Best Play (WPA):
If you started watching this game anytime after the first inning, you missed all of the scoring.
In fact, the bottom of the first was the only half inning that saw any scoring. Wily Peralta was pitching for the Brewers, and after striking out the leadoff hitter, he walked Eugenio Suarez. Joey Votto then flew out to center field.
Peralta was, therefore, in a good position to get out of the inning without giving up any damage. But, it was not to be. Brandon Phillips and Adam Duvall were the next two batters, and they both singled to load the bases.
Scott Schebler was the next batter, and on a 3-1 count, he singled on a ground ball scoring two runs. This was the biggest moment of the game, as it gave the Reds the lead, one they would not relinquish. The Reds would go on to add one more run in the inning, which gave them a 3-0 lead.
That score ended up being the final score of the game.
Worst Play (WPA):
In the fifth inning, the Brewers were still losing 3-0. Maldonado started off the frame by striking out on three pitches. Peralta, though, helped his own cause by hitting a single with one man out.
The next batter was Jonathan Villar, who worked a walk. Villar’s walk was followed by a Scooter Gennett strike out. Then came the red-hot Ryan Braun, who also worked a walk, loading the bases for, Hernan Perez.
You, in some ways, already know the end result. The Brewers didn’t score a run in the inning, because, on the second pitch of the at-bat, Perez flew out to left field to end the Brewers best chance of scoring in the game.
Trend to Watch:
Brent Suter was called up on August 19th. Since being in the majors, he has mostly pitched out of the bullpen, as he has only had one start.
Suter performed fairly well in the minors, consistently managing ERAs in the three’s. Suter has been able to do that thus far in the majors since being called up. His ERA is at 3.27. But, his peripheral numbers are very concerning. His FIP is at 5.23, his xFIP is at 4.86 and his DRA is at 4.57. Those aren’t very good numbers.
If you’ve seen Suter pitch, you know that he doesn’t throw very hard. In fact, the left-hander throws in the low 80s, which in today’s game is almost unheard of.
With that initial description, I assumed that Suter wasn’t striking a lot of batters out. While he doesn’t put out the strike out numbers of the Jose Fernandez of the world, he still strikes out 7.4 batters per nine innings, which is respectable. His walk rate is a little high at 3.3, but nothing unheard of. No, Suter’s real problem is with the home run ball. He’s giving up 1.6 home runs per nine innings, which is quite high, and his HR/FB ratio is at 15.4 percent. The average for HR/FB ratio is generally around 9.5 percent. 15.4 percent is generally seen as awful.
The problem with pitchers that throw as slowly as Suter does is that they can’t make that many mistakes. As I’ve written before, Zach Davies struggles with the same problem, and so does Dallas Keuchel. Soft throwers such as these pitchers need to live on the edges of the strike zone, because if they make that one mistake, it could end up in the seats.
Now, obviously, more sample needs to be gathered for Suter. But, if Suter wants to have any success at this level, he’s going to have to try and limit the home run ball as best he can.
Coming up Next:
The Brewers will be back in action again today against the Reds. Unfortunately, it won’t be a match up to write home about. Matt Garza will get the nod for the Brewers, and Anthony DeSclafani will be pitching for the Reds. DeSclafani has actually pitched pretty well this year, better than Garza at least, as he stands with a 4.03 DRA. The Brewers will, therefore, have to come up with a better offensive performance if they want to have success in this game.