Follow the jump for tonight's pitching matchup, lineup and more!
Dave Bush (4.63 ERA, 5.03 FIP) is making his first start since being lifted early against the Cardinals a week ago with a blister on his right index finger. He was pitching very well in that game, allowing just one run on four hits after six innings, but was lifted after 91 pitches. There's no middle ground for Bush lately: He's either produced a quality start or a disaster start in each of his last six outings, alternating between the two.
Bush is facing the Dodgers for the second time this season: On May 6, he allowed three runs (one earned) on four hits over five innings, picking up a no decision in a 7-3 Brewer loss. Six Dodgers have faced him ten times or more:
Player | PA | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
Ryan Theriot | 36 | .412 | .444 | .471 | .915 |
Ronnie Belliard | 13 | .462 | .462 | .846 | 1.308 |
Andre Ethier | 12 | .300 | .417 | .600 | 1.017 |
Manny Ramirez | 12 | .571 | .750 | 1.143 | 1.893 |
Brad Ausmus | 10 | .333 | .400 | .333 | .733 |
Casey Blake | 10 | .111 | .200 | .111 | .311 |
He'll face off against Ted Lilly (3.23 ERA, 4.23 FIP), who is 4-0 with a 1.29 ERA in four starts since joining the Dodgers. He pitched a two hit, complete game shutout against the Rockies on Thursday, and has a 16 inning scoreless streak going, having kept opponents off the board since the fifth inning of his August 8 start against the Nationals. He set a season high on Thursday with 11 strikeouts.
Lilly doesn't throw very hard (average fastball velocity of 86.4 mph), but he makes the most of what he has. At +1.43 runs per 100, his fastball is his most effective pitch. His slider (21.7% of pitches, +1.32 runs per 100) and change (16.3% of pitches, +0.53 runs per 100) are also above average. Four Brewers have faced him ten times or more:
Player | PA | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
Prince Fielder | 27 | .333 | .370 | .500 | .870 |
Corey Hart | 24 | .261 | .292 | .652 | .944 |
Ryan Braun | 23 | .364 | .391 | .727 | 1.119 |
Rickie Weeks | 20 | .222 | .300 | .556 | .856 |
All four Brewers on that list have taken Lilly deep at least once, and Hart, Braun and Weeks have done it twice.
Via Jordan Schelling, we know that Carlos Gomez is indeed back in the lineup tonight, but Lorenzo Cain is keeping his spot in center field:
Rickie Weeks 2B
Alcides Escobar SS
Ryan Braun LF
Prince Fielder 1B
Casey McGehee 3B
Lorenzo Cain CF
Carlos Gomez RF
Jonathan Lucroy C
Dave Bush P
And in the bullpen:
Todd Coffey pitched 2 innings (28 pitches) Sunday.
Trevor Hoffman pitched 1 inning (9 pitches) Sunday.
Mike McClendon pitched 3 innings (51 pitches) Saturday.
John Axford pitched 1.2 innings (25 pitches) Saturday.
Zach Braddock pitched 1 inning (14 pitches) Saturday.
Kameron Loe pitched .1 innings (13 pitches) Saturday.
Chris Capuano pitched 3.2 innings (40 pitches) Friday.
Enjoy the game!