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Brewers Starting Pitcher: Mike Fiers
Opponent Starting Pitcher: Michael Lorenzen
Winning Pitcher: Mike Fiers
Losing Pitcher: Michael Lorenzen
HR: Gerardo Parra (6), Aramis Ramirez (10), Carlos Gomez (6)
It's not often one can claim a team wasted an inning in which they score 2 runs. But the Brewers did indeed waste their opening inning. Gerardo Parra led off with a home run. Then Jonathan Lucroy and Ryan Braun hit back to back singles. Lucroy was at third and Ryan Braun would go on to steal second base. Adam Lind would drive in a second run on a ground out on which Braun would advance to third.
Next Carlos Gomez grounded sharply to third base. Reds' Todd Frazier faked a throw, Braun went back, then faked running to home in an attempt to keep Frazier from throwing out Gomez. It almost worked. Braun and Frazier both dove for third base. Originally the umpire ruled Braun safe but the Reds asked for a review which ultimately overturned the call. Then Gomez got thrown out stealing second.
Who knows how it would have played out had Aramis Ramirez not been left holding the bat at the plate in the end of the first inning but when he came to the plate in the second inning he was clearly up there with a plan. In short order he put another run on the board for the Brewers with a lead off home run to deep left field.
Parra and Lucroy kept their hot streaks going in the fifth. Parra lined a single and then advanced to second on a bad throw over. Then Lucroy drove one to deep center off the wall. Parra rounded third and slide around a tag at home to give the Brewers their 4th run of the night. Adam Lind would give them their 5th by driving in Lucroy with a liner through the middle of the infield.
The Brewers would score yet again in the sixth inning in grand style. If you didn't see the game you'll get the joke momentarily. I'm hilarious if you didn't know. Parra grounded out. Lucroy walked, Braun singled, and Lind walked to load the bases. Carlos Gomez came to the plate having never hit a grand slam in his career. On the second pitch of the at-bat he notched that particular milestone off his to-do list. He took a fastball way deep to left field giving the Brewers a 9-0 lead!
The Brewers would tack on another run in the eighth inning. Hernan Perez singled on a grounder to third that just died. Then Gerardo Parra walked before Lucroy grounded into a double play. With two outs Ryan Braun shot a fly to center missing a home run by inches. Instead it was an RBI double.
They wouldn't stop there though. In the ninth inning Gomez singled. Segura walked and then Scooter Gennett would get in on the action with a single of his own driving in Gomez. Hernan Perez would single loading the bases for Parra. He'd fly out to center to give the Brewers a 12-0 lead going into the bottom of the ninth inning.
Tyler Cravy would relieve Mike Fiers in the eighth inning and close out the game. He couldn't keep the Reds off the board but the Brewers would win 12-1. They improve their season record to 34-48. Tonight's win makes 6 in a row.
Outstanding Defensive Play
Billy Hamilton is the fastest man alive. That may be hyperbole but he is very likely the fastest man in the major leagues. In the fifth inning with a runner at first and one out Hamilton hit a sharp grounder to Jean Segura. He was fortunate to be close enough to second base when he fielded the ball that he was able to step on second and fire a throw to first. Hamilton's lightning speed was no match for Segura's arm in this instance and instead of beating out a fielder's choice he had grounded into an inning ending double play.
Outstanding Pitching Performance
The Brewers recently made a double transaction to get some fresh arms in their beleaguered bullpen. In that regard they very much needed a strong and deep outing from Mike Fiers. It just so happened that's exactly what he gave them. He went seven innings and held the Reds scoreless. The only time they got a runner to second base was on an error by Fiers when he tried to bare-hand a comebacker only to make a poor throw to first that ended up out of play. He only allowed 3 hits and 2 walks. He did have an uncharacteristically low 2 strike outs, though he did induce a large amount of pop-ups. Fiers has now whittled his ERA to 3.83 and FIP to 3.66 and is very much looking like the mid-rotation pitcher the Brewers thought he was.
Next Game:
Saturday July 4, 6:15 pm CST: Jimmy Nelson vs Josh Smith