night and is now fourth in all of baseball in both relief appearances (33) and holds (14). Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel talked to Smith about the challenges of being ready to pitch every day out of the bullpen.

Carlos Gomez went 2-for-5 with a pair of singles in the game, raising his batting line to .310/.378/.552 (batting average/on-base percentage/slugging). A lot has been made of his improved plate discipline this season, but it’s worth noting that he still has some work to do: Bill Chuck of Gammons Daily notes that he’s among the league leaders in swings at pitches outside the strike zone.

While Scooter Gennett made his second consecutive start in the leadoff spot on Wednesday, Rickie Weeks waited around for an opportunity that didn’t come. Weeks has appeared in just six of the Brewers’ 10 games in June (starting two of them), but Steven Jewell of Reviewing the Brew says, “the Crew as it stands today is improved by Weeks’ performances.”

Irving Falu did not appear in Wednesday night’s game and is still looking for his first hit as a Brewer, despite having made his debut more than two weeks ago. AK of Ron Roenicke Stole My Baseball listed Falu among the worst players to have played on some of the Brewers’ recent winning teams.

Meanwhile, pitcher Brad Mills still has not appeared in a game for the Brewers this season, and the team is running out of time to make a decision on him. The 29-year-old lefty has a 1.57 ERA and 9.1 strikeouts per nine innings in 13 appearances for Nashville this season, and Ken Rosenthal says (via MLB Trade Rumors) that he could be an option for teams looking for pitching help if he chooses to opt out of his minor league contract.

The Brewers probably could have called up Mills when they opted to add Mike Fiers to the roster over the weekend. Mack Burke of The Tennesseean talked to Nashville Sounds manager Rick Sweet about the motivational effect of seeing a teammate called up to the big leagues.

Elsewhere in the minors:

• We’ve been hearing reports for multiple days now that the Brewers had reached an agreement with 2014 first round pick Kodi Medeiros, but as of yesterday, the team was still saying no deal was official. Adam McCalvy and Tim Healey of MLB.com are reporting that the Brewers either have a deal or are near a deal with each of their first nine selections.
• For what it’s worth, the Brewers have announced 10 draft signings. The most notable among them are third-round pitcher Cy Sneed and fourth-round outfielder Troy Stokes (h/t @BrewersPD in two parts).
• John Sickels of Minor League Ball has analysis of drafts from around the NL Central and says the Brewers had the kind of draft that can make or break a farm system.
• Back on the field, the affiliates went 3-0 on Wednesday behind a big night from Huntsville outfielder Mitch Haniger, who homered twice for the second consecutive day in the Stars’ 3-2, 11-inning win over Chattanooga. You can read all about all of yesterday’s action in the Brewerfan.net Link Report.
• Teddy Cahill of MLB.com has more on Haniger’s performance. He’s now tied for the team lead with 10 home runs on the season after only hitting 11 in all of 2013.
• Wisconsin also kept its playoff hopes alive with a 4-2 win over Beloit and remains two games back of a Wild Card spot with four to play in the first half. Chris Mehring of Rattler Radio has audio and more from Wednesday’s win.
• Congratulations are due out this morning to Brevard County pitcher Damien Magnifico, who has been added to the North Division roster for the Florida State League All Star Game. The 2012 fifth-round pick has a 3.05 ERA over 12 starts for the Manatees.
• The Helena Brewers open their 2014 season on Monday, and The Brewer Nation has a look at their tentative roster. It will likely change a bit over the next few days as more draft picks sign.
• Nashville broadcaster Jeff Hem has an interview with Craig Counsell.

Back in Milwaukee, preparations continue for Friday’s unveiling of the Brewers’ new Wall of Honor outside Miller Park. It’s believed the unveiling ceremony could be the largest gathering ever of former Brewers.

Around baseball:

Mariners: Placed first baseman Justin Smoak on the DL with a quad strain.
Nationals: Placed catcher Wilson Ramos on the DL with a hamstring strain.
Pirates: Placed pitcher Francisco Liriano on the DL with an oblique strain.
Rangers: Placed pitcher Tanner Scheppers on the DL with elbow inflammation.
Red Sox: Signed outfielder Andres Torres to a minor league deal.
Yankees: Acquired pitcher David Huff from the Giants for cash and designated pitcher Wade LeBlanc for assignment.

Meanwhile, yesterday presented us an opportunity to learn all the details about a new injury many might not have believed possible: Rockies outfielder Carlos Gonzalez had a “fatty mass with tentacles” removed from his left index finger and could miss more than a month.

Let’s go around the NL Central:

• The Cardinals dropped a game to the Rays, losing 6-3 at Tropicana Field. The Rays had been held scoreless for 31 consecutive innings before breaking through in the fourth, and this is just their second win in their last 16 games.
• The Pirates got a two-run home run in the first inning from Andrew McCutchen and held on for a 4-2 win over the Cubs. Pittsburgh second baseman Josh Harrison left the game early with a sore ankle and is day-to-day.
• The Reds combined to record 16 strikeouts in a 5-0 win over the Dodgers. Johnny Cueto struck out 12 batters over his six innings, lowering his ERA to 1.85.

Here are today’s updated standings and probables:

Today in former Brewers: Steve Damerell of Camden Chat has a look at J.J. Hardy’s unlikely power drought for the Orioles this season.

Finally, with help from Brewerfan.net, we’d like to wish a happy birthday today to Huntsville Star Jed Bradley. The Brewers’ first round pick in the 2011 draft turns 24 (Today In Brewer History).

Today is also the seventh anniversary of the Brewers getting no-hit by Justin Verlander and the Tigers in 2007 and the 26th anniversary of Robin Yount hitting for the cycle in a 16-2 win over the White Sox in 1988. Follow the links for those events’ respective entries in Today In Brewer History at Brew Crew Ball.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, my worlds are colliding.

Drink up.

Don’t forget to follow Kyle on Twitter @BrewFrostyMug, and check out and “like” the Mug’s Facebook page. The Frosty Mug runs mornings Monday-Friday and is brought to you by Legends of the Field, a sports memorabilia company you can trust.