Peralta dominates Cubs once again
The beat goes on for the Milwaukee Brewers' starting rotation.
Right-hander Freddy Peralta, whose five innings of shutout ball in Chicago last week began an incredible string of dominant pitching by Brewers starters, kept it going Monday night as he faced the Cubs once again. Peralta turned in six brilliant innings, allowing only one run – on a home run by Kris Bryant in the fourth inning – with two walks and 10 strikeouts.
It was the sixth consecutive outing in which a Brewers starter went at least five innings while allowing one run or less, the second-longest stretch in franchise history. In August 2011, Milwaukee's rotation achieved that feat over seven games in a row.
Over the six games, starting pitchers have compiled a 0.53 earned run average (two earned runs in 34 innings) while limiting opponents to a .142 batting average (16 for 113).
What was a brilliant pitching duel between Peralta and Chicago right-hander Adbert Alzolay turned in the Brewers' favor decidedly in the sixth inning after Alzolay departed.
They hammered away at reliever Andrew Chafin, beginning with pinch-hitter Luis Urias' three-run double, scoring six runs to make off with a 6-3 victory at American Family Field.
Pitchers who draw the same opponent in consecutive starts often fare worse the second time around because those hitters have seen what they feature. That familiarity did not help the Cubs, however, mainly because Peralta is not the same pitcher they saw in his first three seasons in the majors.
Peralta, 24, earned the nickname “Fastball Freddy” because he relied on that pitch a large majority of the time early in his career (78% over his first two seasons).
But Peralta started throwing a slider last season and is throwing it even more in 2021, and Chicago's hitters haven't adjusted to it.
“No doubt, that second start against a team is never easy,” Brewers manager Craig Counsell said. “But I thought you saw Freddy change it up a little bit. It was probably a little more fastball-heavy tonight, and that's that's what you've got to do.
“That's what he's able to do right now with with more weapons.”
Of the 10 strikeouts Peralta logged, six came on his slider, which right-handed batters waved at futilely throughout his six innings of work. Three hitters had fastballs blown by them and another went down via changeup, another added twist to Peralta's repertoire.
It hasn't hurt that Peralta's fastball velocity is a tick higher (94.5 mph) this year. But what has allowed him to take a leap forward (0.69 ERA through 13 innings) is effectively throwing a slider, particularly to righty hitters.
The only hitter to do damage, Bryant, drove a 0-1 fastball out to left-center for a homer leading off the fourth. But Peralta responded in tremendous fashion, striking out the next three hitters -catching Joc Pederson looking at a slider, Javy Baez swinging through another and Jason Heyward becoming the lone changeup victim.
Peralta would go on to retire the last nine hitters he faced, striking out six of them, and admitted afterward that Bryant's home run made him angry.
“Yes, you're mad because I don't know how he hit that pitch with great contact,” Peralta said. “I got mad after that one.
“Like I've said before, I like to work on all my pitches in the four days between games. I try my best during the game. I can't control what happens in the game but I can control my routine in those four days and make all my pitches look better and better in games.
Of Peralta seemingly finding another gear after Bryant's homer, Counsell said, “I think that's just another sign of where Freddie's going, and his experience kind of getting him through that, telling himself that's all they're going to get.
“Actually, the way the (number of) pitches were going, I didn't know if we'd be able to get him through the sixth. And then he was really efficient in the fifth and sixth. It might have been even a better start than the one in Chicago, really.”
As for the challenge of pitching even better the second time while facing the Cubs in consecutive starts, Peralta said, “We always have conversations before the game; the day before, too. We try to be on the same page – me, the catcher and ‘Hooky' (pitching coach Chris Hook).
“All we do is read the swings and know the situations in the game to see what is working good for me that night and attack the hitters.”
Asked what it's like to pitch in a starting rotation that has given no quarter for most of this young season, Peralta said, “It's very fun. We are a group of guys that have been together the last couple of years. And we have the veteran, (Brett) Anderson, here too.
“We enjoy every day here no matter what happens. We make sure to come here and enjoy the game, work hard and try to win games.”