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Zach Davies apparently decided to work on a mechanical adjustment to his delivery today and, well, things didn’t go well. The first batter of the game, Joc Pederson, went deep to make it 1-0. Justin Turner walked, then after a pair of Davies’ strikeouts, Kike Hernandez took a walk with two outs and brought Chris Taylor to the plate. He clubbed a 1-1 pitch over the fence in left to give the Dodgers a 4-0 lead.
Davies allowed a single run in the second on an RBI double by Cody Bellinger, and another in the third inning on a run-scoring single by Russell Martin. His pitch count soaring, Zach’s day ended after only 2.2 innings with a line of 7 hits, 6 earned runs, three walks, two punchouts, and two homers allowed. His ERA now sits at 7.88 in Cactus League play.
Zach Davies blunt in his assessment of today's performance. "It was a waste," he said.
— Todd Rosiak (@Todd_Rosiak) March 17, 2019
He said tried making a small mechanical change to his delivery today, but obviously it didn't work.
"That's a mistake on my part. It's probably not a time in camp to be doing it."
For what it’s worth, the 26 year old has two minor league options remaining.
So the Brewers found themselves in a pretty significant hole early, but the offense found a way to battle back. An RBI single by Jesus Aguilar plated Milwaukee’s first run in the third inning. Two frames later in the fifth, RBI base hits by Christian Yelich and Travis Shaw scored Milwaukee’s second and third runs. Tuffy Gosewich added two more runs with a double in the seventh, scoring Nate Orf and Lucas Erceg. Then the dam broke in the eighth inning as the good guys from Maryvale put up a crooked number to take control of the contest.
Things got started with a Devin Hairston single with one out. Mario Feliciano followed with a walk, and so did Nate Orf to load the bases, and so did Corey Ray, to force home a run. Lucas Erceg hit a fly ball to right for the second out, bringing top prospect Keston Hiura to the dish. The Cactus League legend continued to build his impressive spring resume by doubling home all three runs to bring the Brewers’ total up to 9. His OPS is up to .921 and he now boasts 13 RBI in the preseason.
Tristan Archer rode the bus today and cleaned up after Davies, pitching 1.1 scoreless innings as a bridge to Corey Knebel, who tossed a scoreless frame of his own. Jake Petricka’s quest to make the Opening Day roster took a minor hit with a run allowed in the sixth on two base knocks and a walk, though his ERA still stands at a solid 3.00. Jay Jackson earns the winning decision in today’s game by striking out the side during a scoreless seventh inning, and then little lefty Clayton Andrews earned himself yet another spring appearance. He threw a clean eighth inning but ran into trouble in the ninth, coughing up three hits and a run before getting relieved by Cody Beckman with two outs. Beckman retired Daniel Castro for the final out to earn the save.
The win moves Milwaukee to 13-11 in Cactus League play, while Los Angeles falls to 12-9. The Brewers will enjoy their final off day of the spring schedule tomorrow before resuming play at AmFam Field of Phoenix against the Rangers on Tuesday afternoon.