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Game Thread #111: Brewers (55-55) at Astros (54-56)


Current Series

3 game series vs Astros @ Minute Maid Park

Fri 08/07 WP: Bud Norris (2 - 0)
SV: Jose Valverde
LP: Carlos Villanueva (2 - 9)
3 - 6 loss
Sat 08/08 WP: Manny Parra (7 - 8)
LP: Mike Hampton (7 - 9)
12 - 5 win

Milwaukee Brewers
@ Houston Astros

Sunday, Aug 9, 2009, 1:05 PM CDT
Minute Maid Park

Yovani Gallardo vs Wandy Rodriguez

Partly cloudy. Winds blowing out to center field at 5-10 m.p.h. Game time temperature around 90.

Complete Coverage >



Today at 1:05 we have easily the best pitching matchup of the series, as Yovani Gallardo takes on Wandy Rodriguez. Can the Brewers inch back above .500 and clinch their first winning road trip since May 24?

Follow the jump for today's pitching matchup and conversation on today's game!

Wandy Rodriguez (10-6, 2.63) is quietly having one of the best seasons by a pitcher in the NL, and is among the top ten in ERA (fifth), wins (tenth) and strikeouts (tenth). He beat Yovani Gallardo and the Brewers on May 20, and had a brief rough patch after that, but has been really good lately: Rodriguez is 5-0 in his last eight starts, and has posted a 1.53 ERA in that time. He's allowed one earned run or less in eight of his last ten starts.

Yovani Gallardo (10-8, 3.59), meanwhile, is hoping to bounce back from his worst start of 2009 last time out. He allowed nine runs on ten hits in just 5.1 innings of work on Tuesday in a game that turned into a 17-4 blowout. If not for this disaster in 2007, it would easily be the worst start of Gallardo's young career. Even with that rough outing, Gallardo is still among the top ten in the NL in wins (tenth), hits per nine (fifth), and strikeouts (third).

Here's today's lineup:

2B Felipe Lopez
CF Mike Cameron
LF Ryan Braun
1B Prince Fielder
3B Casey McGehee
RF Bill Hall
SS JJ Hardy
C Jason Kendall
P Yovani Gallardo

Here's a look at the bullpen status for today:

Claudio Vargas pitched 1.2 innings (23 pitches) last night.
Chris Smith pitched one inning (17 pitches) last night.
Jesus Colome pitched one inning (10 pitches) on Friday.
Mark DiFelice pitched .2 innings (15 pitches) on Friday.
Todd Coffey has not pitched since Thursday.
Trevor Hoffman has not pitched since Thursday.
Mitch Stetter has not pitched since Wednesday.

Enjoy the game!