The Brewers are finally done with their 10 game road trip. After trips to Cleveland, New York, and Pittsburgh, the Brewers return home today for a seven game home set against the Cubs and Reds before the All-Star break. It was a successful road trip for the Brewers as they went 7-3 after a 6-3 win against the Pirates yesterday. Yes the three teams they faced had below .500 records, but Cleveland is no walk in the park, the Mets can still be one of the top team in all of MLB when healthy, and Pittsburgh we found out can be a scrappy bunch. Even with the injuries and overall mediocre offense throughout most of the year, Milwaukee is playing some of it’s best baseball at the right time.
Colin Rea and Julio Teheran- The Unsung MVP’s
Coming into this season, I doubt you or I would have said the Brewers would be getting seven starts from Julio Teheran and 14 starts from Colin Rea as we hit July. After early season injuries to Wade Miley (who has since come back), Brandon Woodruff, and Eric Lauer, the rotation looked bleak at best. Teheran and Rea, who are both veteran pitchers, have been asked to step up and deliver wins on the mound. They are doing that and then some.
Rea doesn’t seem to make the same mistake twice. Yes he’ll give up a home run here and there, but he battles back and doesn’t let it get to him. In his 14 starts, he’s only not gotten into the fifth inning twice. He’s not flashy, but he knows what he can and can’t do and executes effectively when on the mound.
Teheran is a veteran who has made 243 career starts. He knows what he needs to do as well and does it well. He won’t blow you away with a fastball, but his command and location are accurate and it’s enough to pitch well consistently. Who knows where the Brewers would be without Rea and Teheran.
Is The Offense Coming Along?
I mentioned at the top about the Brewers offense. The are a bottom five team in a lot of offensive categories including batting average. In the Pittsburgh series, the Brewers scored 24 runs in a pitcher friendly ballpark. They also beat both Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander in New York.
For the last few seasons, the offense is hit and miss. This is a time I believe the offense is starting to click at the right time. Now, they can return home to their own ball park, and keep the momentum moving before the all-star break. They will be challenged with some good Cubs pitching in this next series. However, the Cincinnati rotation is not that good and there’s a chance they can score some runs in that series against the team they are currently tied with in the NL Central.
These next seven games matter. It always matters against division rivals. Right now, the Brewers are playing good baseball. We’ll see if they can carry this into the second half of the season.
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