MILWAUKEE BREWERS NOTES:
TONIGHT’S GAME: Is game 1 of a 7-game road trip to Toronto (3g) and Cincinnati (4g)….. the Brewers are coming off a 3-4 homestand against Houston (2-1) and San Francisco (1-3)…..following this trip, the team returns to American Family Field for a 6-game homestand against Baltimore (3g) and Oakland (3g).
IN THE TRAINER’S ROOM: SS Willy Adames (concussion), RHP Jason Alexander (right rotator cuff), LHP Aaron Ashby (left labrum), RHP JB Bukauskas (neck), RHP Matt Bush (right rotator cuff), LHP Eric Lauer (right shoulder), LHP Wade Miley (left lat), OF Garrett Mitchell (left shoulder), INF Luis Urías (left hamstring), 1B Luke Voit (neck), LHP Justin Wilson (left elbow), OF Jesse Winker (neck) and RHP Brandon Woodruff (right shoulder) are on the injured list…..Alexander, Ashby, Mitchell, Urías, Wilson and Woodruff are on the 60-day IL.
IN THE STANDINGS (61 days): The Brewers have spent the following number of days alone or tied at each position in the NL Central standings: FIRST: 40, SECOND: 19, THIRD: 2, FOURTH: 0, FIFTH: 0…..the team is currently in first place, leading the second-place Pirates by 2.0 games.
SERIES-LY SPEAKING: The Brewers are 8-9-0 in series play.
Game 1: 7-10, Game 2: 10-7, Game 3: 9-8, Game 4: 2-0
Sweep Wins (3): vs. NYM (3g, 4/3-4/5), at SEA (3g, 4/17-4/19), vs. KC (3g, 5/12-5/14)
Sweep Losses (1): at COL (3g, 5/2-5/4)
AT HOME: The Brewers are 16-12 at home, going 5-4-0 in series play…..the team went 46-35 at home last season, going 15-8-4 in series play.
ON THE ROAD: The Brewers are 12-13 on the road, going 3-5-0 in series play…..are 3-9 over their last 12 games and have dropped their last 4 series…..the team went 40-41 on the road last season, going 9-12-5 in series play.
LET’S GO TO THE VIDEO TAPE: The Brewers have made 10 replay challenges this season, going 5-5…..their last challenge (lost) came on May 25 vs. San Francisco as a foul tip (Joey Wiemer) stood.
TONIGHT’S STARTER: #37 – RHP ADRIAN HOUSER (4gs, 1-0, 2.25)
HOUSER AT A GLANCE: Adrian Houser, 30, will be making his fIfth start…..Houser last started last Wednesday vs. Houston in a 4-0 win (5.1ip, 2h, 1bb, 3k, 73 pitches)…..the team is 3-1 in his starts…..he has 1 quality start…..opponents are batting .269 (21-for-78, 1hr)…..he has tossed 11.1 scoreless innings over his last 2 starts, lowering his season ERA from 5.19 to 2.25…..Houser began the season on the 15-day injured list with a right groin strain…..he was sent to Triple-A Nashville on rehab assignment on April 14, where he made 4 starts…..Houser was acquired from Houston, along with LHP Josh Hader, OF Brett Phillips and OF Domingo Santana, in exchange for OF Carlos Gómez, RHP Mike Fiers and International Signing Bonus Slot #76 on 7/30/15.
LAST SEASON: Houser went 6-10 with a 4.73 ERA in 22 games/21 starts last season…..the team went 9-12 in his starts…..he made 6 quality starts…..opponents batted .258….. he posted a 2.98 ERA over his first 8 starts of the season (42.1ip, 14er) and a 6.17 ERA over his last 13 starts (58.1ip, 40er)…..he was on the 15-day injured list from 7/1-8/23 with a right flexor strain and from 9/28 through the remainder of the season with a right groin strain.
CAREER: Is 24-29 with a 3.90 ERA in 110 games/80 starts (448ip, 194er)…..is in his seventh Major League season, all with the Brewers (2015, 2018-23)…..has gone 19-29 with a 4.21 ERA as a starter (391.2ip, 183er) and 5-0 with a 1.76 ERA in relief (56.1ip, 11er)…..underwent “Tommy John” surgery on his right elbow on 7/21/16.
CAREER AT AMERICAN FAMILY FIELD: Is 9-14 with a 3.45 ERA in 56 games/39 starts (222ip, 85er)…..is 1-0 with a 2.89 ERA in 2 starts this season (9.1ip, 3er)
CAREER ON THE ROAD: Is 15-15 with a 4.34 ERA in 54 games/41 starts (226ip, 109er)…..is 0-0 with a 1.69 ERA in 2 starts this season (10.2ip, 2er).
CAREER vs. BLUE JAYS: His only career outing vs. Toronto came in a start last season on 6/24 at American Family Field…..he took a 9-4 loss (6ip, 9h, 5r, 5er, 1bb, 3k).
TORONTO BLUE JAYS NOTES:
THE LATEST: The Blue Jays blanked the Twins, 3-0, in the final game of their weekend series in Minnesota on Sunday… Marked their 8th shutout of the campaign, tied with the Rays for the most this season…Are now 3-2 in rubber games and 7-10 in series finales. Toronto ended its season-long skid of three straight series losses, now 10-7-0 on the year (5-5-0 on the road)…Has won three of its last six games but is 4-10 across its last 14 contests…Has been outhit in just five of those 14 games.
MULTI-TALENTED: Bo Bichette picked up singles in the 1st and the 8th inning as he went 2-for-4 on Sunday…Marked his AL-best 23rd multi-hit game (2nd: Franco/Semien/ Yoshida – 19), tied with Freddie Freeman (23) for the MLB lead…His 169 multi-hit games since he made his debut on July 29, 2019 are tied with Trea Turner for the most in the Majors and lead all AL hitters, with teammate Vladimir Guerrero Jr. coming in at 2nd with 143 (courtesy Stats Perform). The 25-year-old has extended his hitting streak to eight games, going 17-for-36 (.472) with four extra- base hits and seven RBI over that stretch (1.209 OPS)…Leads all MLB hitters with 78 hits (2nd: Freeman – 73) and leads the AL with 124 total bases, one shy of Freeman (125) for the most in MLB…His .338 batting average ranks 1st in the junior circuit (2nd: Yandy \Díaz – .320) while he ranks 4th in SLG (.537), 5th in OPS (.912), and 9th in OBP (.376)…Now has 92 hardhit (95+ MPH) balls this season, tied with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. for the AL lead.
RIGHT ON TARGET: José Berríos worked 5.2 scoreless innings on Sunday as he improved to 5-4 on the year…Became the winningest pitcher in Target Field’s 14-year history, earning his 33rd career victory to break a tie with Kyle Gibson (32) for the most wins by any pitcher at the Twins’ home ballpark…Now has 427 strikeouts at the venue, also topping Gibson (425) for the all-time lead there.
KIRKY CONNECTING: Alejandro Kirk gave Toronto a 2-0 lead in the 2nd inning on Sunday as his bloop single plated two runs… Has gone 11-for-34 (.324) with two doubles and three RBI over his last 10 games.
SPRINGER HAS SPRUNG: George Springer singled, doubled, drew a walk, and scored a run as part of a 2-for-3 Sunday afternoon… Has gone 28-for-88 (.318) with four doubles, a triple, four home runs, 12 RBI, and a 12BB/13K ratio during his last 23 contests (.400 OBP, .923 OPS)…Has raised his season batting average by 44 points since May 2nd (from .216 to .260).
HARD-HITTING STUFF: Matt Chapman singled, walked, and was hit by a pitch as he finished 1-for-2 with a run scored on Sunday… Among AL batters, ranks 1st in doubles (19), T-2nd in extra-base hits, and T-8th in hits (57)…Ranks 2nd among MLB hitters with both a 61.3 hard-hit
percentage and a 13.7% barrel rate (1st: Aaron Judge 63.0 & 16.3).
A DASH AT THE DOME: The Blue Jays are on a brief three-game homestand against the Brewers…Have gone 13-9 this season at Rogers Centre…The .591 win% at home is 5th best in the AL…After this series, will head out on an equally brief road trip to Citi Field to visit the Mets (27- 27) for three contests over the weekend. Toronto batters rank 4th in the AL in home AVG (.260), while also 4th in home OBP (.333), 7th in home OPS (.726), and 10th in home SLG (.393)…The pitching staff ranks 1st among AL teams with a .205 home opponents’ average (2nd: SEA – .223), 2nd with a 3.20 home ERA (1st: HOU – 3.19), and 2nd with a 1.15 home WHIP (1st: SEA – 1.12).
INTERTAINMENT: Toronto is playing its 5th interleague series of the year…Has gone 7-4 vs. NL clubs so far…The .636 win% is 4th best among AL teams…Led the AL with 13 interleague wins last season, which was one off the franchise’s all-time single-season record (14 in 2021)…Since the beginning of the 2021 campaign, Toronto’s .667 win% in Interleague Play (34-17) is 2nd best among all MLB clubs (TB – .678).
The Blue Jays have hit 655 home runs all-time in Interleague Play, the most among all 30 teams (2nd: NYY – 625).
DONUT-FREE DIET: The Blue Jays have notched 499 hits this season, trailing only Tampa Bay (512) for the most in MLB… Are currently 3rd in the AL in team AVG (.264), 4th in OBP (.332), 4th in OPS (.752), T-5th in XBH (166), and 6th in SLG (.421). With the Los Angeles Angels falling, 2-0, to the Marlins on Sunday, the Blue Jays are now one of two MLB teams to have scored in every game this season (also: ARI)…Have now gone 72 straight games without being shut out, the longest active streak in the Majors (2nd: ARI – 55G).
QUITE A STRETCH: The Blue Jays just completed a stretch of 17 games in 17 days, their most consecutive days with scheduled games this season…Went 7-10 over that span…Their opponents over the 17-game stretch (ATL, NYY, BAL, TB, MIN) have a combined record of 166-108 (.606). Toronto will now play 14 games in the course of 14 days, including only opponents currently sitting at .500 or better (MIL, NYM, HOU, MIN).
VS. THE BREWERS: All-Time: 122-165
2022: 1-2 Home: 65-79
Home: 0-0 Rogers Centre: 31-33
The Blue Jays went 1-2 against the Brewers during their only series last season, a three-gamer last June in Wisconsin…Last met the Brew Crew here at Rogers Centre in 2017, dropping both contests…The gap of 2,239 days without a home game vs. MIL is Toronto’s 3rd-longest active streak vs. any opponent (COL – 3,632; LAD – 2,578). Brandon Belt picked up four hits in his four games against the Brewers last season (4-for-13), including a homer and three RBI…Leads all current Blue Jays with 54 career games vs. MIL, batting .279 (48-for172 with eight doubles, nine homers, and 27 RBI along the way (.859 OPS). Alejandro Kirk went 6-for-10 (.600) with two home runs, five RBI, two walks, and three runs scored in the three-game series in Milwaukee last season. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. had hits in all three contests vs. MIL last year, going 4-for-11 (.364) with a double, an RBI, and two walks.
STARTING PITCHER – Yusei Kikuchi, LHP #16
TODAY’S GAME:
Making his 11th start of the season and his 5th at home…Shouldered the loss his last time out, on 5/24 at TB, giving up 5 runs on 8 hits and 2 walks over 5.0 frames with 5 strikeouts…The outing was his 100th career start, becoming the 11th Japanese-born player to reach the century mark. With 2 strikeouts today, will become the 9th Japanese-born player to reach 500 career punchouts and 500.0 innings pitched in the Majors.
2023 HIGHLIGHTS:
Took his 1st loss of the year on 5/19 vs. BAL, giving up 3 runs on 3 hits and a season-high 4 walks over 4.2 innings with 3 punchouts. Lasted 4.0+ frames on 5/14 vs. ATL, allowing 5R/4ER on 9 hits…Struck out 7 without issuing a walk. Improved to 5-0 on 5/7 at PIT, tossing 6.1 shutout frames with 4 hits, 2 walks, and 3 strikeouts…Marked his longest outing as a Blue Jay, and his 3rd quality start this season. Improved to 4-0 on 4/26 vs. CWS, throwing 5.2 frames of shutout ball while scattering four singles and a walk along with eight strikeouts…Has allowed one run or fewer in four of his five starts this year while the Blue Jays have won all five of his outings. Earned his 3rd win of the year on 4/21 at NYY, tossing 6.0 frames of one-run ball with 4 hits, 2 walks, and 3 strikeouts…Has back-to-back starts of
6.0+ innings and 0-or-1 runs allowed for the first time since 6/18-25 of his 2021 All-Star campaign. Improved to 2-0 on 4/15 vs. TB, throwing 6.0 innings of one-run ball with 4 hits, a walk, and a season-high 9 strikeouts…Marked his most punchouts in a single game as a Blue Jay…Completed 6.0 frames for the 1st time since 6/30/22 vs. TB. Took a no-decision on 4/9 at LAA, giving up 6 runs on 9 hits and a walk over 4.1 innings with 6 strikeouts…Threw 99 pitches (59 strikes) on the day, his most pitches in a single outing since 7/28/21 vs. HOU (101). Picked up the win in his season debut on 4/4 at KC, tossing 5.0 innings of one-run ball with 3 hits, a walk, and 2 strikeouts…Was his 1st start since 8/15/22 vs. BAL, and his 1st win as a starter since 7/28/22 vs. DET.
