Some things to read from under a dark cloud.
The Milwaukee Brewers had won four of their last five games before getting cooled off by the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday, as rookie hurler Kyle Hendricks kept them off the board in a 3-0 loss. Noah Jarosh of Brew Crew Ball has the recap, if you missed it.
Wily Peralta was looking for his 15th win of the season Tuesday night and did his part, allowing three runs on seven hits over 6 1/3 innings. Peralta has a 2.06 ERA in his last six outings, and Tuesday night’s game was the first time the Brewers have lost one of his starts in over a month. The Cubs have beaten Peralta three times this season, and the Brewers were shut out in all three of those contests.
Other notes from the field:
- Carlos Gomez was hit on the wrist by a pitch in the third inning and was checked out by the training staff, but remained in the game (h/t @AdamMcCalvy).
- Brewers TV analyst Bill Schroeder missed Tuesday’s game and remains hospitalized with an infection in his right index finger. The infection spread to his hand and arm before he left Monday’s game to go to the hospital.
The Brewers and Cubs will play the third installment in their four-game series at 7:10 p.m., with Kyle Lohse taking on Tsuyoshi Wada. David Adler has the MLB.com preview.
Looking ahead a day further, Mike Fiers is scheduled to start the series finale on Thursday. Fiers was brilliant in his first start of the season on Saturday, and Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says confidence is the difference between Fiers’ previous struggles and his successes in 2014. Noah Jarosh of Brew Crew Ball asks if his performance could create a rotation controversy for the Brewers once Matt Garza is healthy enough to return.
Of course, it won’t be an issue until Garza is ready to start pitching again. On Tuesday Garza told reporters his rib cage strain is improving, but he still won’t be cleared to resume throwing until he’s pain-free.
Gerardo Parra struck out as a pinch hitter in the eighth inning on Tuesday and continues to play sparingly, collecting 19 plate appearances in the Brewers’ 11 games since acquiring him from Arizona. Noah Jarosh of Brew Crew Ball has a good look at his defensive skillset as a player who has excelled at the corners and has a strong arm but has not been routinely asked to play center field.
In the minors:
- The affiliates went 2-4 on Tuesday, with Drew Gagnon pitching seven innings for the victory in Huntsville’s 5-2 win over Tennessee. You can read about all of the day’s action in Around the Horn at Miller Park Prospects.
- Chris Mehring of Rattler Radio has postgame audio, pictures, highlights and updated standings from Wisconsin’s 4-2 loss to Clinton. The Timber Rattlers have a two-game lead for the final wild card spot in the Midwest League Western Division with 20 games to play.
- Brad Krause of Miller Park Prospects also has a photo gallery from Tuesday’s Wisconsin game.
Around baseball:
Blue Jays: Designated pitcher Brad Mills for assignment.
Padres: Placed shortstop Everth Cabrera on the DL with a hamstring strain.
Rockies: Signed pitcher Josh Roenicke to a minor league deal.
Let’s go around the NL Central:
- The Pirates gained a game in the standings with a 4-2 win over the Tigers. Five of Pittsburgh’s nine hits in the game were doubles, and they’ve matched a season-high by reaching nine games above .500.
- The Cardinals couldn’t get any run support for Adam Wainwright, losing 3-0 to the Marlins. Wainwright allowed three runs on seven hits over seven innings.
- The Reds took a 2-0 lead in the first inning but couldn’t hold it, losing 3-2 to the Red Sox. Cincinnati catcher Devin Mesoraco had three hits in the game.
- The Brewers, as you likely know, lost 3-0 to the Cubs.
| Team | W | L | GB | Today | Matchup |
| Brewers | 66 | 54 | — | @ Cubs, 7:05 p.m. | Kyle Lohse vs Tsuyoshi Wada |
| Pirates | 64 | 55 | 1.5 | @ Tigers, 6:08 p.m. | Vance Worley vs Buck Farmer |
| Cardinals | 62 | 56 | 3 | @ Marlins, 6:10 p.m. | Justin Masterson vs Nathan Eovaldi |
| Reds | 60 | 59 | 5.5 | vs Red Sox, 11:35 a.m. | Mike Leake vs Anthony Ranaudo |
| Cubs | 51 | 67 | 14 | vs Brewers, 7:05 p.m. | Tsuyoshi Wada vs Kyle Lohse |
The Brewers have 42 games left to try to hold on to their divisional lead and go nearly wire-to-wire atop the NL Central. Ben Tannenbaum of The Brewers Bar has a comparison of the division contenders’ schedules down the stretch.
Meanwhile, one of the big stories around baseball this week is likely to be the election of the game’s next commissioner. The field has been narrowed to three candidates and the vote will be held in private, but David Pinto of Baseball Musings says MLB is missing an opportunity to televise the event.
Today in former Brewers:
- The Royals are 40-26 since moving Dale Sveum into the role of hitting coach on May 29. Rob Arthur of Just a bit Outside has a look at how Kansas City’s offense has turned around over that time (h/t BBTF).
- Jeff Passan of Yahoo says Jon Lester (not a former Brewer) is having the best free-agent season for a pitcher in more than 15 years. I’m guessing some Brewers fans would like Passan to take a closer look at CC Sabathia.
- 2009 Brewer Corey Patterson, who turns 35.
- La Crosse, Wis. native and UW-Oshkosh alum Jarrod Washburn, who turns 40. Washburn pitched 12 seasons in the majors between 1998-2009 as a member of the Angels and two other teams.
- Alex Fernandez, the Brewers’ first round pick (#24 overall) in the 1988 draft (he didn’t sign), who turns 45.
- 1990 Brewer Dennis Powell, who turns 51.
- Seattle Pilot and 1970 Brewer Fred “Chicken” Stanley, who turns 67 (Today In Brewer History).
- 1961-65 Milwaukee Brave Tony Cloninger, who turns 74.
- 1953 Milwaukee Brave Sid Gordon, who would have turned 97.
- Sharon, Wis. native and Beloit College alum George Perring, who would have turned 130. Perring played five MLB seasons as a member of the Cleveland Naps (Indians) and the Federal League’s Kansas City Packers.
Plunk Everyone notes that Washburn’s 65 career hit batsmen are the most ever for a pitcher born on August 13, and Fernandez (35) and Cloninger (33) are second and third. Also, Patterson’s 31 career HBP are the fourth-most ever for a position player born on this date.
Today is also the 27th anniversary of Brewers pitchers striking out 15 Orioles but losing 5-4 in 1987 anyway, and the 35th anniversary of outfielder Ben Oglivie hitting a pinch-hit, walkoff home run in the Brewers’ 5-4 win over the Royals in 1979. Follow the links for those events’ respective entries in Today In Brewer History at Brew Crew Ball.
Drink up.
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