Game 14 Recap: Brewers 6 Twins 5

Quick Recap: Scooter Gennett’s 9^th inning single scored Yasiel Rivera to give the Brewers a 6-5 win over the Minnesota Twins.

Top Play (WPA): Oddly enough, the top play of the game according to WPA occurred in the bottom of the 8^th inning when Eddie Rosario came off the bench to hit a two-run home run, which tied the game at 5. The play was worth .391 by WPA. All three Twins runs that inning were scored off Tyler Thornburg, who nonetheless managed to be credited with the win for his 1.1 IP and three runs allowed performance. Thornburg had previously only allowed three baserunners and no runs in his five appearances this season.

Worst Play (WPA): The worst play of the game was Miguel Sano’s double play with the bases loaded in the 1^st inning. WPA recorded the play at -.099 as Sano had a chance to give the Twins a lead after the Brewers started the game with two runs. Eduardo Nunez scored on the grounder, but the two outs saved the Brewers.

Wily Peralta was the starter for yesterday’s game, and based on the first eight batters it looked like another disaster start. Peralta loaded the bases in the first two innings. He was saved by Sano’s double play in the first, which he followed up by striking out Oswaldo Arcia. In the second, he allowed the first three batters to reach base (two singles and a walk). He wiggled out of the second jam with a fielder’s choice, a grounder to short (which scored a run), and then another grounder to Joe Mauer, but not before he walked Brian Dozier to load the bases again. Peralta was over 40 pitches in those two innings and it looked like the Twins were going to break the game open.

Then, something magical happened: Peralta settled down, and including that Mauer grounder, recorded 10 outs in a row. Crain Counsell pulled Peralta from the game after allowing the first two batters in the 6^th inning to reach base, but based on those first eight batters, managing to only allow 2 runs in 6+ innings was a minor miracle. Questions still remain regarding Peralta’s viability as a productive member of the rotation, but at least for one day he kept the Brewers in a position to win the game.

Trends to Watch: Scooter Gennett has been getting a lot of attention from this site as we all try and make sense of whether any what he’s shown this season is sustainable. Just yesterday his walk rate and swing rate were reviewed. I wrote one of these recaps last week and Scooter was mentioned in this very space. Well, one other aspect to look at is his pitches per plate appearance. Gennett doesn’t need to become a league leader in this category, but this can be another sign that he’s exhibiting patience and waiting for pitches to hit. He currently is seeing 4.20 pitches per plate appearance, up from 3.50 in 2015, and yesterday he worked 21 pitches in his 5 at bats, maintaining his average. Gennett has given Brewers fans another stat to keep an eye on.

As Thornburg gave up his first runs of the season, Jeremy Jeffress continued his scoreless streak to start the season and got his fifth save. Interestingly, he got the save without a strikeout. While his K/9 is down from 2015 (8.9 compared to 7.9 this year), it’s too early to read anything into 6 appearances. This may be something to keep an eye on as the season progresses.

Up Next: I guess the baseball equivalent of a home and home series picks up in Milwaukee tomorrow night as the Brewers and Twins begin a two game series at Miller Park. Jimmy Nelson gets the start for Milwaukee and Tommy Milone will pitch for Minnesota. Milone has given up two home runs amongst twelve hits and 6 earned runs (8 total) in his first two starts this year against the Royals and Angels. Nelson posted quality starts in his three starts of the year and will look to continue his streak.