The Brewers collected seven hits off Dodgers starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto, but couldn’t string enough of them together to score more than one run. After today’s loss, the Brewers have now dropped two straight as they head into a series against the division-rival St. Louis Cardinals.
Unlike in the first two games of this series, the Brewers couldn’t put a run on the board in the first inning. Milwaukee finally broke through in the second against Yamamoto, who opened the frame by running a fastball in on Jake
Bauers’ hands. The pitch was initially ruled a foul ball, but Bauers challenged the call. Replay clearly showed the ball hit his hand, sending Bauers to first with nobody out.
After Andrew Vaughn struck out for the first out of the inning, Garrett Mitchell lined a single into center to put runners on the corners. Sal Frelick followed with a slow chopper to second that wasn’t hit hard enough to turn two — or even elicit a throw from shortstop Mookie Betts, who was covering the bag. Mitchell was thrown out at second, but Jake Bauers crossed the plate with the game’s first run.
Despite walking three batters and allowing a double to Kyle Tucker, starting pitcher Brandon Sproat managed to escape the first two innings unscathed. He retired Betts, Freddie Freeman, and Tucker in order in the third. However, as has happened in a few different starts this season, Sproat started to fall apart after that. Despite tying his career high with seven strikeouts in the fourth inning, he allowed two singles and hit Miguel Rojas, then gave the Dodgers a run on a wild pitch.
Sproat managed to escape the fourth by inducing a groundout off the bat of Shohei Ohtani, but the fifth would be a different story. Betts led off with a single, then Sproat walked Freeman. At 89 pitches, that would be all for the rookie right-hander. Brewers manager Pat Murphy brought in Shane Drohan to face Kyle Tucker, who ripped a grounder down the right-field line and into the corner for a two-run triple.
Drohan’s very next pitch was a 92 mph cutter up and in to Andy Pages, who made him pay, launching it deep into the left-field seats for a two-run homer. Drohan retired the next three batters, but the damage was already done, as the Dodgers extended their lead to 5-1.
Meanwhile, Yamamoto settled in after the second inning and cruised through the middle frames. He didn’t allow another run and entered the seventh inning at just 74 pitches. The Brewers weren’t completely overmatched — they collected seven hits off Yamamoto — but every one of them was a single. Milwaukee also went 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position against Yamamoto and grounded into a pair of double plays, which usually isn’t enough to keep pace with the formidable Dodgers lineup.
Reliever Will Klein came in for the eighth and retired Jackson Chourio, Brice Turang, and William Contreras in order, and the Brewers fared no better against Tanner Scott in the ninth.
Looking on the bright side, Milwaukee won’t have to wait long to try and get back in the win column. They’ll welcome the Cardinals to American Family Field for a rare Monday day game. First pitch for tomorrow’s series opener is set for 1:10 p.m.
