Brewers drub Cubs 12-5

WP: Wily Peralta (6-9); LP: Jason Hammel (14-8); Save: none; Homeruns - Chi., Anthony Rizzo 2 (28), Miguel Montero (6); Mil., Jonathan Villar (13), Ryan Braun (26)

Milwaukee took out some frustrations on the best team in baseball, knocking the ball all around Miller Park (and out of the park) to the tune of sixteen hits, twelve runs (nine earned), three walks (all of whom scored), two doubles, a triple, and two homers.

Jonathan Villar had a single, triple, homer, two runs, and a steal. Kirk Nieuwenhuis scored three times with a single and two walks. Ryan Braun had a single and homer, scored three, drove in four, and Hernan Perez had four hits and three RBI, also stealing his 29th base of the season. Domingo Santana had three hits and Orlando Arcia had two. Quite the night at the dish for the Crew.

Chicago had two out homers off of Wily Peralta in the top of the first and top of the second. Anthony Rizzo his his 6th homer in 29 at bats off of Wily, and Miguel Montero took one into the bullpen in left center in the second.

In between those two homers, the Brewers put up a five spot in the bottom of the first against Jason Hammel. Villar hit Hammel’s second pitch deep into the left-centerfield seats to tie the game, and Hammel didn’t retire a hitter until eighth place hitter Martin Maldonado’s sacrifice fly drove in the Brewers fifth run. Braun had an RBI hit, and Santana drove in two with a single.

Wily settled down and pitched into the eighth, shutting the Cubs out until a two out double from Ben Zobrist brought up Rizzo in the top of the eighth. Peralta had gotten Rizzo on shallow flyballs to center twice, but this time he cracked his eighth off of Peralta down the rightfield line, nicking the inside of the foul pole, ending Wily’s night with 7.2 innings, six hits, four earned, one walk, and six srikeouts. Jacob Barnes got the final out of the eighth after a walk.

Meanwhile, the Brewers had hits in the second an third but couldn’t build on their lead. In the bottom of the fourth Peralta lined a double into right center, took third when Villar singled on a drag bunt, and scored when Montero’s throw to second on Villar’s steal skipped into center. Villar took third on the error, with nobody out, but the Brewers couldn’t bring him in with strikeouts from Kirk Nieuwenhuis and Ryan Braun, and an infield groundout from Hernan Perez.

Milwaukee put the kibosh on Cub hopes in the bottom of the seventh. With two down, Villar tripled into Yount’s Nook in center, Nieuwenhuis walked on a close 3-2 pitch, and Ryan Braun homered to right for a 9-2 lead. They added a tenth run in the seventh when Santana added his third hit of the game, a ground single to left, stole second (the Brewers’ third of the night), and scored on Orlando Arcia’s single up the middle.

Villar’s chance for the cycle ended in the bottom of the third when he struck out on a 1-2 pitch. A walk to Nieuwenhuis and a throwing error from Chris Coglin, now at third, put runners at second and third. Perez’ fourth hit of the night brought in two more to take the Crew to an even dozen. The Cubs scored the game’s final run on back to back doubles off of Blaine Boyer in the top of the ninth.

The Brewers go for the series win tomorrow, facing Mike Montgomery (4-5, 2.80) for the 89-49 Cubs. Matt Garza (5-6, 4.57) looks to even his record for the Brewers (61-77). Both teams are using a six man rotation in September.