Cardinals rout Brewers spoiling another big party at Miller Park
The Milwaukee Brewers’ players, staff and their families gathered Sunday evening at Miller Park for a well-planned group meal as well as Easter festivities for the kids, a further example of the closeness of this team and organization.
The team charter arrived early in the morning from San Diego, and with the holiday and everyone scrambling to get settled in their homes for the season, having the club take care of the meal was beyond gracious, not to mention much appre-
ciated.
It’s almost surprising the St. Louis Cardinals didn’t crash the party and demand free food. They have a way of raining on the Brewers’ parades, going all the way back to the 1982 World Series. Many local fans still haven’t gotten over dropping the last two games at Busch Stadium, Part I.
In 2011, when Milwaukee finally got close to playing in the Fall Classic for a second time, it was – guess who – the Cardinals who slapped them in the face again. With the NLCS tied at two games apiece, St. Louis captured the next two games, including a butt-kicking in Game 6 at Miller Park, and went on to add another big trophy to their collection.
So, with folks all jazzed for the home opener Monday after the Brewers’ three-game sweep in San Diego, should we have been the least bit surprised that the Cardinals once again played spoiler? A standing-room-only crowd of 45,393 finished tailgating and came in to thaw out, only to become glued to their seats by a St. Louis offense that led the way in an 8-4 victory.
Despite losing four of nine games here last season, the Cardinals have made themselves at home since Miller Park opened in 2001, going 87-54, a gaudy .617 winning percentage. Many Milwaukee fans have been focused on beating the Cubs, especially since they’ve gotten good again, but St. Louis continues to represent climbing Mt. Everest on a windy, snowy day for the Brewers.
“I don’t think we overlook the Cardinals at all,” manager Craig Counsell said. “It’s always a challenge. They’re consistent; they’ve always been good.”
When the opposing pitcher returns
St. Louis starter pitcher Miles Mikolas (right) celebrates his home run in the fifth with Jedd Gyorko.
from three years in Japan and slugs a two-run home run for his first hit in the majors, you figure this isn’t going to turn out well. That’s what happened with St. Louis starter Miles Mikolas, a pitcher in whom the Brewers had interest before he chose to sign a two-year, free-agent deal with – who else – the Cardinals.
“A home run is kind of the last thing you’re expecting,” said Counsell, who believed the game turned for good, then and there.
Brewers starter Zach Davies, who has suffered through slow starts in other seasons, was determined to get off on the right foot in his first home-opening assignment. Davies is a finesse pitcher who lives on the corners of the plate – a “pitch-maker,” as Counsell calls him – but started missing his spots more as the game progressed.
Asked why the Cardinals always seem so comfortable in Miller Park, Davies said, “I just think they're a really good team. They're very disciplined. They know their approaches and they've got a solid team throughout – bullpen, starting pitching, lineup. I think they're just a solid team.”
This one got away in the sixth inning when the Cardinals scored four times to take an 8-2 lead. Brandon Woodruff, on bullpen duty one last day before assuming the role of the No. 5 starter, took over for Davies and surrendered a three-run homer to the first batter he faced, Paul DeJong.
Woodruff pitched with a big bruise on his tricep after getting smoked by a liner in San Diego but admitted, "It was just a bad pitch."
There was some brief excitement afterward when Eric Thames ripped a two-run shot in the bottom of the inning but mostly crickets after that. After keeping the line moving in San Diego with a barrage of base hits, it was back to homer-or-nothing for the Brewers, who scored all of their runs on three balls that left the park.
The Brewers played the Cardinals just once previously in a home opener, with predictable results – an 11-5 thumping. Overall, the Brewers have dropped four consecutive home openers, so there has been a bit of a trend in that regard.
Win or lose, baseball folks will tell you that too much emphasis is placed on what happens on opening day, with all of the hype and carnival atmosphere. They are right about that, considering a season consists of 162 games.
But fans are going to get excited about the first home game, particularly in Wisconsin, where baseball brings hope that you might be able to go outside soon sans heavy coat, wool hat and leather gloves. In place of spring here, we have the Miller Park roof, which is a winning trade by any measure.
"Obviously, we're all disappointed, a little bit," Thames said of the loss. "But you can't get too caught up in it. It's not the postseason. We have a lot more of these games left."
So, it will be back to work Tuesday evening for the Brewers, without all the pomp and circumstance. Once again, they will try to figure out a way to beat the Cardinals at home.
“I’d like to win one of these opening day games (at home); that's first,” said Counsell, now 0 for 3 managing those contests.
“Business goes on tomorrow. The rest of the season kind of starts for us tomorrow. After the home opener, the rest of the season kind of starts.”
The Cardinals will be waiting.