Offense puts up season high
CHICAGO - Talk about taking out your frustrations.
With the news that Jimmy Nelson would miss the remainder of the season with a right-shoulder injury still fresh in their minds, the Milwaukee Brewers responded by putting an absolute whipping on the Chicago Cubs on Saturday afternoon at Wrigley Field.
The Brewers scored eight runs in the third inning to put the game out of reach and then didn’t take their foot off the gas pedal until they’d registered a season high in beating the Cubs, 15-2, in front of a crowd of 41,167.
Milwaukee has shaved two games off Chicago’s lead in the Central Division in less than 24 hours, leaving the deficit at three. The Brewers have outscored the Cubs by a combined score of 28-4 in winning their last three games at Wrigley Field.
“It’s a breathe-easy game more than anything,” manager Craig Counsell said. “The third inning was our best offensive inning of the year, for me. There wasn’t a home run in there; we just put together really good atbats.
“We executed so well that inning, and on a day like today with the wind, that’s how you have to score runs.”
Every starter but Ryan Braun had at least one hit, Hernán Pérez drove in five runs and Keon Broxton and Orlando Arcia combined to reach base eight times and score six runs in the bottom third of the lineup.
Even starting pitcher Chase Anderson had a pair of singles and two runs batted in
as Milwaukee’s previously moribund offense came alive.
Originally scheduled to face right-hander Jake Arrieta, the Brewers instead drew left-hander Mike Montgomery — the same pitcher who was on the mound to start Milwaukee’s 11-2 drubbing of Chicago in the teams’ “rainout” makeup game July 6 at Wrigley Field.
The Brewers used a seven-run third in that one to break the game open. They bettered that effort by a run in this one, with the first eight batters reaching and scoring in the third.
Sending 11 batters to the plate, scoring eight times, collecting five hits, drawing three walks and sacrificing twice — it was precisely the kind of offensive inning the Brewers had been lacking.
“It was a disciplined, compete-every-pitch approach today that paid big,” Counsell said. “Getting on base. These are days at Wrigley where you’re rewarded by getting on base and putting the ball in play, and we did a nice job of it today.”
Staked to that huge advantage, Anderson was able to set himself on cruise control.
He faced the minimum through three, and the Cubs didn’t have a baserunner reach until the fourth.
The Brewers added three more runs in the fifth to tie their season high.
Anderson was done after the bottom of the frame, and he left having accounted for one more hit – two – than he allowed the Cubs.
“Obviously when you’re pitching well, you usually have a good chance to win,” said Anderson. “With the guys swinging the bats like they were today I was just trying to get those guys back in the dugout and get the bats in their hands and kind of just stay out of the way.”
Now, the Brewers send out 16-game winner Zach Davies for the series finale on Sunday. Win it, and Milwaukee will have trimmed three games off Chicago’s lead in just three days’ time.
“I know if we’d have played a little bit better in Cincinnati we’d be in a really, really good spot,” Anderson said. “But we’re still in a good spot here.
“If we can come in and sweep these guys at this place and go back home with some confidence — the offense swinging the bats and the pitching’s coming along — we’re getting hot at the right time.” BEHIND THE BOX SCORE
■ Braun became the 11th active player to reach the 300 homers Friday. He joined Albert Pujols (612), Adrian Beltre (461), Miguel Cabrera (460), Carlos Beltran (435), Edwin Encarnacion (344), José Bautista (330), Curtis Granderson (316), Nelson Cruz (315), Matt Holliday (313) and Adrián González (310). STAT SHEET
■ The Brewers clinched the sixth season of 200-plus homers in franchise history. At 1.4 per game, this group is on pace to finish with 229 — two fewer than the team record of 231 set in 2007.
■ Braun enters Sunday with 15 career homers at Wrigley Field. That’s the second-most of any visiting ballpark behind Great American Ball Park (25). TAKEAWAY
Literally everything went right for the Brewers, who were able to ease off Anderson and spread the work around the rest of the way. Now, can the Brewers carry the momentum over to Sunday for the sweep? RECORD
This year: 74-68 (39-32 home; 35-36 away)
Last year: 63-79 NEXT GAME
Sunday: Brewers at Cubs, 1:20 p.m. Milwaukee RHP Zach Davies (16-8, 3.77) vs. Chicago RHP Kyle Hendricks (6-4, 3.29). TV: FS Wisconsin. Radio: FM-94.5.