What we learned: April 9, 2015

Yesterday's Results

Rockies 5, Brewers 4

Things were looking up yesterday for a while. The Brewers got an early 2-0 lead thanks to a two-run home run from Adam Lind. Meanwhile, Wily Peralta was dealing for most of his start. He pitched seven innings, allowing two runs on seven hits. He left with the game tied, and Jonathan Broxton promptly gave the Rockies the lead with a two-run home run from Carlos Gonzalez. However, the Brewers rallied with run-scoring hits from Ryan Braun and Carlos Gomez in the ninth to tie it at 4-4 and send it into extra innings. In the tenth, Francisco Rodriguez came out and gave up a solo home run to Wilin Rosario, and former Brewer John Axford pitched a scoreless tenth to end the game.

Brewers News & Notes

Brewers News

• Ryan Braun remained out of the lineup yesterday with his strained rib cage. He did pinch hit in the ninth inning, and should be back in the lineup on Friday.
• Khris Davis made what one of the best catches of the year in last night's game. Adam McCalvy of Brewers.com has video of the catch, as well as some reactions from the team.
• After two rough starts by starting pitchers in the first two games, Wily Peralta put together a great start to help stabilize the rotation. Adam McCalvy has some quotes from Ron Roenicke, who was happy with the performance that Peralta had on Wednesday night.

Other Notes

• What happened to Matt Garza on Tuesday night? Justin Schultz of The First Out At Third breaks down Garza's start to find the issues he had against the Rockies.
• Yesterday was the 60th anniversary of the start of Bob Uecker's major league baseball career. Uecker reflected on his sixty years in the sport with Adam McCalvy. Meanwhile, Robin Yount also jumped in to reflect on Uecker, recalling his favorite Uecker story.
• Miller Park has some new collectible cups this year, and Cait Covers the Bases has a picture of a couple of them.

Minor League Update

News & Notes

• Marcus Young of Miller Park Prospects has a preview of the Timber Rattlers season.

NL Central Update

• Cubs 2, Cardinals 0
• Reds 5, Pirates 4 (11 innings)

Today's Division Games

• Pirates (AJ Burnett) @ Reds (Anthony DeSclafani) - 11:35 am
• Cardinals and Cubs have the day off.

Around Baseball

Roster News

• The Athletics designated outfielder Alex Hassan for assignment.
• The Cubs signed LHP James Russell to a minor-league contract.
• The Pirates signed third baseman Josh Harrison to a four-year, $27.3 million contract extension, with options for 2019 and 2020.
• The Rays put first baseman James Loney on the 15-day disabled list with a strained right oblique.
• The Tigers placed starting pitcher Justin Verlander on the 15-day disabled list with a strained right tricep, and also placed reliever Joe Nathan on the disabled list with a strained right elbow.
• The Yankees outrighted catcher Austin Romine to Triple-A.

Other Notes

• After the first few games of the season, MLB is already cracking down on the new pace-of-game rules. They have issued ten warning letters for violators of the rules, with fines set to start on May 1.
• Former Brewers prospect Brett Lawrie had a rough day on Tuesday night. He struck out four times, and did it in the most efficient way possible: on a total of 12 pitches. Grant Brisbee of SB Nation has GIFs of each of Lawrie's swings.
• Seth Keichline of TechGraphs has a guide to every baseball movie on Netflix, along with some details about each one.
• Prince Fielder's neck is in good shape. Chris Cwik of Big League Stew has a photo of the first baseman with Rangers second baseman Rougned Odor on his shoulders.
• Forty years ago from yesterday, Frank Robinson made his debut as player-manager for the Cleveland Indians, becoming the first African-American manager in MLB. Anthony Castrovince of MLB.com has a look back at Robinson's debut, along with some quotes from Frank Robinson.
• We finish with some sad news today. Former Brewers pitcher Jose Capellan was found dead yesterday at the age of 34. Kyle Lesniewski of Reviewing the Brew has the full story, along with a look back at Capellan's Brewers career.

Today's Action

The Brewers have the day off today. They return to action tomorrow to start a three-game weekend series against the Pirates.