Wednesday- Brewers Back to Even

Some things to read while eating a hot dog from another decade.

The Brewers got off to a nice start Tuesday night but couldn’t hold on to their undefeated season, losing 5-2 to the Atlanta Braves at Miller Park. Noah Jarosh of Brew Crew Ball has the recap, if you missed it.

Last night’s loss wasn’t entirely Kyle Lohse’s fault, as he held the Braves to three runs on five hits over seven innings with two walks and eight strikeouts. This was only the 14th time in his career and his first time as a Brewer that he’s recorded eight Ks in a game. His season-high was seven in 2013 (h/t @AdamMcCalvy and @Todd_Rosiak). Derek Harvey of Brew Crew Ball has a look at what to expect from Lohse this season.

Last night was Carlos Gomez’s second start in the leadoff spot, and he responded by opening the bottom of the first with a home run. It was the third leadoff homer of his career and his first since May of 2008 (h/t @MikeVassallo13). Gomez went 1-for-2 with two walks, a stolen base, the aforementioned homer and two runs scored, and after the game he talked to Tom Haudricourt about his role at the top of the lineup.

Gomez swung at the first pitch he saw in the first inning, which isn’t something you’d normally want your leadoff hitter doing. In our Tweet of the Day, though, Joe Block shows that Gomez may be making that strategy work for him:

Carlos Gomez swung at first pitch 52.3% last season, by far most often in #MLB.
Had 1.144 OPS when putting it in play on first pitch.

— Joe Block (@joe_block) April 2, 2014

Yesterday turned out to be a big day for Jim Henderson, who got into a game for the first time in 2014. He struck out the only batter he faced while getting the Brewers out of trouble in the eighth inning. @AdamMcCalvy notes that Henderson hit 95 on the radar gun while retiring Justin Upton, implying that whatever issue was hampering his velocity might be behind him. 

Before last night’s game Ron Roenicke, laid out the plan for Henderson, saying he wanted to get him “a couple of outings where the game wasn’t on the line.” Henderson also appeared on WSSP Tuesday morning and discussed the process of getting moved out of the closer role.

Last night, we saw the right-handed side of the Brewers’ platoons on the right side of the infield, as Rickie Weeks and Mark Reynolds started against Braves lefty Alex Wood. They combined to go 1-for-7 with a walk and four strikeouts. Before the game, Ron Roenicke talked to Tom Haudricourt about splitting up time in the infield.

Other notes from the field:

• Jason Heyward’s fifth inning home run snapped a 22-inning scoreless streak for the Braves against the Brewers that dated back to September of 2013. (h/t @AdamMcCalvy)
• Mark Bowman of MLB.com had more on the Braves’ ongoing struggles against the Brewers before last night’s game.
• @TaterTrotTrkr notes that Gomez rounded the bases in 16.18 seconds after his first inning home run.
• Khris Davis went 0-for-4 with a pair of strikeouts last night and is now 0-for-7 on the season. (h/t @JaymesL)
• Before the game Yovani Gallardo was one of over 100 Brewers employees out greeting fans and handing out gifts as the Brewers brought last season’s “Fans First” promotion ahead to 2014.
• The Brewers may have had a rough day yesterday, but Hank the Dog’s was worse.

The Brewers and Braves wrap up their opening series with a matinee at 12:10 p.m. today. A series win will be on the line when Matt Garza makes his Brewers debut against Aaron Harang, and Joe Morgan has the MLB.com preview.

A day later, a fair number of us spent Tuesday continuing to discuss the standing ovation Ryan Braun received on Monday. Grant Brisbee of SB Nation, a longtime Giants fan, says the ovation was the only real possibility on Opening Day. Enrique Bakemeyer of The Brewers Bar has a more cynical take, saying the fans who cheered did so as a statement to those who didn’t. 

In the end, though, I think I’m most inclined to agree with Tim Young of Brewer Rat, who said the following:

“It’s because we’re sick of the negativity. We’re sick of baseball taking a backseat to what Braun is or isn’t saying. We’re ready to move on.”

In the minors:

• I was in attendance for the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers Media Day yesterday, and over at Brew Crew Ball, I have wall-to-wall coverage of the event, including interviews with manager Matt Erickson, 2012 first round pick Clint Coulter, first baseman David Denson, outfielder and 2013 Pioneer League MVP Michael Ratterree, new player/coach Lance Roenicke and projected Opening Day starter Taylor Williams.
• Marcus Young of Miller Park Prospects has a season preview for the Brevard County Manatees.

Today in predictions, projections, previews and power rankings: The least-surprising news of the day comes from Cardinals blog Viva El Birdos, which recently revealed the entries into their 2014 prediction contest. 235 of their 239 entrants are predicting the Cardinals will win the NL Central, while one brave soul picked the Brewers.

If you’d like more Brewers coverage today but you’re sick of reading, I’ve got options for you from both the past and future:

• My Tuesday debut appearance on Talking Cheeseheads with Ben Larson has been archived and can be heard here. 
• Shortly after today’s game, I’ll be joining The Home Stretch with Justin Hull on 95.3 FM WSCO in Appleton as part of his Brewers reaction show. I’ll be live in-studio taking your calls and questions, so listen in and get your voice heard.
• I’ll also be appearing on The Watercooler with Jimmie Kaska on Sports Radio 1400 in Eau Claire around 4:25.

Around baseball:

Blue Jays: Signed 1B/3B Juan Francisco to a minor league deal. 
Cubs: Signed pitcher Joel Pineiro to a minor league deal. 
Dodgers: Placed reliever Brian Wilson on the DL with elbow irritation. 
Mets: Placed reliever Bobby Parnell on the DL with a torn elbow ligament. 
Nationals: Placed closer Wilson Ramos on the DL following hand surgery. 
Rangers: Designated catcher Chris Gimenez for assignment. 
Yankees: Placed infielder Brendan Ryan on the DL with a spinal nerve injury and designated infielder Eduardo Nunez for assignment. 

Meanwhile, the big story of baseball’s first week may be managers learning to use baseball’s new challenge system. Matthew Pouliot of Hardball Talk has a look at how Giants skipper Bruce Bochy used his challenge on a pickoff attempt in the fourth inning last night, then didn’t have one left to use when another questionable call was made later in the inning. The Palm Beach Post has a story on Marlins manager Mike Redmond coming out to argue, waiting to hear from his dugout, informing the umpires that they got the call correct and heading back to his bench. The Brewers have yet to issue a challenge, although Steve Garczynski of Disciples of Uecker thinks that should change.

The Brewers were the only NL Central team in action yesterday, so here are today’s standings and probables:

Today in former Brewers: Jorge De La Rosa’s Opening Day start for the Rockies didn’t go well, as he allowed five runs in just 4.1 innings in a loss against the Marlins. Adding insult to injury, he also had a very visible public dispute with catcher Wilin Rosario on the mound.

And in baseball economics: The Cubs set a new spring training record by drawing 213,815 fans to their new ballpark in Mesa this year. They also held the old record, set at HoHoKam Park in 2009. All told, spring training attendance averaged over 8,000 fans per game this year.

Those fans are paying to see an increasingly-large share of non-U.S.-born players. Craig Calcaterra of Hardball Talk notes that 26.1 percent of all players on Opening Day rosters this season were foreign-born. The list includes 10 of the 25 members of the 2014 Brewers.

Finally, with help from the B-Ref Play Index, we’d like to wish a happy birthday today to:

• 2000-03 Brewer Curtis Leskanic, who turns 46.
• Hall of Famer and 1982-84 Brewer Don Sutton, who turns 69. I covered his birthday in Today In Brewer History at Brew Crew Ball three years ago.

Drink up.

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