1992…sixteen long years ago. That was the last time the Milwaukee Brewers sat 15 games above the .500 mark. After a relatively easy win at St. Louis on Wednesday evening, Ned Yost’s club is now 58-43, a full 2.0 games ahead of Tony La Russa and his Cardinals. Unlike the first two games of the series, there was very little drama thanks to another tremendous start by CC Sabathia. He has pitched out of his mind since becoming a Brewer, and now has 3 straight complete game victories. He took a no-hitter into the sixth, and finished only allowing 3 and 2 walks with 7 strikeouts in 9 golden innings. The Brewers offense struggled early on against Braden Looper, and they stranded 13 runners in the game, but J.J. Hardy, Rickie Weeks, and Ryan Braun all stepped up when it mattered most to give the towering lefty all the run support he needed.
In the top of the fifth, Hardy, batting with one out, sent a Looper slider out to left field. It barely cleared the wall, but when it comes to home runs, it doesn’t ever matter how far they go. Up 1-0 in the sixth, Mike Cameron hit a lead-off single, Jason Kendall was hit by a pitch in the arm, and CC Sabathia grounded into what appeared to be a double play ball, but the savvy veteran Kendall slid into second and took out shortstop Brendan Ryan’s legs out from under him, making it impossible to double off the lefty rumbling down the first base line. Rickie Weeks continued to contribute to the offense with a sacrifice fly to bring in Cameron.
Nothing much happened for either team until the top of the ninth, when Ryan Braun got a hold of a high and outside fastball from Jason Isringhausen and sent it opposite field to expand Milwaukee’s lead to 3-0. Sabathia returned to pitch the ninth, and was stellar. He fooled perennial MVP candidate Albert Pujols so badly on a third strike fastball that he lost hold of his bat and it flew out to greet third baseman Bill Hall. Troy Glaus followed with a chopper to Prince Fielder who easily slapped a tag on him to clinch Milwaukee’s sixth straight road victory, a series win at Busch Stadium, and seventh straight victory overall.
Offensive MVP: LF Ryan Braun (4-5/1R/1HR/1RBI/0BB/0K)
Pitching MVP: CC Sabathia (9IP/3H/0HR/0ER/2BB/7SO)
My Take:
It is hard to believe how far these Brewers have come since 2002. That was the year they finished 56-106 under manager Jerry Royster. Despite being criticized at times (more than once by myself) Ned Yost has truly done a spectacular job of righting the ship and bringing meaningful baseball back to Wisconsin. A lot of credit should also go to the amateur scouting director Jack Zduriencik who is the reason fans can see the likes of Prince Fielder, Rickie Weeks, and J.J. Hardy in Brewers uniforms. 101 games into the 2008 season, things are definitely looking good. Without a doubt, Milwaukee is fielding its best team since the days of Yount and Molitor, and it is a real treat to watch. There is no guarantee at this point in the season that ’08 is going to bring postseason baseball back to Wisconsin, but this team is playing with unparalleled confidence, and will actually have a chance to sweep the Cardinals in St. Louis tomorrow.
