Hey, look at this--we're opening the second half with quite the pitcher's duel.  The 2008 Brewers ace versus the 2009 Brewers ace!  (Maybe.  Kind of.  Please?)

CC Sabathia takes the hill with his Marcel-projected 3.21 ERA while Matt Cain counters with his 3.7 runs of average run support.  Just think how happy he will be in the Milwaukee rotation.

Game time is 9:15 CT, and thankfully it's the only night game of the series.  Here's the BR Game Preview.

Go Brewers!

Thanks to an amazing comeback from the Pirates yesterday, the Brewers stayed within a half game of the wild card lead.  It'd be nicer to stay in it by winning a game now and then.

Today, the ball goes back into CC Sabathia's hand, while the Reds turn to Homer Bailey. 

Game time is 1:05 CT, and here's the BR Game Preview.

Go Brewers!

Edinson Volquez brings some very sparkly full-season numbers into tonight's game, but he is coming off of three decidedly mediocre outings--against the Jays, Pirates, and Nats, no less.  Seth McClung, on the other hand, has given up exactly two runs in five of his last six starts.  The last one of those was even at home!

Game time is 6:05 CT, and here's the BR Game Preview.

Go Brewers!

The only Brewers pitcher on more of a hot streak than Dave Bush, especially at home, is Manny Parra.  Parra is holding opponents to a .646 OPS at Miller Park--basically, he turns the opposition lineup into nine Jason Kendalls on a bad day, only without the grit.  Even more impressive, Parra has a 2.08 ERA in his last seven starts, including three scoreless outings in his last four.

Josh Fogg goes for the Reds, and the same positive things cannot be said about him.

And, oh yeah, don't know if you noticed, but the Brewers are currently leading in the NL Wild Card, with the second best record in the National League.

Game time is 7:05 CT, and here's the BR Game Preview.

Go Brewers!

After last night's debacle, I'm not going to make any remarks about the quality of a certain ex-Brewer pitching for the Rockies.  I'll just note that Jorge de la Rosa is starting for Colorado, and for whatever reason, he's been rejected by both the Brewers (before we were good) and the Royals.  Make of that what you will.

Dave Bush is starting for the Crew.  His 4.74 ERA is now closer to his 2006 number than his 2007 mark, and he's down to a blistering 3.20 in his last seven starts.  He has a 2.87 home ERA, which isn't quite as good as Parra's, but is better than Ben's.  But still, I shall not comment on the likely outcome of this game.

Game time is 1:05 CT, and here's the BR Game Preview.

Go Brewers!

Apparently we're going to have to keep playing games every day.  For some reason I was under the impression that the schedule had been rearranged so that Sabathia would start the rest of the games this season.  Oh well.

This pitching matchup is pretty nifty, too.  Ben Sheets will take the mound against Glendon Rusch, which sounds a little like Maria Sharapova versus Alla Kudryavtseva...or, well, maybe not.  I find it entertaining that the Rockies may still consider themselves "in it" despite a record 15 games under .500 and the presence of Glendon Rusch in the rotation.

Game time is 7:05 CT, and here's the BR Game Preview.  (It has Greg Reynolds listed as starter, but he's in Triple-A.)

Go Brewers!

At 7:05 CT, this guy will take the mound.  Some other team will send some pitcher out, too.

Go Brewers!

We're starting Seth McClung, and they're starting Ubaldo Jimenez.  Most importantly, we have CC Sabathia, and they don't.

Game time is 7:05 CT, and here's the BR Game Preview.

Go Brewers!

Suppan.  Duke.  Win streak.  Go!

Game time is 1:05 CT, and here's the BR Game Preview.

Go Brewers!

With yesterday's win, we crept up to a 89-win pace, at least with rounding.  (It's 88.53, if you're keeping score at home.)  Since the Cubs and Cards are playing this weekend, we were bound to gain ground on somebody; as it stands right now, we're one game out of the wild card, and if the Cubs hold on to an early lead, that could be down to a half-game by the time the first pitch is thrown at Miller Park.

The matchup is Dave Bush vs. Paul Maholm.  At the macro level, that seems to tilt in the Pirates favor--Maholm's ERA is nearly a full run lower than Bush's.  On the other hand, Maholm is a lefty, as as team we OPS about 50 points higher against southpaws.  (For his part, Maholm has an even more dramatic split, and he can expect to see Prince plus a bunch of righties in the lineup tonight.)  Bush, as you probably know, has been considerably better at home, with an ERA of 3.18 at Miller Park.  (Amazingly, that makes his home ERA fourth best among the current starting five.)

Game time is 6:05 CT, and here's the BR Game Preview.

Go Brewers!