Giants 4, Brewers 2: Lohse takes another loss

WP: Chris Heston (11-5)
LP: Kyle Lohse (5-12)
SV: Sergio Romo (2)

HR: Brandon Crawford (15)

Box Score

It was another start for Kyle Lohse, and it went about the same as his last several starts.

The first few innings went reasonably well for Lohse. He allowed two baserunners in the first inning, but got out of the inning with no runs allowed. The second and third went by without a problem, but then things started to fall apart in the fourth inning. Matt Duffy led off with a double, then moved to third on a Buster Posey groundout, followed by a walk to Hunter Pence. Brandon Belt hit a sacrifice fly to put the Giants on the board with a 1-0 lead, and Brandon Crawford followed with a home run to make it 3-0.

Meanwhile, the scoreless streak for the Brewers offense hit 23 innings before they finally broke through. In the sixth inning, Gerardo Parra walked with one out, and Jonathan Lucroy hit a deep double to score Parra from first. Two batters later, Khris Davis hit a single to make it 3-2.

The Giants responded with a run in the seventh on a Gregor Blanco double to push the lead back to 4-2. Lohse faced one more batter before being pulled, allowing a total of four runs on five hits in 6 2/3 innings pitched. He also allowed three walks and a home run, and did not strike out a batter. It was his longest start since May 15, but that was about the only positive to take from the start. In the bullpen, Neal Cotts pitch a clean third of an inning, and Michael Blazek worked around a hit in an inning of work.

On offense, Khris Davis had an RBI on two hits in the game, and Gerardo Parra reached base three times with a hit and two walks. Ryan Braun was a late scratch before the game with lower back tightness, so we will have to see how that will impact his availability.

The Brewers did try to rally in the ninth as Carlos Gomez led off the inning with a single. He attempted to steal second in the next at-bat and was initially called safe, but the Giants asked for a review and the call was overturned. As he left the field, he spiked his helmet in frustration, earning him an ejection from third base umpire Gerry Davis. Craig Counsell went out to argue and earned his first career ejection (Counsell had never been ejected as a player).   It's unlikely that there will be any follow-up to this, but Gomez lingered in the dugout for a bit after the ejection, which may draw attention from the commissioner's office.

The Brewers and Giants will continue their series tomorrow evening. Wily Peralta will return from the disabled list and start for the Brewers, and Matt Cain will start for the Giants. First pitch is at 9:15 pm.