Brewers Drop To 5-10 On Road With 6-2 Loss To Braves

by Kyle Lobner on May 2, 2011 8:48 PM CDT in WPA Game Recaps

W: Jair Jurrjens (3-0)
L: Yovani Gallardo (2-2)

MVP: Yuniesky Betancourt (+.254)
LVP: Yovani Gallardo (-.383)

Through five innings, things actually looked pretty good tonight.

Over the first five frames Yovani Gallardo had held the Braves to a run on six hits and two walks, tying a season high by striking out seven. Unfortunately, in the sixth the wheels came off. The Brewers' Opening Day starter allowed all five batters he faced in the inning to reach on two walks and three hits, and four of them came around to score as the Braves took the lead and blew the game open.

Meanwhile, the Brewers were only able to muster two runs against Jair Jurrjens, who pitched into the eighth and allowed just seven baserunners (all on hits). The best Brewer performance of the night came from Yuniesky Betancourt, who went 2-for-3 with a triple and drove in both Brewer runs.

Wil Nieves started at catcher and went 0-for-4 at the plate with three groundouts to second and a strikeout. Since picking up two hits on Opening Day he's gone 3-for-25 with three walks (one intentional). The Brewers are now averaging 3.3 runs per game when he starts, and 4.6 when he doesn't.

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Comments

The natives are definitely restless.

I don’t like seeing what the lack of performance is doing to us. Our happy few is under pressure for something to cheer about and we’re biting at each other. Not that the team is terrible, and it’s still early, but our expectations were much higher than this.

by nullacct on May 2, 2011 8:53 PM CDT reply actions

I sense the need for another photoshop fanpost to ignite our weary spirits.

Applying pop culture to Brewers discussions since 2009, earning the nickname of "Our Little Abed".

by Yar Nivek on May 2, 2011 8:56 PM CDT up reply actions

As long as the team doesn't emotionally melt down as quickly as we do

I think we should be OK.

by Cheeseandcorn on May 2, 2011 9:03 PM CDT up reply actions 1 recs

I actually think this team is a lot better

than they were in 2007 when they had that hot start even before they took Yo and Braun out of the major leagues. Their record doesn’t indicate how good they really are. Braun and Fielder are smoking, Weeks may have. His best year ever and overall, the starting pitching (other than Yo exempting one game) has been very good. And Greinke hasn’t arrived yet. The bullpen’s been good for the most part too. I know some of you hate analogies to other sports but I gotta say this. The packers were very good last season but their record at the time didn’t seem good because they lost a lot of close games. Remember, the Brewers begin with a tough schedule, it’s early, and we have Greinke, Hart (when he’s warmed up), and Tony Plush to look forward to. Yo will figure this out. He’s too talented. And the first 5 innings weren’t bad.

by gffjenks on May 2, 2011 11:26 PM CDT via mobile up reply actions

Gallardo has been officially benched

On my fantasy roster.

don't forget to brush your teeth.

by Drew C on May 2, 2011 8:55 PM CDT via mobile reply actions

Pure insanity

by bluejazz04 on May 2, 2011 9:09 PM CDT up reply actions

Mock

Pujols is the Barack Obama of baseball.

by sjlee on May 2, 2011 9:09 PM CDT up reply actions

Tough to win when your 2, 5, 6, and 8 spots have become automatic outs, particularly the first 3 of those

Doesn’t help that our supposed “de facto” ace has been struggling mightily

Grillax people

by jmeks23 on May 2, 2011 9:05 PM CDT reply actions

Aren't you being a little hard on McGehee and Hart

by lumping them in with Gomez and Nieves?

Pujols is the Barack Obama of baseball.

by sjlee on May 2, 2011 9:11 PM CDT up reply actions

Haha very true, but you have to admit McGehee has looked bad and Hart is still getting back to game shape

Grillax people

by jmeks23 on May 2, 2011 9:12 PM CDT up reply actions

McGehee doesn't look comfortable up there

Probably thinking about things too much and trying to make adjustments on the fly.

Hart seems to be tentative at the plate. Not sure if it’s because he doesn’t want to swing too hard until he’s certain that his oblique is strong enough or if he just needs time to adjust to MLB pitching. I don’t think he’s had many hard hits since he’s been back… his hits have all been bloop or ground ball singles.

Pujols is the Barack Obama of baseball.

by sjlee on May 2, 2011 9:22 PM CDT up reply actions

He did hit a decent line drive in his first at-bat tonight

Could have been a single or double if it hadn’t been right at the centerfielder.

by Cheeseandcorn on May 2, 2011 9:31 PM CDT up reply actions

Why is Nieves on the team? Am I the only one that would prefer Kottaras?

For your health!

by menchkins on May 2, 2011 9:14 PM CDT reply actions

DM

thought that Nieves would be claimed off waivers.

And, no, you aren’t the only one.

Pujols is the Barack Obama of baseball.

by sjlee on May 2, 2011 9:29 PM CDT up reply actions

he caught one guy stealing

and gallardo showed signs of struggling that inning. He may have saved a run or more.

by PagsBrewCrew on May 2, 2011 9:49 PM CDT up reply actions

He can't hit

But his arm is better than either Kottaras or Lucroy. He’s also better at keeping the ball in front of him when it hits the dirt than either Kottaras or Lucroy. I can’t sure if he’s a better catcher though because I can’t really tell how good he is at calling games.

by gffjenks on May 2, 2011 11:14 PM CDT via mobile up reply actions

For the record

Lucroy (minors + majors) = 237 SB vs. 154 CS = 39 CS%
Lucroy (majors) = 50 SB vs. 19 CS = 28 CS%

Nieves (minors + majors) = 828 SB vs. 374 CS = 31 CS%
Nieves (majors) = 140 SB vs. 45 CS = 24 CS%

Ryan Braun: He loves it. -- Four pitchers in history with 8.5+ WAR and <250 IP seasons: Greg Maddux (age 29), Pedro Martinez (age 28), Roger Clemens (age 27), Zack Greinke (age 25).

by SRB on May 2, 2011 11:24 PM CDT up reply actions

Also, Lucroy (majors) = 1 PB/86 GS, Nieves (majors) = 12 PB/203 GS

Ryan Braun: He loves it. -- Four pitchers in history with 8.5+ WAR and <250 IP seasons: Greg Maddux (age 29), Pedro Martinez (age 28), Roger Clemens (age 27), Zack Greinke (age 25).

by SRB on May 2, 2011 11:27 PM CDT up reply actions

See that's why I need this blog

You guys know way more than I ever will from mlb.com and fsn wi. I learn things.

by gffjenks on May 2, 2011 11:37 PM CDT via mobile up reply actions 1 recs

Unlike fsn wi and mlb.com

People normally think first before they comment here, because they’ll likely be asked to back it up

Lurking in the waters of BCB since May 21, 2010

by schmita91 on May 2, 2011 11:49 PM CDT up reply actions

prove it

Applying pop culture to Brewers discussions since 2009, earning the nickname of "Our Little Abed".

by Yar Nivek on May 3, 2011 12:02 AM CDT up reply actions 2 recs

source please

"If we want to sign a Type A free agent, we would lose a second-round pick, but we don't have a way to get picks back. Our whole Draft process needs to be redone."

~Doug Melvin

by Charlie Marlow on May 3, 2011 12:14 AM CDT up reply actions

http://brownsharpie.courtneygibbons.org/wp-content/comics/2007-01-26-prove-it.jpg

Applying pop culture to Brewers discussions since 2009, earning the nickname of "Our Little Abed".

by Yar Nivek on May 3, 2011 12:29 AM CDT up reply actions

If the Brewers wanted a bat at catcher

they would’ve kept Kottaras. RR knew what he was getting into when he chose to keep Nieves on the roster. He’d rather have a catcher that can keep balls in the dirt in front of him than one that can actually contribute to the team’s chances of winning. Whatever.

I’m getting a bit fed up with Yovani Bush at this point. I know he’s not trying to be a bad pitcher, but there’s no denying Yo has been a bad pitcher as of late. Maybe KL is right about the fatigue in the 6th inning, but Gameday simply shows him trying to catch corners and missing rather than consistently keeping the ball up in the zone (the typical indicator of fatigue). Yo started 4 of the 5 hitters he faced in the 6th with a ball and the 5th hitter simply swung at the first pitch he saw (a curve that stayed up in the zone). He was throwing first strikes in the 1st, 2nd, 4th and 5th innings and got good results out of those innings. It’s not a coincidence.

It seems like Yo is having substantial trouble coming from behind in the count and he’s finding himself behind in the count far too often. He’s using his slider more than last year when he was throwing well; hitters are not missing it this year. A 7.9% whiff rate on his slider is not good. When he comes into the zone, hitters are making contact at an extremely high rate, but that’s probably because a lot of those are coming from 2-0 fastballs that have to be in the zone.

One hopes Gallardo can figure this out. Until he keeps ahead of hitters and/or starts getting whiffs again, he’s going to be a serious liability on the mound.

by ecocd on May 2, 2011 9:14 PM CDT reply actions

Hey that's what it seemed like to me

I’m not saying that’s a good decision. The brewers desperately need offense. That may be just one factor. And my evidence is anecdotal. Nieves just seems to have a really strong arm to me. Kottaras may be better at calling games. And I may have seen him screw up more than Nieves because I’ve seen him play more games. But really the brewers need more offense from: mcgehee, hart, and gomez (replace with morgan). It’s hard to rely on a catcher for offense. Except for maybe Mauer, catchers who can hit switch to other positions or DH so they can play more. That’s what’s happening to Bryce Harper.

by gffjenks on May 2, 2011 11:36 PM CDT via mobile up reply actions

"Except for maybe Mauer, catchers who can hit switch to other positions or DH so they can play more"

you’re describing catchers who can no longer catch. If they can hit and catch, they’ll be a catcher.

look at BJ Surhoff. Early in his career he was mostly a catcher. Then he was mostly at 3B, presumably because his knees could no longer take it. Finally he moved to the outfield, because he was aging.

by PagsBrewCrew on May 3, 2011 6:05 AM CDT up reply actions

No Roenicke press conference tonight.

FS Wisconsin is citing technical difficulties.

Now that's great tasting chicken!

by Kyle Lobner on May 2, 2011 9:14 PM CDT reply actions

That happens when the manager takes a baseball bat to the first camera he sees

by ecocd on May 2, 2011 9:16 PM CDT up reply actions 3 recs

Hopefully warmer weather will help YoGa

For your health!

by menchkins on May 2, 2011 9:17 PM CDT reply actions

lulz tied with the cubs in the L column

by Flag Up on May 2, 2011 9:23 PM CDT reply actions

It's 28 games into the season and we're tied with the...

Pirates?!

Ryan Braun: He loves it. -- Four pitchers in history with 8.5+ WAR and <250 IP seasons: Greg Maddux (age 29), Pedro Martinez (age 28), Roger Clemens (age 27), Zack Greinke (age 25).

by SRB on May 2, 2011 9:39 PM CDT up reply actions

Cardinals lose

Applying pop culture to Brewers discussions since 2009, earning the nickname of "Our Little Abed".

by Yar Nivek on May 2, 2011 10:12 PM CDT reply actions 1 recs

Thank you Marlins

I thought that dropped foul ball by Sanchez was going to hand the Cards the game.

by Brew Angel on May 2, 2011 10:15 PM CDT up reply actions

An almost identical play sure did the Braves a favor tonight

But yeah, somehow we haven’t lost ground on the Cardinals in the last two days. Thank God for the NL Central.

by Cheeseandcorn on May 2, 2011 10:53 PM CDT up reply actions

Did the team announce who they're trading Gamel for yet?

Ryan Braun: He loves it. -- Four pitchers in history with 8.5+ WAR and <250 IP seasons: Greg Maddux (age 29), Pedro Martinez (age 28), Roger Clemens (age 27), Zack Greinke (age 25).

by SRB on May 2, 2011 10:47 PM CDT reply actions

9 LaPortas

Applying pop culture to Brewers discussions since 2009, earning the nickname of "Our Little Abed".

by Yar Nivek on May 2, 2011 11:35 PM CDT up reply actions

Sounds good to me

C – LaPorta
1B – Fielder
2B – Weeks
SS – LaPorta
3B – LaPorta
LF – Braun
CF – LaPorta
RF – LaPorta

SP – Greinke
SP – LaPorta
SP – LaPorta
SP – LaPorta
SP – LaPorta

Ryan Braun: He loves it. -- Four pitchers in history with 8.5+ WAR and <250 IP seasons: Greg Maddux (age 29), Pedro Martinez (age 28), Roger Clemens (age 27), Zack Greinke (age 25).

by SRB on May 2, 2011 11:47 PM CDT up reply actions

I think we could use some LaPorta's in the bullpen.

Just in case Greinke doesn’t throw a complete game.

Applying pop culture to Brewers discussions since 2009, earning the nickname of "Our Little Abed".

by Yar Nivek on May 3, 2011 12:04 AM CDT up reply actions

Not sure that'd be an even return for 1 Gamel

10 LaPortas is probably over the top.

"If we want to sign a Type A free agent, we would lose a second-round pick, but we don't have a way to get picks back. Our whole Draft process needs to be redone."

~Doug Melvin

by Charlie Marlow on May 3, 2011 12:15 AM CDT up reply actions

We can move one of the starters to the pen. Let Marcum start as well.

Applying pop culture to Brewers discussions since 2009, earning the nickname of "Our Little Abed".

by Yar Nivek on May 3, 2011 12:27 AM CDT up reply actions

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Cincinnati Red Reporter	26	20	.565	0	Won 1
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