Brewers Clinch Winning Season With 5-3 Win Over Padres

WP: Shaun Marcum (7-4)
LP: Clayton Richard (14-14)
SV: John Axford (34)

HR: Carlos Gomez (19), Rickie Weeks (21), Jonathan Lucroy (12), Clayton Richard (1)

MVP: Shaun Marcum (+.164)
LVP: Corey Hart (-.064)

Box Score, Star of the Game Voting, and Win Expectancy Graph

It may not be the playoffs, but it's more than was expected about a month ago.

Most of the offense tonight came from the home run ball. Three home runs accounted for most of the scoring, with Carlos Gomez, Rickie Weeks, and Jonathan Lucroy all going deep. The offense got a balanced performance as seven of the nine starters recorded hits, with only Corey Hart and Jean Segura going hitless on the day.

Shaun Marcum continued his recent run of good pitching with another quality start. He pitched six innings and allowed two runs on six hits and four walks with two strikeouts. The Brewers would finish with eight strikeouts on the night, increasing their season total to 1,386. They need 18 strikeouts in the last two games to set a new team record for strikeouts in a season.

Jim Henderson allowed a run in the eighth, but Francisco Rodriguez and John Axford combined for two scoreless innings to shut the Padres down and preserve a 5-3 win.

Tomorrow's matchup was originally going to be Wily Peralta vs. Casey Kelly, but both teams decided to shut down those starters for the season. Instead, it will be Tyler Thornburg against Anthony Bass, in a game that may become a battle of the bullpens. First pitch is scheduled for 7:10 PM.