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Brewers starting pitcher: Jimmy Nelson
Pirates starting pitcher: Vance Worley
Winning Pitcher: Jimmy Nelson (1-0)
Losing Pitcher: Vance Worley (0-1)
HR: "Mean" Jean Segura (1)
The word I would choose to describe this game is "cathartic." The Brewers made their fans wait until the fifth game of the season to record their first win and it was a hell of a win.
Jimmy Nelson was on the top of his game and showed by the Brewers refused to part with him in any trade and why they were comfortable trading Yovani Gallardo to open a spot in the rotation. Nelson pitched 7 shutout innings only allowing 2 hits, 2 walks, and a career high 9 strikeouts!
The top of the lineup remained quiet for the Crew in the early going. Carlos Gomez, Jonathan Lucroy, and Ryan Braun all failed to record a base hit until Gomez hit an RBI double in the seventh inning. But as it turns out their bats were not needed. All the batters 4-8 logged hits.
Hector Gomez was making the start for Scooter Gennett as he cooled his jets on the bench. He came up with a big 2-RBI line drive double in the second inning giving the Brewers the 3-0 lead. He'd hit another double later in the game.
In the fourth inning Jean Segura followed up a crisp Khris Davis double with an absolute laser shot of a home run to left field increasing the lead at the time to 5-0.
Carlos Gomez drove in Hector Gomez in the seventh for a 6-0 lead. The duo wrapped a couple of line drive doubles around a Logan Schafer sac bunt.
Will Smith and Jonathan Broxton combined to finish shutout for the Brewers. Combined the 3 Brewers pitchers notched 11 strikeouts. They beat the Pirates by a score of 6-0. The Brewers are now 1-4 on the season as are the Pirates.
Outstanding Offensive Play
Finally I had several instances to choose from, but the easy choice was Jean Segura's 2-run home run in the fourth inning. It was a first pitch bomb that left the park to deep left field breaking the sound barrier on the way. The broadcast reported it was measured at 440 ft.
Outstanding Defensive Play
Nelson got into a bit of jam in the sixth inning. He walked the first two batters prompting a mound visit from Brewers pitching coach Rick Kranitz. The next batter hit a sharp grounder to Aramis Ramirez who blocked the ball, tagged third base, and showed everyone his cannon of an arm still works by securing the double play at first base.
Outstanding Pitching Performance
Jimmy Nelson was awesome tonight. During the winter he spoke about reincorporating a curve ball he learned from Hiram Burgos years ago when they were both at AA. I assumed this was just a variation of a "best shape of his life" story. Pitchers often talk about new pitches and throw them in Spring Training only to abandon them when the season begins. That's not the case here. Nelson used his curve and made the Pirates look silly. If he can consistently throw it well and perhaps utilize his change more often we could be in store for a special season from the Brewers rookie.
Next game:
Sunday April 12th - 1:10 pm CST: Kyle Lohse vs Casey Sadler (Francisco Liriano was supposed to pitch but he's on paternity leave)