CC Sabathia was far from perfect, and for the first seven innings of Wednesday’s game, so, as usual, were the Brewer bats.  But frame number 8 was the charm, as Milwaukee completed the rally from down 3-1 for a critical victory in front of 30,124 fans at Miller Park.  The Brewers are headed to Philadelphia, Chicago, and Cincinnati for the most brutal, and final, roadtrip of 2008, so had they been swept by the lowly Reds, morale would have been dangerously low.  Thanks to Tony Gwynn Jr. and (more importantly) Mike Cameron, another crushing loss was flipped around into an emphatic 4-3 victory.  Down 1, J.J. Hardy started things off with a single, and Ryan Braun followed with a walk.  Prince Fielder hit a sharp liner to left that fell for a single and loaded the bases for Gwynn, who grounded into a productive double play that tied the game at 3-3.  Then, bucking the recent trend of Milwaukee hitters failing to come up in the clutch, Mike Cameron was as clutch as he could be, lining a 2-strike pitch with 2 outs to score Braun from third.  Salomon Torres would have no more Cincinnati heroics at his expense, and he wiped out the three men to greet him in the ninth with three strikeouts.  Both close-trailing Wild Card teams, Philadelphia and St. Louis, lost, so Milwaukee earned themselves a little more breathing room heading to the City of Brotherly Love.

Offensive MVP: Mike Cameron (1-3/1R/1RBI/1BB/1K)

Pitching MVP: Salomon Torres (1IP/0H/0ER/0BB/3SO/0HR/Save-27th)

Alex’s Take:

This one was not pretty.  Milwaukee scored half of their 4 runs off of errors, but hey, they did come through in the clutch against a good pitcher in David Weathers.  This was a badly needed victory, but only the next seven days will tell whether or not the 2008 Milwaukee Brewers have a legitimate chance at ending Brew City’s 26 year postseason drought.

Jeff Suppan wasn’t great, but his bullpen was, at least until it mattered most.  Suppan went 5.1 innings and gave up 4 runs on 6 hits, including 2 homeruns.  Prince Fielder drove Rickie Weeks in from second in the first, but Milwaukee found itself playing from behind late.  Then in the seventh, Bill Hall walked and Jason Kendall was hit by a pitch to set the stage for pinch hitter Ray Durham.  He blasted a three-run, game-tying homer to right field to wake up the crowd, but sadly, the hit did not wake up his teammates’ bats.  They went on to strand scoring opportunity after scoring opportunity in the ninth and tenth innings.  They even got solid relief pitching, but it didn’t matter.  The Reds won 5-4 on an RBI single by Brandon Phillips, and Milwaukee lost their 7th game of this absolutely pitiful homestand.  They are now 2-7 on it.

Offensive MVP: Reds 2B Brandon Phillips (1-5/1R/1RBI/1BB/1K)

Pitching MVP: Reds CP Francisco Cordero (1IP/0H/0ER/0BB/1SO/0HR/Save-29th)

Alex’s Take:

I believed before the game that a loss tonight would almost definitely break the Brewers’ morale and send them spiraling into weeks of more bad baseball that would knock them out of the playoff hunt.  The game I saw tonight, though the outcome stung mightily, did not look like a team that was ready to fold.  Ned Yost really didn’t make a bad decision at all in managing his bullpen, though putting in Eric Gagne might’ve been a little questionable.  Seth McClung blowing the game, well, Yost didn’t have a lot of experienced guys to pitch in a pressure situation, and unfortunately, the big righty couldn’t keep the game tied.  As for the offense, things still look pretty bleak in the middle of the order, but hopefully Durham’s emphatic homerun will spark something, though it didn’t Tuesday.  It’s strange to me, because I thought for sure I would totally give up on 2008 with a loss that eventually did happen, but the Phillies and Cubs both lost, CC Sabathia is pitching tomorrow in a game the Brewers desperately need to win, and who better to have on the mound in a game you desperately need?  The thing is, they are up 3.0 games in the Wild Card with 17 games remaining.  A ten game monster road trip is right around the corner, and these are the cold, hard facts.  The Crew must simply SURVIVE the trip, go 5-5 (4-6 with wins against the right teams could cut it) that would most likely keep their heads above water with a home stand against not-so-great team after the trip.  The Crew have been downright awful at home lately, yes, but a 5-5 road trip would probably inspire the team to powering into the post season.  I’m as harsh a critic of the Crew as anyone, but I STILL HAVE HOPE!

Dave Bush turned in a fine performance on Monday evening, when all eyes were probably on the Packers.  He went 8.0 innings and gave up only 2 runs.  The offense backed him thanks to a Prince Fielder RBI groundout, a rare two-run homer by Jason Kendall, and a solo shot by J.J. Hardy.  The Crew fared well against the Reds’ ace Edinson Volquez, and were looking to hold their Wild Card lead over the red-hot Phillies at 4.0 games when disaster struck.  Salomon Torres seemed to take a leaf out of all the other relievers’ books when he promptly blew a 4-2 game in the ninth.  He gave up 5 hits and 1 walk in an ugly performance.  The Brewers were hapless against their old teammate Francisco Cordero in the bottom of the ninth, so they lost their 6th game of this abysmal homestand.

Offensive MVP: Reds SS Jeff Keppinger (1-5/0R/12B/2RBI/0BB/0K)

Pitching MVP: Reds CP Francisco Cordero (1IP/0H/0ER/0BB/0SO/0HR/Save-28th)

Alex’s Take:

After getting nearly no-hit on Sunday, the Brewers managed to break out offensively somewhat against a great pitcher, but they shut down late when they desperately needed insurance.  I’ll say it right now: no lead is safe for any Brewer reliever in 2008.  They are all shooting blanks this month, have blown so many games lately it seems unbelievable, and are dashing all postseason hopes against a stone.  Going up against a newcomer pitcher tomorrow, someone the Crew will almost definitely struggle against, and another ace pitcher, Milwaukee will be lucky to escape from a Cincinnati sweep.  Then who knows what will happen in Philadelphia, in what looks to be a decisive series.  Milwaukee has to play solid baseball sooner or later, or they will without a doubt miss the playoffs again.

The pitching was great, the defensive highlights were numerous, and the offensive highlights were few, but Milwaukee won a pressure-packed game 1-0 against San Diego and its ace Jake Peavy, who pitched a great game himself.  Sheets went 9.0 innings, struck out 7, walked 1, and gave up 5 hits.  Peavy went 7.0 strong innings, and only gave up 1 run off a Prince Fielder RBI double to score Ryan Braun from first.  One run was all Sheets needed.  Rickie Weeks saved a run with a diving, back-handed stab, followed with a strike to first.  Gabe Kapler made a diving catch in center field.

Offensive MVP: Prince Fielder (1-3/0R/12B/1RBI/1BB/1K)

Pitching MVP: Ben Sheets (9.0IP/5H/0ER/1BB/7SO/0HR/Win-13th)

Alex’s Take:

Ben Sheets carried the Crew on Saturday, but if their offensive production is as small as it was in the 1-0 victory, Milwaukee will lose a lot of games unless their pitching is perfect, which it almost never is.  In September, though, a win is a win, and I’ll gladly take it.

CC Sabathia did everything, and I mean everything, he possibly could to win Milwaukee their first game in September and he was waiting for his 10th win as a Brewer, when Eric Gagne struck again.  With his club up 2-1 in the eighth, the man who is quickly becoming considered league-wide as the worst reliever in baseball, gave up a booming homerun to Brian Giles, barely a homerun threat at this stage in his career.  The fans tore Gagne apart the entire inning, seemingly after every pitch, and even though he escaped without further damage, the sellout crowd of 41,519 did not let up in their chorus of jeers as he walked dejectedly back to the dugout.   The Crew had numerous opportunities to seal the win, but time and time again, they kept squandering opportunities.  They stranded a whopping 13 baserunners, had a lead runner on in the eighth, ninth, and tenth innings, and simply could not push anyone across.

The struggling Brewers bullpen turned in heroic performances in the final three innings, though, keeping the game right where it was despite overwhelming odds.  San Diego had runners on 2nd and 3rd in the ninth against Salomon Torres, thanks to an error by Prince Fielder, but the savvy veteran tight-roped out of danger when he retired shortstop Luis Rodriguez on a bullet of a ground ball up the middle that J.J. Hardy made a strong play and throw on.  The Padres had runners on 1st and 2nd with nobody out in the tenth, but Torres gobbled up a ground ball in front of the mound and fired to third for the force-out.  Then he got Chip Ambres on a flyout and struck out Edgar Gonzales.

David Riske had a much rougher go of it in the eleventh.  He retired batter #1 on a deep fly ball, but walked #2 and surrendered a base hit to Giles that put runners on 1st and 3rd with only 1 out.  Enter Brian Shouse.  He needed throw only one pitch.  Luis Rodriguez chopped the ball to the lefty, who fired it to second for one and Hardy returned the favor, by finding the glove of Prince Fielder to clean up the mess and fire up the quited crowd.  In the bottom of the eleventh, Mike Rivera got a pinch hit, was wiped out at second on a poor sac bunt by Craig Counsell, and then Ray Durham, who had gone 0-4 previously, hammered a base knock to right, getting Counsell to third.  J.J. Hardy sent the remainder of the fans home happy.  He deposited a single to left field on the 6th pitch against Brian Falkenborg, sealing Milwaukee’s 81st win of 2008 and 1st win in the month of September.

Offensive MVP: J.J. Hardy (1-6/0R/1RBI/0BB/1K)

Pitching MVP: Brian Shouse (0.2IP/0H/0ER/0BB/0SO/0HR/Win-5th)

Alex’s Take:

This game was ugly, dragged on forever, revealed once again the problem Milwaukee has in Eric Gagne, but felt great in the end.  It was nice to see the Crew persevere in the end and finally wrap up their first victory so far in September.  The Cubs were manhandled by Cincinnati, so Hardy and the Brewers are sitting 4.0 games out of 1st and, following a Phillies win, held onto their 4.0 game lead in the Wild Card.

Jeff Suppan ended his streak of good starts with an ugly one on Thursday.  He gave up 4 runs in 5.1 innings, and was saddled with his 8th loss of 2008.  Leading the charge for San Diego was young catcher Nick Hundley, who had 2 RBIs, and starter Shawn Estes, who threw 6.0 1 run innings.  The Crew managed to tie it in the 2nd when Mike Cameron tripled and Bill Hall drove him in with a groundout.  But the Padres vaulted into the lead and did not look back.  Young Will Venable hit his first major league homerun off of Suppan sixth.  The Brewers had their chances, but left a small village on the basepaths (9 runners).  J.J. Hardy hit his 22nd homer of the year in the seventh.

Offensive MVP: Padres C Nick Hundley (2-3/1R/2B/2RBI/0BB/0K)

Pitching MVP: Padres SP Shawn Estes (6.0IP/7H/1ER/1BB/1SO/0HR/Win-2nd)

Alex’s Take:

The Brewers need to win a game in September for goodness’ sake!  They are looking sloppy on offense, defense, and even their pitching has been far from stellar.  Their bullpen did pitch pretty well, but considering they were trailing, it’s not that great of an indicator that they will be any more reliable in games where the Crew has a late lead.

Dave Bush yielded a first inning grand slam to Ryan Church, and things just kept getting worse for the reeling Crew, who lost their third straight home game against New York and were swept for only the second time at Miller Park all year.  Bush settled down somewhat, but still gave up a total of 6 runs in 5.0 innings.  The bullpen coughed up 3 more, and that was more than enough for the Mets behind Oliver Perez and their recharged bullpen.  Corey Hart hit an RBI double, and J.J. Hardy added a solo shot, but the Brewers offense was basically put to sleep.

Offensive MVP: Mets RF Ryan Church (1-4/1R/1HR/4RBI/0BB/1K)

Pitching MVP: Mets SP Oliver Perez (6.2IP/5H/2ER/5BB/5SO/1HR/Win-10th)

Alex’s Take:

The Brewers are in trouble now.  Three games into September and still they do not have a win.  They will need to bounce back and probably will against San Diego and Cincinnati, but what does it matter if they can never find out how to beat teams on and above their level?

Manny Parra was knocked around by the Mets on Tuesday, and although he made a big contribution with the stick, his rocky start made it an uphill climb for the Crew, and they eventually fell to New York again.  Rickie Weeks led off with a homerun and Milwaukee scored four in the fourth to tie the game (Parra hit a two-run double), but they managed nothing against the Mets pen, and guaranteed the Mets a series victory.  Endy Chavez hit a go-ahead sac fly off Salomon Torres in the tenth.  The Brewers were stung by a couple close plays, one in the fourth when Hardy was gunned down trying to score, and in the eighth, when Weeks tried to stretch a single into what looked to be a clean double, but was called out.

Offensive MVP: Mets CF Carlos Beltran (2-3/2R/1HR/3RBI/1BB/0K)

Pitching MVP: Mets CP Luis Ayala (1IP/1H/0ER/1BB/2SO/Save-5th)

Alex’s Take:

This one was ugly.  The Brewers stranded 11 baserunners, executed some questionable base-running, and suffered yet another bullpen letdown.  Though Salomon Torres has been dependable this year, an error on Jason Kendall set him up for a bad tenth inning, and it cost the Crew the game.  They are now 0-2 in September following a 20 win August, and though they do play somewhat easier opponents than the 1st place Mets, they have a bear of a road trip coming up that will take them to Philly, Chicago, and Cincinnati.  The way they’ve been playing contenders recently, starting with being swept at home by the Cubs in late July, it appears as though that trip could squash Milwaukee’s postseason dreams.  Even so, they could make the playoffs if the other contenders continue to falter, but they will get NOWHERE in the playoffs if they can’t find a way to beat good teams.

An injury to a very important pitcher, another blown game by Eric Gagne, and the Brewers failed to hold onto a 2-1 lead late on Monday.  Milwaukee fell to New York 4-2, after Gagne surrendered a two-run shot by the great first-baseman Carlos Delgado in the eighth.  Ben Sheets pitched well for 5.0 innings, giving up only 2 hits, but his velocity was way down, and he left the game due to left groin tightness.  Should he miss significant time, it would be a crippling blow to a Milwaukee team desperately trying to make the playoffs for the first time in a quarter century.  Ryan Braun doubled in J.J. Hardy in the first off of Johan Santana, but the Crew only mustered one other run off of a rare balk by the former Cy Young winner.

Offensive MVP: Mets 1B Carlos Delgado (2-4/1R/1HR/2RBI/0BB/0K)

Pitching MVP: Mets RPs Nelson Figueroa (Win-3rd), Pedro Feliciano, Joe Smith, and Luis Ayala  (Save- 4th) (3IP/1H/0ER/0BB/5SO/0HR)

Alex’s Take:

This was not a very encouraging game on any level.  Ben Sheets is hurt again, Eric Gagne is blowing games again, and the Brewers fell flat to a good team after beating up on bad ones again.  If they can bounce back from this defeat, it would be a good sign, but the 4-2 loss could hurt Milwaukee much longer depending on the status of the Crew’s right-handed ace.

Jeff Suppan tossed another great game on Saturday evening in Pittsburgh, but Corey Hart and the offense stole the spotlight.  With his 20th homerun of 2008 in the second inning, Hart became the first Brewer in history to have two 20 homerun, 20 steal seasons.  Mike Cameron unloaded on his 24th round-tripper of the year, driving in three runs off of it, in the sixth.  Jason Kendall and Rickie Weeks hit RBI doubles in that inning as well, to put the Crew up 7-0.  They just kept pouring it on the Pirates bullpen, and finished with 11 runs on 16 base hits.  Suppan threw 7.0 2-run innings, striking out 2, walking 2, and giving up only 3 hits.

Offensive MVP: Mike Cameron (2-4/2R/2B/HR/4RBI/0BB/1K)

Pitching MVP: Jeff Suppan (7.0IP/3H/2ER/2BB/2SO/1HR/Win-10th)

Alex’s Take:

August has been a great month for Brewers baseball.  They’ve won 19 games, with one very winnable match-up to go.  Although it appears Chicago is simply too good to be caught at the top of the NL Central, the Crew have managed to solidify their Wild Card lead this month, and as it stands now, they are up 5 and 1/2 games on their St. Louis rivals.  Though there are 6 remaining games against the Cubs, it would take a monumental collapse for the Brewers to vault into first.  But the good news: they will get to the playoffs anyway, as long as they can fend off Tony La Russa’s Redbirds and the Phillies and Mets for the next thirty days or so.  Mike Cameron deserves a lot of credit for what he has done this month.  He’s hit .360 in 89 at-bats, with 9 homers and 22 RBIs.  Add that to the superb defense he brings every day, and that is one heck of a month.  Oppositely, Prince Fielder did very little in August, hitting a mere .219 with 6 homeruns and 19 runs batted in.  If Fielder can heat up in September, and Cameron and the rest of the Crew keep hitting the way they’ve been hitting, postseason baseball should become a reality for Milwaukee.  Oh, and by the way, the pitching has been stellar too…just ask the “bottom of the rotation,” Jeff Suppan and Dave Bush, who’ve gone a combined 9-0 this month.