Same song; different verse.  The Milwaukee Brewers bullpen was annihilated Saturday evening as the Brewers fell 8-2 to Cincinnati.  Adam Dunn and Edwin Encarnacion hit back to back home runs off of Eric Gagne in the ninth inning, and despite a good start (6.1 innings, 3ER, 7Ks) by Seth McClung, the Brewers’ offense mustered next to nothing off of rookie sensation Edinson Volquez.  Prince Fielder hit a two run shot in the fourth inning to make a game of it, but the Reds were staked to a 3-0 lead in the first inning that they never relinquished when Adam Dunn hit a three run blast, his first of the game.  Volquez struck out ten in seven two run innings and the Reds bullpen shut down the Brewers to prevent any form of comeback.

My Take:

Who’s ready for the All Star Break?  The Brewers played a decent game until the eighth and ninth innings, when they yielded five runs to the Reds.  Eric Gagne had been pitching well since his return from the disabled list, but he seemed to revert back to his old ways today.  The offense was bested by an extremely good pitcher, so there is really no cause for serious alarm there.  As for the bullpen, it WILL (quote me on this) cost the Brewers October IF it continues to perform this poorly.  Perhaps Milwaukee’s club is simply tiring and needs to recuperate during the upcoming vacation, and if that’s the case, this Brewers fan will welcome the Midsummer Classic with open arms.