Box Score
At least this loss was not as embarrassing. Other than that all I can really is that the Brewers are still in first place, currently on pace to finish the season 88-74, and will be finished with the AL East for the rest of the season after tomorrow.
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Game Eighty: Yankees 12, Brewers 2
Box Score
Well then. So much for my optimism.
The Red Sox and Yankees are better than the Brewers. I find it hard to believe that they are this much better than the Brewers, but after tonight's game I am not sure sure. As exhibit A I present you with the collective starting line for Marcum, Gallardo, and Greinke against the Red Sox and Yankees:
6.0 IP, 18 Hits, 14 ER, 21.00 ERA
There is not way the Brewers are that much worse, yet the evidence suggests otherwise. I do not want to put much more thought into the matter because I do not like feeling bad.
All that I can say about tonight's game is that the early 7-0 deficit allowed me to turn my attention to other things and liberate me from any baseball anxiety. Other than that: I just hope the rest of the series is not this bad.
Well then. So much for my optimism.
The Red Sox and Yankees are better than the Brewers. I find it hard to believe that they are this much better than the Brewers, but after tonight's game I am not sure sure. As exhibit A I present you with the collective starting line for Marcum, Gallardo, and Greinke against the Red Sox and Yankees:
6.0 IP, 18 Hits, 14 ER, 21.00 ERA
There is not way the Brewers are that much worse, yet the evidence suggests otherwise. I do not want to put much more thought into the matter because I do not like feeling bad.
All that I can say about tonight's game is that the early 7-0 deficit allowed me to turn my attention to other things and liberate me from any baseball anxiety. Other than that: I just hope the rest of the series is not this bad.
Game Thirty Six: Padres 13, Brewers 6
Box Score
Considering that I have a job, closely following day games is not always possible. Today I only had two opportunities to check the score of the game. This is what I saw:
SDP 5, MIL 6 TOP 7
This was followed by:
SDP 13, MIL 6 F
I did not expect a likely Brewers victory to turn into a blowout loss, especially considering the Padres have an awful offense. What to make of the game, then? In my humble opinion, not too much. What happened today is what I like to call a 'Mulholland Drive' game. Much like the film, today's game looked like it was heading somewhere and then took a turn that did not make any rational sense.
A team that's hitting .219 on the season with a collective .298 OBP is not a strong candidate for an 8-run inning, but that didn't stop it from happening. I could try to analyze what happened in the game and I could try to make sense of what is going on in David Lynch's head. I could, but that wouldn't get me anywhere. Instead I'll just restate the gist of the game: The Brewers were down, then up, then down again. The had a chance to sweep the Padres but the bullpen imploded and they had to settle for the series win. Putting any more thought into this game is like trying to figure out why there was a mutant baby in Eraserhead. It's better to just accept that the baby is there and leave it at that.
Considering that I have a job, closely following day games is not always possible. Today I only had two opportunities to check the score of the game. This is what I saw:
SDP 5, MIL 6 TOP 7
This was followed by:
SDP 13, MIL 6 F
I did not expect a likely Brewers victory to turn into a blowout loss, especially considering the Padres have an awful offense. What to make of the game, then? In my humble opinion, not too much. What happened today is what I like to call a 'Mulholland Drive' game. Much like the film, today's game looked like it was heading somewhere and then took a turn that did not make any rational sense.
A team that's hitting .219 on the season with a collective .298 OBP is not a strong candidate for an 8-run inning, but that didn't stop it from happening. I could try to analyze what happened in the game and I could try to make sense of what is going on in David Lynch's head. I could, but that wouldn't get me anywhere. Instead I'll just restate the gist of the game: The Brewers were down, then up, then down again. The had a chance to sweep the Padres but the bullpen imploded and they had to settle for the series win. Putting any more thought into this game is like trying to figure out why there was a mutant baby in Eraserhead. It's better to just accept that the baby is there and leave it at that.
Monday, June 27, 2011
Game Seventy Nine: Brewers 6, Twins 2
Box Score
What a delightful weekend of baseball. The enjoyment of the Brewers' sweep of the Twins was enhanced by the Cardinals getting swept by the Blue Jays, allowing the Crew to build a 3.0 game lead in the division. To top it off we had an off-day to bask in the glory of the success of the Brewers.
Next up: A series in the Bronx versus the Yankees. For some reason I have a better feeling about this series than the one at Fenway Park. Considering the Yankees lead the Red Sox in the division, have an offense that is almost exactly as powerful as the Red Sox, and a better pitching staff to boot, I should expect this to be a "Thank you sir, may I have another?" type of series. Instead I believe the Crew can take two of three. I will attempt to justify this feeling with the following reasons:
1) The Brewers should be able to score a lot of runs at Yankee Stadium. While the same goes for the Yankees, I'm inclined to believe that you're better off at an extreme hitters park than a place like Petco Park in San Diego. My thinking is that it's better to be able to come back from down 5-0 than having an 2-0 deficit be insurmountable. This may not be based in reality, but sports-related "feelings" don't have to be. Besides, if the Brewers have big comeback in the series I'll be able to point to this post and look like a genius.
2) The Brewers have Greinke and Marcum pitching in the first two games, respectively. Greinke has been a wild card this season and Marcum did not exactly dominate the Red Sox, but they're two pitchers that can shut down anybody...just like Braden Looper and Jeff Suppan.
3) The final game of the series is a day game while I'm at work. The Brewers are due to win under those "conditions." Like I said, these points don't have to make sense.
All of that said, I expect the Brewers to take one of three but show more friskiness than they did against the Red Sox. Let's see if I'm right.
What a delightful weekend of baseball. The enjoyment of the Brewers' sweep of the Twins was enhanced by the Cardinals getting swept by the Blue Jays, allowing the Crew to build a 3.0 game lead in the division. To top it off we had an off-day to bask in the glory of the success of the Brewers.
Next up: A series in the Bronx versus the Yankees. For some reason I have a better feeling about this series than the one at Fenway Park. Considering the Yankees lead the Red Sox in the division, have an offense that is almost exactly as powerful as the Red Sox, and a better pitching staff to boot, I should expect this to be a "Thank you sir, may I have another?" type of series. Instead I believe the Crew can take two of three. I will attempt to justify this feeling with the following reasons:
1) The Brewers should be able to score a lot of runs at Yankee Stadium. While the same goes for the Yankees, I'm inclined to believe that you're better off at an extreme hitters park than a place like Petco Park in San Diego. My thinking is that it's better to be able to come back from down 5-0 than having an 2-0 deficit be insurmountable. This may not be based in reality, but sports-related "feelings" don't have to be. Besides, if the Brewers have big comeback in the series I'll be able to point to this post and look like a genius.
2) The Brewers have Greinke and Marcum pitching in the first two games, respectively. Greinke has been a wild card this season and Marcum did not exactly dominate the Red Sox, but they're two pitchers that can shut down anybody...just like Braden Looper and Jeff Suppan.
3) The final game of the series is a day game while I'm at work. The Brewers are due to win under those "conditions." Like I said, these points don't have to make sense.
All of that said, I expect the Brewers to take one of three but show more friskiness than they did against the Red Sox. Let's see if I'm right.
Saturday, June 25, 2011
Game Seventy Eight: Brewers 11, Twins 1
Box Score
I wanted to start this post by saying "The Brewers really needed a win like that." I decided against that because, really, when couldn't you use an 11-1 victory?
There is not much to say about this game. The Brewers got a good outing from Gallardo and got a lot of hits, including four home runs and an inside-the-park homer from Yuni Betancourt of all people. To make matters better, the Crew extended their lead in the Central to 2.0 games after the Pujols-less Cardinals lost yet again.
I am optimistic that what we saw from the Brewers over the past two weeks was a mild slump that, given how good the Brewers are, was as bad as we'll see for the rest of the season. I expect this optimism to last until the Brewers go on a two-game losing streak, at which point I will start wondering if they'll ever win again.
I wanted to start this post by saying "The Brewers really needed a win like that." I decided against that because, really, when couldn't you use an 11-1 victory?
There is not much to say about this game. The Brewers got a good outing from Gallardo and got a lot of hits, including four home runs and an inside-the-park homer from Yuni Betancourt of all people. To make matters better, the Crew extended their lead in the Central to 2.0 games after the Pujols-less Cardinals lost yet again.
I am optimistic that what we saw from the Brewers over the past two weeks was a mild slump that, given how good the Brewers are, was as bad as we'll see for the rest of the season. I expect this optimism to last until the Brewers go on a two-game losing streak, at which point I will start wondering if they'll ever win again.
Game Seventy Seven: Brewers 4, Twins 3
Box Score
For the past couple of seasons I began to wonder if I had developed some sort of extra-sensory perception with the Brewers. There have been many instances where I just "knew" something would happen and wouldn't you know it: it did. Tonight's game was a perfect example of this, except the opposite.
After Randy Wolf surrendered a go-ahead, 3-run homer in the top of the 6th I knew beyond any doubt that the Brewers were going to lose. That's just what was going to happen. I had a post constructed in my head and was simply waiting for the conclusion of the inevitable to write it. Then, somehow, in the bottom of the 7th with 2-one and two out, Prince Fielder ripped a double to right field that gave the Brewers the lead for good.
In case you were wondering, I will be starting a 1-800 number and airing late-night infomercials in the near future.
Inaccurate premonitions aside, this was an important victory for the Crew. They have been teetering on the bring of a prolonged slump and you don't need to be Miss Cleo to know that losing the opener to the Twins would not be a good sign of things to come. Furthermore, the Brewers really need to gain some ground on the Cardinals while Pujols is out. Also: it's just fun beating teams from Minnesota.
For the past couple of seasons I began to wonder if I had developed some sort of extra-sensory perception with the Brewers. There have been many instances where I just "knew" something would happen and wouldn't you know it: it did. Tonight's game was a perfect example of this, except the opposite.
After Randy Wolf surrendered a go-ahead, 3-run homer in the top of the 6th I knew beyond any doubt that the Brewers were going to lose. That's just what was going to happen. I had a post constructed in my head and was simply waiting for the conclusion of the inevitable to write it. Then, somehow, in the bottom of the 7th with 2-one and two out, Prince Fielder ripped a double to right field that gave the Brewers the lead for good.
In case you were wondering, I will be starting a 1-800 number and airing late-night infomercials in the near future.
Inaccurate premonitions aside, this was an important victory for the Crew. They have been teetering on the bring of a prolonged slump and you don't need to be Miss Cleo to know that losing the opener to the Twins would not be a good sign of things to come. Furthermore, the Brewers really need to gain some ground on the Cardinals while Pujols is out. Also: it's just fun beating teams from Minnesota.
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Game Seventy Six: Rays 6, Brewers 3
Box Score
Much like how baseball players need to take a day off every now and then, I decided to take a quick break from the blog. Regarding the rubber match of the Rays series, all I will say is that the Brewers are now 2-6 in days games played while I am at work. This is a trend that must change.
Actually, I do have one more point to make. Ron Roenicke has come under fire for some of the decisions he made in this loss, particularity pinch hitting Kotsay instead of Kottaras in the bottom of the 9th. On paper this is the wrong call and all things considered it was probably, in fact, the wrong call. The problem with evaluating these managerial decisions, however, is that we do not know what all the things are to consider.
I believe the most important role of a major league manager is to keep 25 massive egos focused on a singular goal. This entails, I think, dealing more with people than tactical decisions. If the Brewers like Roenicke, play hard for Roenicke, and want to win for Roenicke, then I can live with him being a poor tactician...even if it can be frustrating at times.
Much like how baseball players need to take a day off every now and then, I decided to take a quick break from the blog. Regarding the rubber match of the Rays series, all I will say is that the Brewers are now 2-6 in days games played while I am at work. This is a trend that must change.
Actually, I do have one more point to make. Ron Roenicke has come under fire for some of the decisions he made in this loss, particularity pinch hitting Kotsay instead of Kottaras in the bottom of the 9th. On paper this is the wrong call and all things considered it was probably, in fact, the wrong call. The problem with evaluating these managerial decisions, however, is that we do not know what all the things are to consider.
I believe the most important role of a major league manager is to keep 25 massive egos focused on a singular goal. This entails, I think, dealing more with people than tactical decisions. If the Brewers like Roenicke, play hard for Roenicke, and want to win for Roenicke, then I can live with him being a poor tactician...even if it can be frustrating at times.
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