Brewers Allow Four Home Runs, Lose 11-5 To Cardinals On Opening Day

W: Jaime Garcia (1-0)
L: Yovani Gallardo (0-1)

HR: George Kottaras (1), Yadier Molina (1), Carlos Beltran (1), Matt Holliday (1), David Freese (1)

MVP: Carlos Gomez (+.102)
LVP: Yovani Gallardo (-.450)

Win Expectancy Graph and Star of the Game Voting

I'd say there's a strong chance Yovani Gallardo already has his worst outing of 2012 out of the way.

Gallardo was given a 2-0 lead early, but it didn't last as he allowed a solo home run to Yadier Molina in the second and home runs to three different Cardinals in the third. All told he pitched just 3.2 innings today, allowed six runs on seven hits and five walks, and struck out just three. Only 45 of the 89 pitches he threw today were strikes.

The Brewers picked up their first runs of the season on a Carlos Gomez RBI triple and an Aramis Ramirez RBI groundout in the first. Corey Hart was on base three times today with two walks and a double, and hopefully that's a sign that his abbreviated spring and/or surgically repaired knee won't be an issue. The final three runs scored on George Kottaras' pinch hit homer in the ninth.

Five players made their Brewer debuts today:

• Aramis Ramirez went 0-for-4 but drove in the aforementioned run with a groundout.
• Alex Gonzalez went 0-for-4 with a strikeout and grounded into a double play.
• Norichika Aoki pinch hit for Marco Estrada in the fifth and struck out in his only plate appearance.
• Cesar Izturis (inexplicably) was used as a pinch hitter in the seventh, but (thankfully) was removed in place of Nyjer Morgan when the Cardinals changed pitchers.
• Travis Ishikawa entered the game as a defensive replacement for Corey Hart in the top of the ninth, playing right field.

Former Brewer farmhand Erik Komatsu also made his major league debut as a Cardinal in the ninth, legging out an infield single.

Manny Parra wasn't debuting today, but he did pitch the sixth and seventh innings in his first appearance at Miller Park since September of 2010. He allowed two runs on five hits.

46,086 fans paid to see today's game, the second highest single game attendance in franchise history. Only a September 2003 game against the Cubs drew more. That's 68 more fans than paid to see Opening Day last season.

The Brewers will get a chance to even the score tomorrow when Zack Greinke takes the mound against Adam Wainwright at 3:05.