MILWAUKEE BREWERS NOTES:
WHAT’S BREWING?
Today’s Transactions
LHP Bennett Sousa (SUE-suh) was recalled from Triple-A Nashville….. Sousa was acquired from Cincinnati on April 9 in exchange for cash and international bonus pool money….. RHP Jake Cousins has been optioned to Nashville.
Enough Is Enough
The Brewers tonight are looking to snap a season-high 4-game losing streak…..Corbin Burnes is 12-5 with a 2.85 ERA in 31 career starts following a team loss (183.1ip, 58er)…..he has tossed 8.0 shutout innings in each of his lasts 2 starts after a Brewers loss (9/30/22 vs. MIA & 4/11/23 at ARI).
The San Francisco Treat
In 3 starts against the Giants in 2022, Corbin Burnes had 11, 10 and 14 strikeouts…..he is looking to become the first pitcher in franchise history with 10+ K in 4 straight starts against a single opponent…..the feat has been done in 3 straight starts four times.
Pitcher Opponent
Ben Sheets (2004-06) ……………Cincinnati
Zack Greinke (2011-12) ……………Cincinnati
Corbin Burnes (2021) …………Chicago-NL
Corbin Burnes (2022) …… San Francisco
When Willy Do It?
Willy Adames is just one homer away from 100 for his Major League career. Most HR as a Shortstop MLB Since 2019
Player HR
Willy Adames, MIL ……………………….. 89
Xander Bogaerts, SD ……………………… 86
Francisco Lindor, NYM ………………….. 86
Don’t Mess With Bill
William Contreras has reached base safely in 23 of his 24 games in 2023, including each of his last 12 contests.
Let’s Get Rowdy!
Over his last 18 games, Rowdy Tellez is batting .317 (20-for-63) with 7 HR and 17 RBI…..he is on a 7-game hitting streak during which he is batting .333 (9-for-27) with 2 HR and 5 RBI.
NL Leaders – HR
Player HR
Max Muncy, LAD ……………………………….12
Pete Alonso, NYM ………………………………11
Patrick Wisdom, CHC ………………………..11
Rowdy Tellez, MIL……………………………9
Ozzie Albies, ATL ……………………………….9
Matt Olson, ATL ………………………………….9
NL Leaders – Runs
Player Runs
Ronald Acuña Jr., ATL …………………… 29
Matt Olson, ATL ………………………………..27
Christian Yelich, MIL ……………………. 25
Freddie Freeman, LAD …………………… 25
Devin Sent
Through 10 outings (9.1ip) in 2023, Devin Williams has yet to surrender a run…..opponents are batting just .156 (5-for-32, 3bb, 14k) and he is a perfect 5-for-5 in save opportunities.
BREWERS vs. GIANTS
SUMMARY: Are 78-94 all-time, including 3-4 last season.
at MIL: Are 44-46 all-time, going 37-38 at American Family Field and 7-8 at County Stadium…..went 2-1 last season.
at SF: Are 34-48 all-time, going 29-44 at Oracle Park and 5-4 at Candlestick Park…..went 1-3 last season.
THIS EVENING’S GAME: Is game 4 (0-3) of a 6-game road trip to Colorado (0-3) and San Francisco (3g)…..the team returns to American Family Field following this trip for 6 games in 7 days against Los Angeles-NL (3g) and Kansas City (3g).
IN THE TRAINER’S ROOM: RHP Jason Alexander (right rotator cuff), LHP Aaron Ashby (left labrum), RHP Matt Bush (right rotator cuff), RHP Adrian Houser (right groin), OF Garrett Mitchell (left shoulder), INF Luis Urías (left hamstring), RHP Gus Varland (right hand), LHP Justin Wilson (left elbow) and RHP Brandon Woodruff (right shoulder) are on the injured list…..Alexander, Ashby, Mitchell, Urías and Wilson are on the 60-day IL.
IN THE STANDINGS (36 days): The Brewers have spent the following number of days alone or tied at each position in the NL Central standings: FIRST: 22, SECOND: 12, THIRD: 2, FOURTH: 0, FIFTH: 0…..the team is currently in second place, trailing the firstplace Pirates by 1.5 games…..the team has been in second place for 12 straight days.
SERIES-LY SPEAKING: The Brewers are 6-4-0 in series play.
Game 1: 5-5, Game 2: 7-3, Game 3: 5-5, Game 4: 1-0
Sweep Wins (2): vs. NYM (3g, 4/3-4/5), at SEA (3g, 4/17-4/19)
Sweep Losses (1): at COL (3g, 5/2-5/4)
AT HOME: The Brewers are 9-6 at home, going 3-2-0 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 9-7 on the road, going 3-2-0 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 five replay challenges this season, going 2-3…..their last challenge (won) came on 5/4 at Colorado as a hit by pitch (Charlie Blackmon) was overturned to a foul ball.
TONIGHT’S STARTER: #39 – RHP CORBIN BURNES (6gs, 3-1, 4.01)
BURNES AT A GLANCE: Corbin Burnes, 28, is making his seventh start…..Burnes last started last Saturday vs. Los Angeles-AL in a 7-5 win (6ip, 5h, 1r, 1er, 1bb, 5k, 1hbp, 91 pitches)…..the team is 4-2 in his starts…..he has 2 quality starts…..opponents are batting .225 (27-for-120, 3hr)…..Burnes was selected by Milwaukee in the fourth round of the 2016 First-Year Player Draft out of St. Mary’s (CA) College…..he is under club control through 2024.
LAST SEASON: Burnes went 12-8 with a 2.94 ERA in 33 starts last season, finishing seventh in NL Cy Young Award voting after winning the award in 2021…..Burnes was an All-Star for the second straight season and was named Brewers Most Valuable Pitcher for the second year in a row…..his career-high 243 strikeouts led the National League and ranked second in the majors behind the Yankees’ Gerrit Cole (257)…..he became the first pitcher in franchise history to lead his league in strikeouts…..he also ranked among the NL top five in starts (T1st, 33), AVG (2nd, .197), K/9IP (2nd, 10.83), H/9IP (2nd, 6.42), innings pitched (4th, 202.0), K/BB (4th, 4.76), quality starts (T4th, 21) and WHIP (5th, 0.97)…..the team went 20-13 in his starts.
CY BURNES: Burnes won the 2021 National League Cy Young Award after going 11-5 with a Major League-best 2.43 ERA in 28 starts…..he became the third pitcher in franchise history to win a Cy Young Award, joining Rollie Fingers (1981) and Pete Vuckovich (1982)…..he became the first pitcher in franchise history to lead his league in ERA.
CAREER: Is 38-20 with a 3.26 ERA in 141 games/80 starts (549.1ip, 199er)…..is in his sixth Major League season, all with the Brewers (2018-23)…..is 30-17 with a 3.00 ERA as a starter (467.1ip, 156er) and 8-3 with a 4.72 ERA in relief (82ip, 43er)…..Burnes is a two-time All-Star (2021-22) and was a 2021 All-MLB First Team selection.
CAREER AT AMERICAN FAMILY FIELD: Is 18-12 with a 3.56 ERA in 69 games/42 starts (288ip, 114er)…..is 0-0 with a 7.71 ERA in 2 starts this season (9.1ip, 8er)…..went 7-4 with a 3.04 ERA in 18 starts last season (109.2ip, 37er)…..
CAREER ON THE ROAD: Is 20-8 with a 2.93 ERA in 72 games/38 starts (261.1ip, 85er)…..is 2-1 with a 2.95 ERA in 3 starts this season (18.1ip, 6er)…..went 5-4 with a 2.83 ERA in 15 starts last season (92.1ip, 29er).
CAREER vs. GIANTS: Is 3-1 with a 2.25 ERA in 12 games/5 starts (40ip, 10er), including 1-0 with a 0.82 ERA in 3 starts last season (22ip, 2er)…..he notched strikeout totals of 11, 10 and 14, respectively, in those starts in 2022.
SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS NOTES:
TODAY’S GAME: The Giants return home from their quick, but straining five-game road trip on a high note after taking two of three vs. the defending World Series Champion Houston Astros…they’ll kick off their six-game homestand today with game one of three against the Milwaukee Brewers.
ACE CITY: San Francisco has received excellent production from their starting staff this season…over their last 11 games, SF starters are 5-1 with an MLB-best 2.80 ERA…overall, the Giants rotation has a 3.40 ERA (fifth in MLB) with a league-low 32 walks in 156.0 innings…in the three-game series at Houston, SF’s three starters, RHP Ross Stripling, RHP Anthony DeSclafani and RHP Logan Webb, combined to go 2-0 with a 1.74 ERA (4er, 20.2 ip) and a .176 opposing batting average.
SETTING THE TONE: The Giants are tied for second in fewest runs allowed in the 1st inning this season, with nine, trailing only Texas’ eight (Stats, LLC)…SF also has a +10 run differential in the 1st inning, which ranks fourth.
GET RIGHT…GET LEFT GAME: LHP Sean Manaea, is off to a rough start to his Giants career…his 7.85 ERA is the fifth worst through their first six games as a Giant since 1958 per Stats, LLC (min. 15.0ip)…Milwaukee offers a chance for Manaea to right the ship as the Brewers have a .605 OPS vs. lefties this season, which is the lowest in the Majors.
HOMER HAPPY: The Giants have hit 49 home runs through 30 games, fourth most in the Majors behind the Rays (67), Dodgers (54) and Braves (54)…the Giants have homered in 23 of their 30 contests and have received home runs from 12 different players…nine Giants have at least four homers, which is second-best in MLB…Per Stats, LLC, SF has scored 58.5% of their runs on homers in 2023 (79/135).
ATTACK: Led by IF/OF LaMonte Wade Jr., the Giants have received great production from their leadoff spot (.964 OPS is second in MLB)…Wade’s .463 on-base percentage as a leadoff hitter is best in the Majors, and his 1.037 OPS ranks second behind Tampa Bay IF Yandy Diaz…overall, Wade’s 21.7% walk rate ranks second, and his .442 on-base percentage is third in MLB.
PYRO THAIRO: IF Thairo Estrada’s hot end to April made him the Giants’ all-time leader in hits (36) before May (Stats, LLC)…entering play today, Estrada ranks inside MLB’s top-10 in hits (39, T-9th), batting average (.342, 4th), BABIP (.417, 4th), and stolen bases (9, T-10th). SF, Best AVG in first 30 team games of season since 1996; min. 100 PA (Stats, LLC)
DON’T WAIT: Sports Info Solutions notes that the Giants have a 1.075 OPS and .384 batting average on the first pitch of an at-bat…SF also has nine home runs (fifth).
LATE-GAME WOES: The Giants were able to hold off Houston’s late push on Wednesday, but did allow two runs in the eighth… SF pitchers have surrendered 72 runs in the 7th inning or later, which is third to Chicago-AL (81) and Oakland (74)…while the Astros were the best at scoring late runs (64, second in MLB), the Brewers have not created much offense, ranking 19th with 42 runs, 27th with a .206 batting average and 21st with a .638 OPS.
BREAK OUT THE LITTLE RED MACHINE: Giants infielders should have their work cut out for them this homestand… SF pitchers lead the Majors with a 49.2% ground ball rate… Milwaukee hitters have combined for a 47.1% ground ball rate (fourth in MLB), while Washington is third with a 47.4% ground ball rate.
RALLY TIME: SF’s .855 OPS in the 9th inning is second best this season, trailing Tampa Bay’s 1.205 mark…the Giants have also hit six homers and scored 18 9th inning runs, with both ranking second (SIS).
HELLO WISCONSIN: DH Joc Pederson has feasted on Milwaukee pitching throughout his career…his 13 big flies vs. the Brewers are his most against non-NL West foes (Stats, LLC) and his .954 OPS is best against teams he faced at least 15 times.
SCRATCHING THE SURFACE: IF Casey Schmitt has started three straight games at second base for Triple-A Sacramento… normally manning the left-side of the infield, Schmitt’s time at second this past week is his first action at the keystone position since 2018 while at San Diego State…Schmitt lined his first home run of the season on Wednesday, and is batting .310 for Sacramento with 16 runs and 21 RBI through 30 games…the Giants continued to bolster their Triple-A middle infield depth with the promotion of IF Tyler Fitzgerald…the 25-year-old won the April Eastern League Player of the Month award with Double-A Richmond, batting .324 with a .998 OPS to earn the move to Sacramento.
TODAY’S STARTER – SEAN MANAEA LHP #52
2023 RECORD: 0-1, 7.85
WITH THE GIANTS: His first season with Giants…signed two-year, $25 million contract with San Francisco this offseason after spending 2022 with San Diego.
LAST OUTING: The high elevation spoiled the potential revenge game for Manaea…the lefty allowed five runs, four earned, on five hits, four walks and a home run in 2.0 innings vs. San Diego in Mexico City on April 29…Manaea took a hard shot in the 1st inning when DH Nelson Cruz lined a comebacker 107.6 MPH off the pitcher’s leg, yet Manaea remained in the game.
VS. MILWAUKEE: Manaea has two career starts vs. the Brewers, both in Milwaukee, with his last outing coming in June of last season with San Diego…the lefty struck out eight while allowing one run on five hits and two walks over 6.0 innings, but a blown save by current SF LHP Taylor Rogers resulted in a comeback victory for the Brewers…none of the 11 Brewers with history against the southpaw have knocked in a run outside of IF Luke Voit, who is 1-for-2 with a home run and a walk.
LEFT ON READ: The Brewers could be the perfect team to get Manaea back on track…Milwaukee has struggled against lefties all season, posting a .605 OPS, which is last in the Majors…the Brewers also have eight homers vs. southpaws, which is tied for 20th while Manaea has allowed 1.79 HR/9 since the start of last season, which is second-highest in MLB.
HOME SWEET HOME: Manaea has traditionally been much better at home than on the road in his career…although he’s allowed four home runs at home compared to two on the road, his numbers have been better at Oracle Park…Manaea has a 5.73 ERA, 13 strikeouts and a 1.09 WHIP in 11.0 frames at home compared to a 11.05 ERA, eight strikeouts and a 2.45 WHIP in 7.1 road innings…overall, Manaea has a 3.73 ERA in 459.0 innings at home compared to a 4.56 ERA in 444.1 innings as the away pitcher.
FROM DIEGO TO THE BAY: All eight seasons in the Majors have been with California teams, pitching for Oakland 2016-2021, and San Diego in 2022…despite the Giants being his third team, Gabe Kapler is Manaea’s second MLB manager as former Oakland skipper Bob Melvin also left for San Diego in 2022.
CALIFORNIA LOVE: Manaea was 8-9 with a 4.96 ERA (87 ER, 158.0 IP) in 30 games (28 starts)…he struck out 156, the second highest mark of his career, in his first National League season…allowed 29 home runs, a career-high…his 1.65 home runs per nine innings were the most among pitchers with at least 150.0 innings.
