What We Learned: Wily Peralta needs a DL stint

Over the course of the extended weekend, the Brewers managed to only record one win in their four games. That win came in Friday's game, when the Brewers put together an 11-0 beatdown of the Braves. However, the one negative from the game was Wily Peralta's early departure with tightness in his side. Initially, it was believed that Peralta would still make his next start. However, that idea was killed yesterday when Peralta was placed on the 15-day DL with an oblique strain that would take 4-6 weeks to heal

The immediate question for now is who will make Wednesday's start for the Brewers. Taylor Jungmann and Tyler Thornburg are the Brewers best options in Colorado Springs, but both would have to pitch on short rest to pitch Wednesday. Tyler Cravy is another option, but he is not on the 40-man roster. However, he would be pitching on regular rest, and the Brewers do have a 40-man roster spot open. The Brewers could also elect to go with a bullpen day since they have an off-day on Thursday, with Michael Blazek pitching a few innings to start. Blazek could then transition to the rotation, though that would take a very effective reliever out of the bullpen. This is further complicated by the fact that the Brewers will soon be down a reliever for a few days pending the results of the appeal of Will Smith's suspension.

With the Brewers non-contenders at this point in the season, this injury doesn't hurt as much as it would in a contending year. That being said, the Brewers don't want to lose Peralta for too long. For now, a new face will be joining the rotation for the month of June.

This Weekend's Results

Brewers 11, Braves 0

The Brewers got a present on Friday when scheduled starter Alex Wood was scratched and the Braves started Eric Stults instead. They got on the board in the first with a two-run home run from Ryan Braun, and then blew the game open with a seven-run fourth inning. The only negative of the game was Wily Peralta's early departure with a side strain, but the bullpen, led by Michael Blazek, combined for five shutout innings to keep the Braves in check.

Braves 3, Brewers 2

Following Friday's game, it appeared as though the Brewers had used up all of their offense for the series in one game. The Brewers did get an early 2-0 lead with single runs in the first and fourth innings, but couldn't tack on any more. Meanwhile, the bullpen kept the Brewers in the game until the eleventh inning, when Jace Peterson would hit a walk-off hit to give the Braves a 3-2 win.

Braves 2, Brewers 1

The struggles of the offense continued into Sunday. Despite a good start from Jimmy Nelson, the offense couldn't figure out Braves starter Mike Foltynewicz and were held to one run in the game. Elian Herrera drove in the Brewers only run on a sacrifice fly.

Giants 8, Brewers 4

Returning home, the Brewers got a lift on offense from Khris Davis and Ryan Braun. Davis hit two solo home runs in the game, though the first was contested when Bruce Bochy argued that Khris Davis didn't touch home plate. Davis also accounted for three of the Brewers four runs. He scored the third on a monster home run from Ryan Braun, measured as the longest home run hit by a right-handed hitter in Miller Park history. However, Kyle Lohse and Jeremy Jeffress blew up in the sixth inning, allowing the Giants to score seven runs. The Brewers couldn't recover from that as the offense was held to five hits total, and only one baserunner in the last four innings combined.

Brewers News & Notes

From BCB

• Prior to yesterday's game, Derek posted a series preview of the Brewers-Giants series.
• The official word on Will Smith's suspension came down Friday afternoon. He received an eight-game suspension for using an illegal substance in a game. He is appealing the decision.
• Rumors on Friday came out that the Braves were interested in catcher Jonathan Lucroy. However, the Brewers responded by saying that Lucroy is unavailable. Noah has more details on the story.
• Over in the FanShots, roguejim linked a video of Ken Rosenthal. Rosenthal notes that the Padres may be interested in Jean Segura or Luis Sardinas, and also that teams are interested in Mike Fiers, but the Brewers aren't motivated to trade him.

Other Notes

• Jonathan Lucroy and Jean Segura are both approaching a return from their injuries. Jon Cooper of MLB.com notes that plans are being made for both to return within the next week.
• Memorial Day is a special day around baseball, but it's especially moving for Jonathan Lucroy. Adam McCalvy of Brewers.com has a story on how Lucroy's work with a veterans program gave him a new appreciation for Memorial Day.
• Before yesterday's start, Kyle Lohse had put together two consecutive great starts, and Nicholas Zettel of Disciples of Uecker analyzed what Kyle Lohse did differently during those starts. He also posted a breakdown of the sixth inning meltdown in Lohse's start yesterday.
• Also on Disciples of Uecker, Nicholas Zettel notes that while the Brewers offense has seen an improvement under Craig Counsell, the pitching staff has gotten worse with Counsell at the helm, and he needs to take some of the blame for their struggles.
• Over on The Brewers Bar, Jess Lemont comes out of her "retirement" to post a video with a take about the Brewers and Will Smith, as well as an illustration with something in one of the Brewers-Braves games that bothered her.
• Also on The Brewers Bar, Enrique Bakemeyer asks if there is too much patriotism at MLB games.

Minor League Update

News & Notes

• Monday's game at Huntsville for the Shuckers was their last scheduled game at Huntsville. They have ten games left on their road trip before the scheduled home opener on June 6.
• Over on Reviewing the Brew, Pete Schwichtenberg belives that Cy Sneed needs to be promoted from Class-A Wisconsin, and notes that Tyrone Taylor is starting to put things together at Biloxi.
• Reviewing the Brew also has farm reports for the Colorado Springs Sky Sox and Biloxi Shuckers.

NL Central Update

Today's Division Games

• Marlins (Jose Urena) @ Pirates (Jeff Locke) - 6:05 pm
• Nationals (Jordan Zimmermann) @ Cubs (Kyle Hendricks) - 6:05 pm
• Rockies (Jorge De La Rosa) @ Reds (Michael Lorenzen) - 6:10 pm
• Diamondbacks (Archie Bradley) @ Cardinals (Jaime Garcia) - 7:15 pm

Around Baseball

• The Brewers had a potential reunion waiting with two other former Brewers in this series against the Giants, but both were removed from the Giants roster prior to this series. The Giants designated Travis Ishikawa for assignment, as well as Casey McGehee.
• For the second time in less than a week, a pitcher was caught with a foreign substance on his arm and suspended. This time, it's Orioles reliever Brian Matusz, who was caught in Saturday's game.

Today's Action

The Brewers will attempt to get back on track in game two of their series against the Giants. Matt Garza will face Madison Bumgarner in tonight's matchup. First pitch is at 7:10 pm.