The Brewers are back on the road, opening a four-game series tonight with the St. Louis Cardinals. But it instead went 3-for-14, failing to add on to its first inning run after the first three hitters singled, hitting into a double play with the bases loaded in the fourth and leaving Yadier Molina stranded in the eighth after his leadoff double.
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St. Louis counters with lefty Jaime Garcia (10-11, 4.41), who’s dropped his last three starts, although he pitched well for six innings in a 9-1 setback at Cincinnati on Saturday. What on Earth are the Brewers doing stealing bases when they’re up by seven runs in the seventh inning? He struck out three straight and four of five bridging the second and third innings, and needed just four pitches to get three groundouts in the fifth. “That’s a decision that comes at the end of the season. It was a game you’re hanging on every pitch, for the whole game, really”. Obviously, I want to be a part of that, but I’m not trying to pitch for a chance to pitch in the postseason.
“But that kid, Broxton, he’s so athletic that he was able to go over it”, Maddon said.
“That was big”, Maddon said of the early missed opportunity. “Absolutely, you could do that, no question, if you chose to look at it that way”.
Maddon saw enough on August 27 at Dodger Stadium that he pulled Hammel after only 39 pitches, which led to a meeting in the manager’s office and left the pitcher still seething by the time reporters walked over to his locker.
Chicago Cubs’ Anthony Rizzo (44) gets a hug from bench coach Dave Martinez after his home run during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2016, in Milwaukee.
The reasoning: Milwaukee presents “entirely different” than a Los Angeles lineup stacked with left-handed hitters, making lefty swingmen Travis Wood and Rob Zastryzny less appealing. He had entered with a 2.50 ERA in 14 starts against Milwaukee. Plus, Maddon wanted to rest certain relievers and not burn out his bullpen. Quite the night at the dish for the Crew.
But Hammel had to gut this one out, likely to see what he could show after that horrific first inning.
Take away those three starts with at least nine runs – and that early exit at Dodger Stadium – and Hammel would have a 2.11 ERA that would rank second in the majors behind teammate Kyle Hendricks.
“I didn’t think it was going to go that far, so I kind of had time to coast and get under it and have a good read”, Broxton said. He also was pulled in the third, after just 39 pitches, two starts ago in Los Angeles – after which he had a postgame sit-down with Maddon over the quick hook.
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Garza got the first two outs in the sixth before Rizzo responded with a booming solo shot into the second deck in right to tie it at 1-1. Obviously, it doesn’t sit well, but we’re fortunate to have a very comfortable lead right now. “I got to a good point of the wall where I could jump without hitting it and I just jumped and made a catch”.
