Lights-out pitching gives Brewers 3-0 win over Reds

Part of the identity of the 2023 Milwaukee Brewers has been both their pitching and their lack of hitting. So many times, the Brewers' pitching staff has created opportunities for the win, but the offense would fall just short of creating a big enough lead. In the last two games, the Brewers have only found a single run each time out, but that’s been enough to get the win.

On Saturday, it was again dominance from the pitching staff that set the Brewers up to get back into sole possession of first place in the NL Central. As had been the case the last two games, the offense did just enough to win. Three lead-off home runs paired with a dominant start from Freddy Peralta helped propel the Brewers to a 3-0 win.

The first pitch of Saturday’s contest would have to wait a little over an hour, due to inclement weather in the area. However, when Christian Yelich got to the plate to start the game, he wasted no time putting the Milwaukee Brewers on the scoreboard first. On the night’s first pitch, Yelich knocked his 12th home run of the season to left to give the Brewers a 1-0 lead. The Brewers continued to get hard contact off Reds starter Andrew Abbott, but could only muster up a single run.

One-run leads have proven to be all that is necessary for the Brewers to get a win. Fresh off their first back-to-back one-run shutout wins in franchise history, Brewers starter Freddy Peralta kept the momentum. The right-hander kept forcing the Reds to make weak contact. A couple of early groundouts and infield flyouts kept the score 1-0 early. The Reds’ lone hit of the evening came on a broken bat squibber to the third base side in the fourth.

William Contreras led off the top of the fourth with a home run of his own. The 2-0 lead must have felt insurmountable for the Reds, especially with how Peralta was dealing on the mound. He did allow some walks, two to be exact, but even with that bit of trouble, Peralta was up for the challenge. His night was done after six innings of work, ending with six strikeouts and no runs allowed on just one hit and the pair of walks.

Not to be outdone by Contreras and Yelich, Owen Miller got a lead-off home run of his own in the top of the seventh. Their production at the top of the inning was not replicated throughout the rest of the inning. The Brewers got four hits that were not home runs and were only 1-for-4 with runners in scoring position. Just as was the situation in the last two games, the offense did just enough to put the Brewers in a position to win.

With Peralta out, the Brewers’ bullpen was nearly perfect again. Elvis Pegureo allowed the lone base runner with a walk in the seventh. Still, he pitched a no-hit inning, striking out two. Next up, Joel Payamps had a perfect eighth to set up a perfect ninth from Devin Williams, both striking out two of their own to secure the 3-0 win. For the first time since 2013, the Brewers have three straight shutout victories.

The Brewers will try to hold onto their NL Central lead tomorrow afternoon. Adrian Houser will try to keep the shutout streak going as he gets the start against Ben Lively. The first pitch is at 12:40 p.m., and you can watch the action on Bally Sports Wisconsin.