Some things to read while painting.
The Milwaukee Brewers still haven’t beaten the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre since June 19, 2005, and now they’ll likely have to wait a while to try again. Edwin Encarnacion’s ninth inning home run gave the Jays a 7-4, walkoff victory and completed a two-game series sweep on Wednesday, and Derek Harvey of Brew Crew Ball has the recap if you missed it. This was the first time the Brewers have been swept in 2014 (h/t @MikeVassallo13).
The Brewers played Wednesday’s game without Khris Davis in left field, but he reported feeling better after treatment and is expected to be back in the lineup when the Brewers head to Cincinnati on Friday. Davis strained his shoulder sliding into second base during Tuesday’s game.
Wednesday’s game took a turn for the weird when Ron Roenicke was ejected in the eighth inning (by first base umpire and noted confrontationalist Phil Cuzzi) for arguing a check swing call, the first time this season the Brewers manager has been excused from a game early. Then, a few pitches later, acting manager Jerry Narron successfully challenged a safe call on a steal of second base, and Blue Jays manager John Gibbons was ejected for arguing that play.
Other notes from the field:
- Jonathan Lucroy went 1-for-3 with a double and an RBI on Wednesday, tying Scott Podsednik’s franchise record by reaching base safely in his 47th consecutive start.
- Edwin Encarnacion’s walkoff home run was his 26th of the season and drove in his 67th, 68th and 69th runs. He leads all of baseball in both categories. He also started the game in left field for just the third time in his career and the first time since 2012.
- High Heat Stats notes that Encarnacion’s homer was the Blue Jays’ first walkoff homer in over two years.
- When Will Smith hit Steven Tolleson in the eighth inning it was the 1900th time a Brewers pitcher has hit a batter with a pitch. Plunk Everyone has more on the accomplishment.
- Before this week, the Rogers Centre was one of six American League ballparks the Brewers had not visited since 2009 or earlier. At Brew Crew Ball I have a look at the other five.
The Brewers are off on Thursday before opening a series with the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park on Friday night. Kyle Lohse will take on Alfredo Simon in the opener at 7:10 p.m., and Manny Randhawa has the MLB.com preview.
Friday night’s game may be Lohse’s final chance to prove he deserves to be an All Star, as rosters are expected to be announced on Sunday night. Lohse leads all Brewers starters with a 3.08 ERA and is sixth in the national league with 114 innings pitched, and Justin Schultz of Beyond the Box Score says he’s the king of consistency. Steven Jewell of Reviewing the Brew also has a look at Lohse and the decision to sign him to a three-year, $33 million deal.
Francisco Rodriguez may also be in the running for an All Star berth, which would be the fifth of his career but the first since 2009 when he was selected in his first season as a Met. Todd Rosiak talked to K-Rod about the latest potential honor in his surprising season.
Even if Lohse and K-Rod don’t make the All Star team, Jonathan Lucroy certainly should. Foster Honeck of the FanGraphs Community used Google search data to rank Lucroy among baseball’s most “under-popular” players. Anna McDonald of ESPN talked to him about his ability to focus in clutch situations.
Mark Reynolds may be back in the lineup Friday night, and visiting one of baseball’s homer-friendliest ballparks may be just what he needs to break out of a power drought. Reynolds has appeared in 25 games since his last home run, which is tied for the longest streak of his career.
Reynolds, by the way, was the Brewers representative in this project to get first basemen from all 30 MLB teams to come together to recite parts of Lou Gehrig’s famous “Luckiest Man” retirement speech on its 75th anniversary.
In the minors:
- Wednesday was the opening day of a new international signing period, and the Brewers made a long-expected splash by signing 16-year-old Dominican infielder/outfielder Gilbert Lara for $3.2 million. Lara’s signing is easily the biggest international contract in club history (the previous high was $800,000), and also means the Brewers could face penalties from MLB for exceeding their bonus pool.
- Back on the field, the affiliates went 3-3 behind another big night for Jimmy Nelson, who pitched 6 2/3 scoreless innings in Nashville’s 5-0 win over Memphis. You can read about that and more in today’s edition of Minor League Notes at Brew Crew Ball.
- Teddy Cahill of MLB.com has more on Nelson’s big night. Chris Metzger of Dobber Baseball says Nelson is “the next big thing without the big name buzz.”
- Wisconsin lost 6-1 to Cedar Rapids, and Chris Mehring of Rattler Radio has highlights, pictures and postgame audio.
If you’d like more Brewers coverage today but you’re sick of reading, I’ll be making my weekly appearance on The Home Stretch with Justin Hull on 95.3 WSCO in Appleton at 3 today. I’ll be in studio for most of an hour taking your calls, emails and tweets, so listen in and get your voice heard.
Around baseball:
Padres: Signed outfielder Seth Smith to a two-year, $13 million contract extension with a club option for 2017 and placed shortstop Everth Cabrera on the DL with a hamstring strain.
Rockies: Acquired pitcher Jair Jurrjens from the Reds for a minor leaguer.
Twins: Placed first baseman Joe Mauer on the DL with an oblique strain.
White Sox: Claimed pitcher Angel Sanchez off waivers from the Rays.
Meanwhile, the Yankees opened their checkbook in a big way on the first day of the international signing period. I’ve already mentioned that the Brewers exceeded their bonus pool by giving $3.2 million to Gilbert Lara, but the Yankees blew theirs out of the water by giving a reported $12 million to as many as 21 players.
Let’s go around the NL Central:
- The Cardinals closed the gap a bit with a 2-0 win over the Giants in San Francisco. Adam Wainwright pitched 7 2/3 shutout innings to become the first NL pitcher to reach 11 wins.
- The Pirates moved into sole possession of third place with a 5-1 win over the Diamondbacks. Pittsburgh right fielder Gregory Polanco drove in two runs with the third home run of his young career.
- The Reds lost their third in a row in San Diego, getting shut out 3-0 by the Padres. Tyson Ross pitched a complete game and held Cincinnati to just three hits.
- Meanwhile, the Cubs completed a sweep of the Red Sox with a 16-9 win at Fenway Park. Seven different players had multiple hits for Chicago.
- The Brewers, as you likely know, lost 7-4 to the Blue Jays on Edwin Encarnacion’s walkoff home run.
| Team | W | L | GB | Today | Matchup |
| Brewers | 51 | 35 | — | OFF | |
| Cardinals | 45 | 40 | 5.5 | @ Giants, 2:45 p.m. | Carlos Martinez vs Madison Bumgarner |
| Pirates | 44 | 40 | 6 | vs Diamondbacks, 6:05 p.m. | Vance Worley vs Brandon McCarthy |
| Reds | 43 | 41 | 7 | OFF | |
| Cubs | 37 | 46 | 12.5 | OFF |
- Reliever Mike Adams has logged just 42 innings over two years since signing with the Phillies as a free agent, and Wednesday he was moved onto the 60-day DL with fraying in the labrum of his throwing shoulder.
- 1984 Brewers catcher Jim Sundberg, who began and ended his MLB career as a member of the Rangers, is expected to retire from his front office job with Texas at the end of the season.
Today’s most interesting statistical note comes to us via Cory DiBenedetto of Gammons Daily, who notes that MLB teams are hitting about .893 home runs per game in 2014, which is the lowest rate across baseball since 1993.
And in baseball economics: The Midwest League’s Dayton Dragons are being sold for $40 million, the highest price ever paid for a minor league team. They’ve sold out over 1000 consecutive games since moving from Rockford, Illinois to Dayton before the 2000 season.
With help from the Baseball Reference Play Index, we’d like to wish a happy birthday to:
- 1989-96 Brewer and Wall of Honor member Greg Vaughn, who turns 49 (Today In Brewer History).
- 1988-91 Brewer Don August, who turns 51.
- 1971 and 1974-75 Brewer Rob Ellis, who turns 64.
Finally, a quick programming note: The Frosty Mug will be off tomorrow for the Independence Day holiday, but will return on Monday. Have a safe and happy holiday weekend.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to see a dentist.
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.
