Tuesday- Getting back on track

Some things to read while finding a new nest.

The Milwaukee Brewers returned home and broke out the big bats on Monday, connecting for three home runs en route to an 8-3 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks. Noah Jarosh of Brew Crew Ball has the recap, if you missed it. 

Carlos Gomez got the Brewers off to a strong start last night, hitting a home run on the first pitch from Diamondbacks rookie Mike Bolsinger. It was the third time this season he’s led off a game with a home run (h/t @MikeVassallo13), and this mark may be in reach for him: The 2011 Brewers set a franchise record by leading off a game with a home run nine times. Corey Hart and Rickie Weeks split leadoff duties that season.

The top and bottom of the Brewers lineup were the story last night, as Gomez, Jean Segura and Martin Maldonado batted 1, 2 and 8 and were on base a combined 10 times, including one home run apiece. Their performance covered for some ongoing struggles from the middle of the lineup, and Adam McCalvy talked to Ron Roenicke about those challenges.

Gomez, Segura and Maldonado combined to earn a win for Matt Garza, who pitched through some early struggles to complete six innings, allowing three runs on eight hits and two walks. The Brewers continue to lead all MLB teams with 26 quality starts (six innings or more, three earned runs or less) on the season (h/t @MikeVassallo13).

• Before Monday’s game, the Brewers had scored five runs or less in 14 consecutive games. That was tied for the second-longest such streak in all of baseball this season. They also hadn’t let by five or more runs at any point in any game since April 9 (h/t @joe_block).
• They still, however, haven’t scored 10 or more runs in a home game since beating the Pirates 12-8 on April 30 of 2013 (h/t @JaymesL).
• With the win, the Brewers improved to 18-0 when scoring four runs or more.
• Will Smith struck out the side in the seventh inning and has recorded 22 strikeouts in 14 1/3 innings this season (h/t @Haudricourt).
• Carlos Gomez drew three walks last night for just the second time in his career (h/t @joe_block).
• Ron Roenicke won his third replay challenge of the season in the fourth inning when umpires reviewed and reversed a call after Diamondbacks pitcher Mike Bolsinger was ruled safe at first base on what would have been an infield hit. Reviewing and reversing the call took just 39 seconds.
• The Chorizo won the Sausage Race.

The series continues at Miller Park tonight when Marco Estrada takes on Josh Collmenter at 7:10 p.m., and Adam McCalvy has the MLB.com preview. Before Monday’s game, Nicholas Zettel of Disciples of Uecker looked at this week’s pitching matchups and asked if this is the Brewers’ first must-win series of 2014.

The Brewers won’t be seeing Arizona reliever J.J. Putz this week. After last night’s game, he was placed on the disabled list with forearm tightness and replaced on the roster by reliever Evan Marshall (h/t @joe_block). Marshall has a 0.54 ERA over 14 appearances for Triple-A Reno this season and is striking out more than 10 batters per nine innings.

Looking further ahead, yesterday we mentioned that Carlos Gomez’s appeal of his three-game suspension is expected to be heard on Friday. I had previously been under the impression that a final decision would be made at that hearing, but apparently that’s not the case: Doug Melvin told Adam McCalvy there’s likely to be a lag of several days while a written report is finalized and passed through the proper channels.

Martin Maldonado had a nice game Monday, going 2-for-3 with a walk, double and two-run home run to raise his 2014 batting line to .350/.500/.600 (batting average/on-base percentage/slugging) in eight appearances, and picked up his 100th career hit (h/t @JaymesL). A few days later, however, some of us are still talking about his pitching appearance from Wednesday. Adam Wieser of Disciplies of Uecker has a look at Maldonado and the other position players who have taken the mound for the Brewers.

Rickie Weeks drew a walk as a pinch hitter in the eighth inning Monday night, advanced on a wild pitch and came around to score on Carlos Gomez’s RBI single as the Brewers blew the game open. Weeks has been relegated to infrequent playing time at best recently but has reached base in seven of his last 11 plate appearances, and Keep Turning Up The Heat! says he needs to take the starting job back at second base. Ryan Topp of Disciples of Uecker also suggests second base as one of the positions where the Brewers can improve offensively, but he suggests doing so by replacing Weeks with a better platoon partner for Scooter Gennett.

The Brewers are 4-5 in their last nine games but still enter play today with baseball’s best record at 22-11, and remain five games better than the Cardinals in the NL Central. Excitement about a possible playoff run for this team has increased dramatically over the last month, and Jeff Sullivan of FanGraphs has a look at how the Brewers (and Pirates) have dramatically altered their 2014 projections with an unexpected start.

In the minors:

• The affiliates went 1-3 yesterday, and the lone win came from Huntsville, where Tyler Cravy pitched six shutout innings in a 2-0 win over Jackson. Brad Krause of Miller Park Prospects has brief recaps from all of Monday’s action.
• At 20-11, Huntsville has the best record in the Southern League and a three-game lead on Tennessee in the North Division.
• Congratulations are due out this morning to Nashville pitcher Mike Fiers, Huntsville first baseman Nick Ramirez and Brevard County outfielder Michael Reed, who took home their league’s respective Pitcher or Player of the Week awards last week. 
• Reed was also named MLBPipeline.com’s Hitting Prospect of the Week after going 12-for-21 with a pair of home runs and scoring nine runs in six games. Brevard County teammate Tyrone Taylor was an honorable mention.
• Nashville broadcaster Jeff Hem has an interview with Sounds manager Rick Sweet.
• The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers were losers on the field Monday but winners in the team store, where they announced a top-25 finish in merchandise sales among all minor league baseball teams for 2013. They were the only Brewers affiliate to make the list, and one of three teams from the Midwest League.

Back in Milwaukee, if you’re headed out to Miller Park this week, the Brewers have a couple of new menu items for you to try. John Steinmiller and Caitlin Moyer reviewed the Mahi Mahi Tacos at the Double Clutch stand on the Loge Level, and the “Luc’s Ragin Cajun” burger at the AJ Bombers stand on the first base side of the field level.

Elsewhere around the city, be on the lookout this morning for more than 500 helium balloons the Brewers have placed in a variety of Milwaukee locations. As part of the team’s “Spring Madness” promotion, each balloon contains two vouchers for tickets to next week’s Brewers/Pirates series or another prize.

In power rankings:

• ESPN has the Brewers No. 1 again this week.
• FanSided also has the Brewers holding on to the No. 1 spot.
• Jonah Keri of Grantland downgraded them one spot to No. 4.

If you’d like more Brewers coverage today but you’re sick of reading, I have a pair of options for you:

• My weekly appearance on The Talking Cheeseheads with Ben Larson has been archived and can be heard here.
• In addition, I’ll be making my weekly appearance on The Watercooler with Jimmie Kaska on Sports Radio 1400 in Eau Claire later today. Check out the @BrewFrostyMug Twitter feed for updates on when that interview will air.