The Milwaukee Brewers defeated the Chicago Cubs 9-1 on Saturday Night. Milwaukee was led offensively by Christian Yelich and Hunter Renfroe. Each of them hit home runs and had three hits apiece. They each also drove in two runs. Yelich scored three runs and Renfroe scored twice. Rowdy Tellez also had a home run and three RBI. Eric Lauer, the Brewers’ starting pitcher, pitched seven innings, allowed one run, and struck out 11.
Eric Lauer Made History (Again)
In his previous start, against the Philadelphia Phillies, Eric Lauer struck out 13 batters. He became just the second Brewers lefty to strike out 13 in a game. With 11 strikeouts against the Cubs, Lauer became just the seventh Brewers pitcher to strikeout 10+ batters in consecutive starts. He became just the third pitcher in all of MLB this season to do so, joining Max Scherzer and Corbin Burnes.
Three Major League pitchers have logged double-digit strikeouts in consecutive starts so far this season.
Max Scherzer
Corbin Burnes
Eric Lauer(h/t @MLBastian)
— Adam McCalvy (@AdamMcCalvy) May 1, 2022
With just one earned run allowed, Eric Lauer became the second Brewers pitcher in history to strikeout 11 batters and allow one or fewer runs in consecutive starts. The other: Yovani Gallardo.
Eric Lauer joins Yovani Gallardo as the only pitchers in Brewers history to record consecutive games of 11+ strikeouts and no more than one run allowed.
— Curt Hogg (@CyrtHogg) May 1, 2022
Eric Lauer Is Emerging as One of the Best Pitchers in Baseball
Eric Lauer was acquired by the Brewers, along with Luis Urias, when the Brewers traded Zach Davies and Trent Grisham to the San Diego Padres. Early on, it seemed as if the Padres had gotten the better end of the trade when Grisham won a Gold Glove in 2020. Urias struggled in 2020 and 2021, prompting the Brewers to acquire Willy Adames. Lauer, too, struggled in 2020, going 0-2 with a 13.09 ERA in four games (two starts) for the Brewers in 2020.
2021 was an entirely different story, though, with Luis Urias hitting .249/.345/.445 with 23 home runs and 75 RBI. Eric Lauer was 7-5 with a 3.19 ERA in 24 games (20 starts). This season, Urias is still rehabbing a quad injury, but Lauer has emerged as one of the best pitchers in baseball.
So far this season, Lauer is 2-0 with a 1.93 ERA in four starts. He also owns a 0.99 ERA, 2.45 FIP, and 204 ERA+. Additionally, Lauer has struck out 34 batters in 23.1 innings, good for a 13.1 strikeouts per nine innings ratio. His numbers are even better if one looks back to June of last season.
Best ERAs in baseball since last June 27 (min. 75 innings):
2.04 Julio Urías, Dodgers
2.08 Ranger Suarez, Phillies
2.16 Eric Lauer, Brewers
2.21 Corbin Burnes, Brewers
2.25 Adrian Houser, Brewers— Adam McCalvy (@AdamMcCalvy) May 1, 2022
Since 2021, Lauer has 10 starts in which he pitched at least six innings and allowed one run or less. That is more than Clayton Kershaw and Blake Snell (among others).
The Milwaukee Brewers already boast three All-Stars, including a Cy Young winner, in their rotation. Now Eric Lauer is pitching like an All-Star and Cy Young candidate himself.
The rotation is STACKED!
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