Brewers 9, Mets 6: Inching Closer

Win: Brandon Kintzler (2-0)
Loss: Jenrry Mejia (0-1)

HR: Weeks (20), Davis (27)

MVP: Logan Schafer (.274 WPA)
LVP: Shaun Marcum (-.249 WPA)

Fangraphs Win Expectancy Chart

The Brewers are three games back. If the Cardinals lose tonight, Milwaukee will be just two games away from a wildcard spot. 2.5 games. That's it. The Brewers were dead in the water. This has been the storyline for the last however many days and weeks, but it bears repeating every time they inch closer and closer. The Milwaukee Brewers, dead in the water a month ago, can see land in the not-so-distant distance. They are almost there. They can do this. They can win a wild card spot. Three games is nothing. Three games can be made up just that quickly. They only need three games to do it, if everything falls according to plan. The Brewers have seventeen games. If the Brewers play three games better than the Cardinals Milwaukee can win a playoff spot. That is absolutely, incredibly remarkable.

I guess we can pretty much expect Shaun Marcum to allow four runs in less than six innings every start now. That's what he's done in four of his five starts since coming off the DL now. This time he allowed four earned in four innings on seven hits and two walks. Three of those runs came in the fourth inning. Thankfully for Milwaukee, Mets starter Jenrry Mejia was worse.

Mejia gave up five earned runs in just three innings (pitching into the fourth inning) as the Brewers put up a big six run fourth-inning. Milwaukee would score three more and take a 9-4 lead into the ninth inning. That lead wasn't completely safe as John Axford allowed a two-run homer to Ike Davis in the final frame. That would be the only damage New York could inflict, however, and Axford came out safe with a Brewers win.

Rickie Weeks led the way for the Brewers offensively with a two run homer on a 2-4 day. He also drew a walk, scored two runs, and drove in three. Logan Schafer hit a pinch-hit two-run triple and later scored while Travis Ishikawa hit an RBI triple of his own in a pinch-hit appearance. Jean Segura (2-3, two runs) and Ryan Braun (2-4, one RBI) were the only other Brewers with multiple hits.

The Brewers and Mets will face off one more time tomorrow. Wily Peralta will go toe-to-toe with Chris Young with first pitch scheduled for 1:10.