After losing two of three to the Cincinnati Reds, the Milwaukee Brewers conclude their road trip this weekend in Miami. They will take on the Marlins who are 14-17. Here is what you can expect and look for in this three game series.
Probable Pitching Matchups
Friday- Corbin Burnes vs. Pablo Lopez
Saturday- Eric Lauer vs. Trevor Rodgers
Sunday- Brandon Woodruff vs. Elieser Hernandez
Can the Offense Build On?
Despite losing the series to the Reds, the Brewer offense put up 21 runs in three games. The highlight of the series was the Christian Yelich cycle yesterday, his third career cycle (all against the Reds). Hunter Renfroe hit two home runs and seems to be starting to find his groove at the plate. Offense wasn’t the problem and it’s probably good it was at one of the most hitter friendly ball parks in the league.
The Marlins have a pitcher friendly park so the home run ball may not be there this weekend. It’ll be important for the Brewers to get runners in scoring position and drive them home when they have those opportunities.
The Pitching Needs To Be Better
Its great the offense put on a good show in Cincinnati because the pitching did not. 21 runs will win you just about every series you play. However, the Brewers pitchers gave up 28 runs to the worst team in baseball by a good margin. Brandon Woodruff continues to struggle and Adrian Houser had his second poor start in a row.
I’m not too worried about pitching as this is the worst they’ve looked all year and might be the worst they’ll look. This is still a top 5 staff in all of MLB. They ran into a few rough days and maybe a pitcher friendly park will get them back on track.
Brandon Woodruff Needs A Bounce Back Outing
Although it’s early in the season, it’s been a rocky start for Brandon Woodruff. He’s been giving up big innings ans struggling with pitch count. So far, he’s 2-2 with an ERA of 6.37. He gets the ball Sunday so I’ll be watching to see how we responds after getting roughed up in his last start against Cincinnati,
Make no mistake about it: Woodruff is an excellent pitcher who is one of the game’s best when he is at his best. The Brewers need him to be more consistent if they want to keep their position at the top of the NL Central. I have no doubt Woodruff will get better, but I hope that begins Sunday against the Marlins.
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