The Milwaukee Brewers will face yet another NL Central rival this week, as they’re welcoming the Cincinnati Reds to town for four games. Given that Milwaukee played the Reds less than a week ago, I won’t do my full recap of both teams.
After the Brewers swept the Reds at Great American Ballpark, Milwaukee returned home to host the Cubs. They took the opening game of the series behind another strong showing from Jacob Misiorowski before dropping the final two of the series, though they still hold a 5.5-game
lead on the division with July on tap.
On the other side, the Reds bounced back nicely in Pittsburgh this weekend, taking two of three from the Pirates as the offense finally showed up (19 runs over three games).
In injury news, the Brewers’ only real update is the return of Jared Koenig, who was activated from the injured list on Friday. His return is big for a Brewer bullpen that went from a surplus to a deficit of left-handers in rapid fashion — Milwaukee’s current IL consists of four bullpen lefties, which left Aaron Ashby as the lone healthy lefty before Koenig’s return.
The Reds didn’t get anyone back, but they did lose outfielder Blake Dunn and right-hander Tony Santillan. Santillan was put on the injured list with an oblique strain, meaning he’ll be out until at least after the All-Star break, while Dunn is currently listed with a TBD return after being shelved with a right elbow sprain.
As a reminder on these two teams’ offenses, the Brewers rank in the top 10 in most offensive categories despite ranking near the bottom in homers, with just 73 as a team (tied for 26th entering Sunday). The Reds, on the other hand, have 100 homers (ranks 12th), but they rank in the bottom-third of the league in OPS (.700) and runs scored (346).
Milwaukee’s pitching staff ranks near the top of the league in ERA (3.42 ERA ranks second) and strikeouts (first with 788 over 716 2/3 innings), while the Reds rank near the bottom in both (4.51 ERA and 652 strikeouts both rank 23rd).
Probable Pitchers
Monday, June 29 @ 6:40 p.m.: LHP Robert Gasser (1-3, 4.50 ERA, 5.14 FIP) vs. LHP Nick Lodolo (2-2, 5.59 ERA, 5.38 FIP)
Gasser, who hasn’t pitched since last Sunday in Atlanta, has made six starts this season, totaling 30 innings with a 4.50 ERA, 5.14 FIP, and 31 strikeouts. He’s looked solid in his last two outings against the Guardians and Braves, totaling 11 2/3 innings with two runs allowed on six hits and three walks, striking out 12. Gasser’s lone appearance against the Reds (last September) was a bit of a strange one on the stat line, as he went 2 2/3 innings, allowing four runs (none earned) on four hits and two walks, striking out three. He took the loss despite a 0.00 ERA.
Lodolo, 28, has had a bit of a disappointing season with a 5.59 ERA, 5.38 FIP, and 38 strikeouts over 46 2/3 innings, though he’s coming off a solid outing against these Brewers. He went four innings in that one, allowing no runs on two hits and a walk while striking out six on just 75 pitches before being removed after a comebacker off his left wrist. In seven career appearances (six starts) against Milwaukee, Lodolo is 1-1 with a 2.52 ERA and 35 strikeouts across 35 2/3 innings.
Tuesday, June 30 @ 6:40 p.m.: RHP Brandon Sproat (2-4, 5.43 ERA, 5.07 FIP) vs. RHP Rhett Lowder (3-5, 4.81 ERA, 4.68 FIP)
Sproat, who had a really rough first couple of months of the season, has looked a lot better in his last few outings. While he still has a 5.43 ERA and 5.07 FIP across 69 2/3 innings, his only real blemish in his last two outings is a pair of homers, one of which was, unfortunately, a grand slam. Against the A’s, Guardians, and these same Reds, he totaled 15 2/3 innings with five earned runs on seven hits and three walks, striking out 19. His last appearance was easily the best of those, as he went six scoreless against Cincinnati, allowing just one hit and a hit by pitch while striking out 10 on 80 pitches. Outside of that, Sproat’s only other appearance against Cincy came in his debut last season, when he went six innings and allowed three runs with seven strikeouts. Let’s hope this outing is more like last week’s.
Lowder, 24, is having a pretty “meh” season thus far, with a 4.81 ERA, 4.68 FIP, and 48 strikeouts across 58 innings through 12 starts. His last appearance came against Milwaukee last week, as he allowed three runs on eight hits and a walk, striking out six across 5 2/3 innings in a 6-5 loss. That was Lowder’s second career appearance against Milwaukee, as he’s now 0-2 with four runs allowed and 12 strikeouts over 9 2/3 innings.
Wednesday, July 1 @ 7:10 p.m.: LHP Shane Drohan (3-2, 3.12 ERA, 3.15 FIP) vs. LHP Andrew Abbott (5-4, 3.90 ERA, 5.05 FIP)
Drohan, who has become the sixth man of Milwaukee’s rotation, has been solid in this role his last few times out. He’s 3-2 with a 3.12 ERA, 3.15 FIP, and 52 strikeouts over 52 innings this season, and his last five appearances have come as a starter. He went 4 1/3 innings against these Reds in his last appearance, allowing no runs but giving up five hits and three walks while striking out five on 98 pitches. He’ll look to provide more length in this outing.
Abbott, 27, was an All-Star last season in his third year with the Reds, but he hasn’t been quite as sharp in 2026. While he still has a 3.90 ERA, that outpaces his 5.05 FIP by more than a run, and he’s striking out batters at a much lower clip, with just 70 over 90 innings. He got hit for four runs (three earned) over 5 1/3 innings in his last appearance against the Pirates, striking out six in a no-decision. In eight career starts against the Brewers, he’s 3-4 with a 3.74 ERA and 44 strikeouts across 45 2/3 innings. That includes three starts last season, when he went 1-1 with eight runs allowed over 18 1/3 innings (3.93 ERA).
Thursday, July 2 @ 1:10 p.m.: RHP Jacob Misiorowski (9-3, 1.45 ERA, 1.84 FIP) vs. TBD
Misiorowski remains among league leaders in most major pitching stats, including sitting atop the leaderboard in ERA (1.45), FIP (1.84), strikeouts (146), and WHIP (0.768). He picked up another win his last time out against the Cubs, going six strong innings with eight strikeouts and one run allowed on two hits and four walks. While he didn’t face the Reds in the most recent series, he did make two appearances against them last season, though without much success. He went 3 2/3 total innings over a start and a relief appearance, allowing seven runs (six earned) on seven hits and six walks, striking out six, though if you’ll recall, that really rough start was the game in which Milwaukee trailed 8-1 only to ultimately win 10-8.
While the Reds haven’t yet announced a starter for Thursday’s series finale, this would be Chase Burns’ spot in the rotation, which would make this a true pitchers’ duel. Burns, 23, has looked fantastic in his second MLB season, as he has a 9-1 record with a 2.36 ERA, 3.17 FIP, and 112 strikeouts over 91 2/3 innings this season. The Brewers missed him in his last turn through the rotation, but he got roughed up by the Pirates over the weekend, allowing five runs on nine hits while striking out 10 over six-plus innings. His only appearance against Milwaukee came last September, when he pitched 1 2/3 innings in relief, allowing no runs on no hits and a pair of walks while striking out four.
How to Watch & Listen
Monday, June 29: Brewers TV; listen via radio on the Brewers Radio Network (620 WTMJ in Milwaukee)
Tuesday, June 30: Brewers TV; listen via radio on the Brewers Radio Network (620 WTMJ in Milwaukee)
Wednesday, July 1: Exclusively on ESPN/ESPN App; listen via radio on the Brewers Radio Network (620 WTMJ in Milwaukee)
Thursday, July 2: Brewers TV; listen via radio on the Brewers Radio Network (620 WTMJ in Milwaukee)
Prediction
As I’ve mentioned before, this may be the most important stretch of the season for the Brewers, given how many games they’re playing against the NL Central. I don’t think that’s lost on Pat Murphy & Co. Give me Milwaukee to take two of three.
