The most impressive series in the first half of this week belongs to the Milwaukee Brewers. They entered San Diego and swept the Padres, allowing just three runs in three games to a fairly talented ball club.
The Brewers are now heading to Chicago to take the Cubs on a weekend series. They will be in first place at 11-7 when the Wrigley match starts on Friday afternoon.
Remember, the parents entered this series at 10-7, they just lost two out of three to the Dodgers and simply saying “two out of three” doesn’t do justice to that series. After an extra-marathon marathon adventure on Friday and a game that was almost a blade of grass to be tied on Saturday, the parents weren’t too far from the best baseball team. At least they showed I could stand with the Dodgers.
And then the Brewers showed up and swept them away, barely allowing an offensive whimper from their parents.
Of course, those who have paid attention to beer producers so far this year would not be surprised.
We could start with Corbin Burnes, who closed the witnesses. After renovating his arsenal last season, he reached the ace level. So far this year, he has only allowed one run in 24 1/3 innings. It has an ERA of 0.37, 0.33 WHIP, 0.69 FIP and these are not even the most impressive figures. 1107 ERA + really jumps like an impressive laugh even in these tiny samples. How about 40 strokes and zero walks? This is the first time in modern history when a pitcher has had at least 40 shots without a walk to start a season.
While Burnes deserves the spotlight, he should at least share a little of it.
Brandon Woodruff took the victory on Monday. He now carries 1.96 ERA and 0.74 WHIP with 26 hits in six walks in 23 innings this season. He gave up three races won in four innings on opening day, but has since been almost untouchable (19 IP, 5 H, 2 R).
On Wednesday, it was the job of Adrian Houser, the background holder, to cross the opponent’s line several times. He would give up two runs on five hits in 4 2/3 innings. He’s not one of the top three starters, but he’s still there with an ERA 3.32, and the Brewers have won two of his four starts. This will be played from the back-end.
The other holder in the top three would be the emerging Freddy Peralta. He did not stay in rotation after his debut year in 2018, but now he has returned and shows everywhere the role of a front-line holder. In 18 innings this year, he has 2.00 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 31 hits. The 12 rides are great, but it only allows an average of .133 and, with all this swing-and-miss, it blocks traffic. And if you haven’t seen him play, watch the ugly slider.
Brett Anderson, from the beginning, was mostly good, staying 2-1 with 2.65 ERA and 1.12 WHIP.
Overall, the Brewers rookie this season has an ERA of 1.99 with 111 hits in 99 innings 2/3.
We know how stellar the Brewers bullpen can be behind Josh Hader and Rookie of the Year Devin Williams in 2020 (he fought several times this year because of control, but things are still there), with manager Craig Counsell pulling the strings. In fact, the group has actually been a weak link so far, but on Wednesday offered an eighth that caused a stroke. They had a collective ERA 4.10 heading for the game.
Let’s consider the other side here. It could be pointed out that offensively, the Brewers did not exactly break the cap on the ball, entering Wednesday’s action in the 14th in the NL on average, the 12th in the base percentage and the 13th in the slugging. It’s true. What is also true is that Christian Yelich was injured (only nine games played out of 18). We can’t be sure how much crime they would offer, but we also know that Kolten Wong and Lorenzo Cain have a history of suggesting that they could help with the crime. Each appeared in just seven games, also injured.
Speaking of Wong and Cain, both will greatly strengthen the defense when they return. Along with the new addition, Jackie Bradley as an excellent defender on the field and Omar Narvaez being a highly respected backstop, Brewers aims to win very well this season. In fact, before Wednesday’s game, they ranked first in all baseballs in terms of defensive efficiency – which is the percentage of balls put into play turned into outs – and that’s largely without the exceptional range. by Cain and Wong!
We will go through the necessary warnings: April 21, and the Brewers still played 18 games, with 144 completed. So much more can happen. Given everything we’ve seen with the context and circumstances behind it, Brewers now looks like the best team in NL Central.
Their dominant rotation – especially Corbin, Woodruff and even Peralta – led the way.