MILWAUKEE BREWERS NOTES:
Ker-plunk
Christian Yelich is a career .409 hitter (9-for-22, 2hr, 3bb, 5k) against tonight’s starter Clayton Kershaw….. Yelich owns the highest AVG (.409) and OBP (.480) of any MLB player against Kershaw (min. 25 plate apps).
Rebel Yeli
In his last 59 games, Christian Yelich has batted .325 (77-for-237) with 43 runs, 9 HR and 41 RBI while he has a .403 OBP/.532 SLG/.935 OPS…..he is on a 7-game hitting streak, batting .321 (9-for-28) with 3 RBI.
Santana’s Greatest Hits
Carlos Santana hit his fourth HR as a Brewer last night and second in as many games…..his 294 career HR are 10th in MLB history by switch-hitters
THIS EVENING’S GAME: Is game 5 (3-1) of a 9-game, 10-day trip to Chicago-AL (3-0), Los Angeles-NL (0-1) and Texas (3g)…..following this trip and an off day next Monday, the team returns to American Family Field for 5 games in 6 days vs. Minnesota (2g) and San Diego (3g).
IN THE TRAINER’S ROOM: LHP Aaron Ashby (left labrum), RHP J.C. Mejía (right shoulder), OF Garrett Mitchell (left shoulder), OF Blake Perkins (left oblique), 1B Darin Ruf (right knee), RHP Julio Teheran (right hip), 1B Rowdy Tellez (right forearm/left ring finger), LHP Justin Wilson (left lat) and OF Jesse Winker (back) are on the injured list….. Ashby, Mitchell, Ruf and Wilson are on the 60-day IL.
IN THE STANDINGS (139 days): The Brewers have spent the following number of days alone or tied at each position in the NL Central standings: FIRST: 86, SECOND: 51,
THIRD: 2, FOURTH: 0, FIFTH: 0…..the team is currently in first place, leading the Cubs and Reds by 3.5 games.
SERIES-LY SPEAKING: The Brewers are 20-16-2 in series play.
Game 1: 19-20, Game 2: 21-17, Game 3: 21-16, Game 4: 4-2
Sweep Wins (6): vs. NYM (3g, 4/3-4/5), at SEA (3g, 4/17-4/19), vs. KC (3g, 5/12-5/14), vs. PIT (3g, 6/16-6/18), at CIN (3g, 7/14-7/16), at CWS (3g, 8/11-8/13)
Sweep Losses (4): at COL (3g, 5/2-5/4), vs. OAK (3g, 6/9-6/11), at MIN (2g, 6/13-6/14), at ATL (3g, 7/28-7/30)
AT HOME: The Brewers are 33-27 at home, going 10-7-2 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 32-28 on the road, going 10-9-0 in series play…..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 27 replay challenges this season, going 11-16…..their last challenge (lost) came on 8/6 vs. Pittsburgh as an out
call at third base (William Contreras) stood.
TONIGHT’S STARTER: #20 – LHP WADE MILEY (15gs, 6-2, 2.90)
MILEY AT A GLANCE: Wade Miley, 36, is making his 16th start of the season and second against the Dodgers…..Miley last started last Tuesday vs. Colorado and received no decision in the Brewers’ 7-3, 10-inning loss (6ip, 2h, 1r, 1er, 3bb, 2k, 1hr, 85 pitches)…..he left the game with a 2-1 lead…..it was the 300th start of his Major League career….. the team is 9-6 in his starts…..he has 7 quality starts…..opponents are batting .225 (64-for-284, 9hr)…..he is 3-0 with a 2.00 ERA in his last 7 starts (36ip, 8er)…..Miley was on the 15-day injured list from 5/17-6/16 with a left lat strain and from 7/17-8/1, retroactive to 7/14, with left elbow discomfort…..he signed as a free agent with Milwaukee on January 9…..he is signed through the 2023 season with a mutual option for 2024.
WELCOME BACK!: Miley returned to Milwaukee, where he pitched in 2018 for the National League Central champions and went 5-2 with a 2.57 ERA in 16 starts…..he went on to make 4 starts during the postseason, posting a 1.23 ERA (14.2ip, 2er), as the team went on to advance to the seventh game of the NLCS against Los Angeles.
LAST SEASON: Miley went 2-2 with a 3.16 ERA in 9 games/8 starts with Chicago-NL last season…..he missed most of the season while spending time on the injured list on three occasions: 4/7-5/9 (left elbow inflammation), 5/29-6/9 (left shoulder strain) and 6/11-9/5 (left shoulder strain).
CAREER: Is 105-96 with a 4.07 ERA in 307 games/300 starts (1695.2ip, 767er)…..is in his 13th Major League season with Arizona (2011-14), Boston (2015), Seattle (2016), Baltimore (2016-17), Milwaukee (2018, ‘23), Houston (2019), Cincinnati (2020-21) and Chicago-NL (2022)…..was an All-Star with the Diamondbacks in 2012…..threw a no-hitter with the Reds on 5/7/21 at Cleveland…..Miley was selected by Arizona in the supplemental first round (43rd overall) of the 2008 First-Year Player Draft out of Southeastern Louisiana University.
CAREER AT AMERICAN FAMILY FIELD: Is 8-3 with a 3.69 ERA in 20 starts (97.2ip, 40er)…..is 4-1 with a 3.07 ERA in 8 starts this season (44ip, 15er).
CAREER ON THE ROAD: Is 50-51 with a 3.95 ERA in 162 games/160 starts (897ip, 394er)…..is 2-1 with a 2.67 ERA in 7 starts this season (33.2ip, 10er).
CAREER vs. DODGERS: Is 4-7 with a 4.47 ERA in 17 games/16 starts (96.2ip, 48er), including an 8-1 loss this season on 5/10 in Milwaukee (5ip, 6h, 7r, 7er, 2bb, 3k, 3hr, 1hbp)….. has gone 4-0 with a 2.06 ERA in 7 career starts at Dodger Stadium (48ip, 11er).
LOS ANGELES DODGERS NOTES:
TOP TEN?: The Dodgers won their season-high ninth consecutive game last night, beating the Milwaukee Brewers, 6-2. Los Angeles is now 13-1 in the month of August and are a Major League best 21-8 (.724) in the second half of the season. This evening, the Boys in Blue can win their 10th straight contest for the first time since winning 12 in-a-row from July 31-Aug. 13, 2022, as they continue their 10-game homestand (5-0) and play the middle contest of a three-game set with the first-place Milwaukee Brewers at 7:10 p.m. Following tomorrow’s finale with Milwaukee, the Dodgers will welcome in the Miami Marlins for three games this weekend (Aug. 18-20). The Dodgers hold a 9.0-game lead over the San Francisco Giants in the National League West. The Dodgers improved to 39-20 (.661) at home this season, which is tied with Atlanta for the best home mark in the National League. Los Angeles has won eight games in-a-row at Chavez Ravine. Overall, the Dodgers own the third-best record in baseball (.610), trailing just the Braves (.647) and Orioles (.617). The Dodgers took two of three in Milwaukee from May 8-10 and have won 10 of their last 16 games vs. the Brew Crew. Los Angeles is 17-14 vs. the NL Central this season. The first 40,000 ticketed fans in attendance tonight will receive a J.D. Martinez bobblehead, presented by Chef Merito.
STRINGING THEM TOGETHER: The Dodgers notched their 30th comeback win of the season last night, turning an early 1-0 deficit into a 6-2 win over the Brewers for their ninth consecutive victory. Bobby Miller was outstanding, giving up just one run and one hit over 6.0 innings. After giving up a leadoff single in the first frame to Christian Yelich and then walking William Contreras, Miller set down the final 18 Brewers he faced and picked up his seventh win of the season (7-2). Miller is now 2-1 with a 2.59 ERA (9 ER/31.1 IP) and 28 strikeouts in six starts since the All-Star break. Offensively, the Dodgers tied the game at 1-1 in the fifth and then exploded for five runs and six hits in the sixth inning to put the contest away. Mookie Betts and Max Muncy had two hits apiece while Miguel Rojas had two RBI, his second straight multi-RBI game. Kiké Hernández had a key, pinchhit two-run single and is now slashing .308/.351/.500 with seven doubles and 10 RBI in his 16 games with Los Angeles. The Dodgers are 13-3 in those contests. Dodger outfielder Jason Heyward went 1-for-2 with a double, his 16th two-bagger of the season. Heyward last reached that mark in 2019 (20). Excepting the shortened 2020 season, Heyward’s .808 OPS on the season Is his highest since posting an .814 mark in 2012.
SIMPLY THE BEST: Future Hall of Famer Clayton Kershaw will take the ball this evening for the second time since coming off the IL as he seeks win no. 208 in his career. He’s currently two wins behind Don Drysdale for second on the franchise wins list. The left-hander is 10-4 with a 2.51 ERA and 109 strikeouts and sits alone at 21st on the all-time strikeout list (2,916), just behind former teammate Zack Greinke (2,955) for 20th place. Dodger starters have posted a 2.16 ERA (18 ER/75.0 IP) this month, which ranks second in baseball, trailing only the Texas Rangers (2.14). In August, the starters’ WHIP in 0.95, which is tied with Texas for the best in baseball. The Dodger bullpen had their scoreless innings streak stopped at 16.0 last night, but have allowed just one run in their last 19.0 frames, dating back to Aug. 9. This month, the ‘pen has allowed a .605 OBP while posting a 2.88 ERA . Both marks rank third in the NL.
THE MAN: All-Star Mookie Betts went 2-for-4 with an RBI last night and is now slashing .364/.469/.734 with 12 homers, 34 RBI, 37 runs scored and 28 walks in his last 37 games since June 28. Betts ranks third in the NL in home runs with 31 while ranking third in slugging (.579), fourth in OPS (.968), fourth in runs (94) and fifth in walks (69). Since May 1, the 2018 American League MVP is hitting .306 (103-for-337) with 27 homers, 70 RBI and a 1.024 OPS. During that span, he is tied for third in the Majors in homers, third in runs (77), fourth in OPS and tied for third in both RBI and extra-base hits (52). Betts is hitting .366 (34-for-93) with runners in scoring position, which ranks fourth in the Major Leagues. The Dodgers are 35-19 when Betts drives in a run and 19-8 when he hits a home runs this season.
SUPERMAN: Dodger first baseman Freddie Freeman went 0-for-4 last night and is now hitless in his last 13 official at-bats. It’s just the second time this season he has gone three straight games without a hit (also April 11-14). He’s still slashing .413/.483/.712 with 11 doubles, six homers and 20 RBI in his last 26 games since July 17. Freeman was the first player in Dodger history with at least 20 homers and 35 doubles before the end of July and ranks second in the Majors with 101 runs scored, trailing only Ronald Acuña Jr. (109). He also leads the Majors with 43 doubles is tied for first with 68 extra-base hits. Freeman ranks third in hits (158) and average. His career best in runs scored is 120, established in 2021.
TONIGHT’S STARTER vs. BREWERS: LHP CLAYTON KERSHAW (10-4, 2.51 ERA in 17 GS)
2023 SEASON NOTES:
- In his last start against the Rockies on August 10, he tossed 5.0 innings, giving up three hits and one run, while striking out four in the no decision…was his first start since going on the IL July 3 with left shoulder soreness
- Over 16 starts, the Texas native owns a 10-4 record with a 2.55 ERA (27 ER/95.1 IP) with 105 strikeouts against 24 walks and has generated a 1.05 WHIP
- Notched his 200th career win in his start on April 18 against the Mets, making him the only Los Angeles Dodger to win 200 games with the same franchise…joins Don Sutton (233) and Don Drysdale (209) on the Dodger all-time list
- Currently 21st all-time on the Major League strikeout list with 2,912…he needs 88 more to become the 20th player in Major League history with 3,000 strikeouts
- Has fired 6.0+ strikeouts in 11 out of his 16 starts this season
- He was named the National League Pitcher of the Month for April after posting a 5-1 record with a 1.89 ERA (8 ER/38.0 IP) and 41 strikeouts and a 0.76
WHIP VS. BREWERS:
- Will face Milwaukee for the 18th time in his career…is 7-5 with a 2.97 ERA (35 ER/106.0 IP) and 116 strikeouts against 28 walks
- Last faced the club in his last start on May 10, firing 7.0 innings, giving up five hits, one run, and a walk while punching out eight en route to the win
