After taking care of the lowly Chicago Cubs at the "Friendly Confines" of Wrigley field the Brewers continued their roadtrip down to Turner Field in Atlanta, and it was anything but friendly down there against the Braves. Within the last few years the Brewers have struggled in that stadium but I don't see why. It doesn't look too different than Miller Park and when comparing the dimensions it is actually just about the same. So we just might have to chalk it up to the road woes that has plagued this current incarnation of the Brewers. But it could have been that this year we are seeing the Braves that I picked to win the NL East in 2011 and not that ones who had an epic September collapse that led to the St. Louis Cardinals winning the NL Wild Card and eventually the World Series. This was a good ballclub folks, and they showed it by busting out on offense and holding the Brewers bats at bay with good pitching, which has always been a staple of Atlanta baseball. Maybe you've heard of some Hall of Famers they had back in the day - Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine. No? Where have you been hiding? Ollie ollie oxen free! Don't forget to touch ghoul. Didn't you know this was hide and go seek tag? Well now you do. You're it. And lest we forget that the 2012 Atlanta Braves feature a couple of pitchers you may have heard of in Tommy Hanson, Mike Minor, Brandon Beachy, Jonny Venters and Craig Kimbrel. If you haven't heard of them you will soon enough. Add that to an offense that features Dan Uggla, Brian McCann and Chipper Jones and the Brewers just got flat out beat.
They returned home limping with a 3-4 record on the roadtrip to face the hottest team in the NL, the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Dodgers were off to a 9-1 start and were riding a 6 game winning streak into town. Backed by NL MVP runner-up Matt Kemp and NL Cy Young winner Clayton Kershaw, the Dodgers were a true test to how the 2012 Brewers would stack up against the competition. They won the series 2 games to 1 but all 3 games were decided by 1 run. Games 1 + 2 were very exciting as the Brewers had to wait until the bottom of the 9th inning to walk-off each of those games and keep the Miller Park magic alive. The Brewers were the best home team in all of baseball in 2011 with an astounding 57-24 record and they certainly showed why during this series. People I work with don't understand why I stick around until the end of the game even though we stop serving at the end of the 7th inning and typically finish counting out our banks by the end of the 8th. While they are dashing out to beat traffic I'm sitting up in the handicapped section of 310 on the Club Level cheering my Brewers to victory. Leave a game early. Pfft. I'd rather stay here with my people than take the plunge and have a wife and kids like everyone else. You may be happy, but at least I have my Brewers. Time will tell on this one, but I can almost promise you my team will not leave me like your wife will and my players won't demand an allowance from me and call you "that old guy" like your kids someday will. Just saying.
Friday April 13 - Sunday April 15. Milwaukee Brewers vs. Atlanta Braves at Turner Field. Games 8 - 10 of 162. That was a rough weekend in more ways than one. On Friday the offense was there (8 runs scored) but the pitching wasn't (10 runs given up). Saturday it was the opposite (1 run scored, 2 given up) but the results were the same - loss. Sunday's game wasn't as close as the score (7-4) suggests because of 3 garbage runs in the 9th inning. So it was a really tough series and a poor end to the roadtrip. And to think I would have been there had my brother (who lives in Columbia, SC) agreed to meet me there. I was looking forward to it but now in hindsight I'm glad that I didn't go. But I guess that's the way things work out sometime. But it's good to have the boys home. Braves 10, Brewers 8. Braves 2, Brewers 1. Braves 7, Brewers 4.
Tuesday April 17. Milwaukee Brewers vs. Los Angeles Dodgers at Miller Park. Games 11 of 162. You hate to call game #11 of 162 a must win because it's so early, but that's exactly what I was saying before this game. Brewers were on a 4 game losing streak and starting a 9 game homestand. Dodgers were on a 6 game winning streak with a 9-1 record. Gallardo pitched 7 strong and K-Rod blew the lead in the 8th, but the Brewers bounced back in the 9th to walk it off via "The Accountant" George Kottaras. But lost in the mix is Mat Gamel, who went 2 for 3 with a RBI and 3 runs scored including the game winner. The Gambone is filling in quite nicely for he who shalt not be named. Brewers 5, Dodgers 4.
Wednesday April 18. Milwaukee Brewers vs. Los Angeles Dodgers at Miller Park. Game 12 of 162. There's something special about Zack Greinke and Miller Park. Even though he didn't get the win, the Brewers just seem to win when he pitches there. Sign him to a multi-year contract based on that alone. But aside from that it was another fantastic walk-off win for the 2nd night in a row. I wish I could feel bad for the people who left early but screw them. That's why I never leave a game early, especially at Miller Park. If I'm not mistaken, they were one of the best if not the best home team in the NL or all of MLB. And last night is why. They just win at Miller Park. So get your butts in the seats and check that S out. Hell of a game. Brewers 3, Dodgers 2.
Thursday April 19. Milwaukee Brewers vs. Los Angeles Dodgers at Miller Park. Game 13 of 162. A three game sweep over a very good team is tough, but the Brewers could have gotten it done. Randy Wolf wasn't THAT bad as he is the kind of pitcher who will go 6-7 innings and give up 3-4 runs. The Brewers had chances to win today, but the offense fell flat. It didn't help that Brauny went 0 for the series. And I don't need to hear excuses. You're a MVP pal. Play like it. But the important part is that we won the series. Focus on doing that at home and play .500 on the road and we'll be back in the playoffs. Well, time to move on to the Colorado Rockies and take care of business. Dodgers 4, Brewers 3.
13 games doesn't mean shit. I know you came here looking for a "what does it all mean" introspective moment but I can't give it to you. Although we are seeing some early trends such as struggling offense and some poor performances from the pitching staff, we have too small of a sample size to really judge it thus far. I'm not allowed to do math on here since the Tuskegee Incident of 1943, so I can't tell you in percentages how much of the season has passed. But I assure you that only a small percentage of the season is complete. President Franklin D. Roosevelt still hasn't forgiven me for that, and he took that ill will to his grave. I was at least expecting his wife Eleanor to let me know that on his deathbed he had disavowed me of any wrongdoings but sadly that passage was not included in her memoirs when they were released to the general public in 1964 two years after her death. Both of them hold that secret in their tombs. I would lead an archaeological dig to the Roosevelt Family compound in Hyde Park, New York to unearth their bodies to see if they left any clues but I'm so terrified of zombies that I don't dare go around corpses any more. Zombies aren't getting my brains. Not as long as I still live near a local retail store.
With the Colorado Rockies and the Houston Astros coming up this week there should be plenty of chances to beat up on inferior teams and right the record up above the .500 line. I don't know how many times I will say this and I'm going to put the over/under at 10, but all that you need to do is hang around .500 during the early part of the season and make a push when the team is clicking at full speed, full strength. Now that there are 2 Wild Card spots it is possible that one of them will come from the NL Central, but I would feel a whole lot better if they won the division instead. Right now we're looking up at St. Louis in the standings but the standings don't really concern me until late August or early September. For now just keep on chugging like Thomas the Tank Engine and win some goddamn games. All that I really ask is to see some good ballgames. Well let's be honest here, I suppose I also ask for the ladies to pay me some attention but that's just standard guy stuff. A cold beer would also be pretty good right about now too. Where is that woman with my drink? She has been gone for over a half hour. The refrigerator isn't that far away. Damn it. I knew that girl was cheatin' on me.
- pookon -
www.pookon.com
email: pookondotcom@gmail.com
http://www.facebook.com/MilwaukeeIceman
With the Colorado Rockies and the Houston Astros coming up this week there should be plenty of chances to beat up on inferior teams and right the record up above the .500 line. I don't know how many times I will say this and I'm going to put the over/under at 10, but all that you need to do is hang around .500 during the early part of the season and make a push when the team is clicking at full speed, full strength. Now that there are 2 Wild Card spots it is possible that one of them will come from the NL Central, but I would feel a whole lot better if they won the division instead. Right now we're looking up at St. Louis in the standings but the standings don't really concern me until late August or early September. For now just keep on chugging like Thomas the Tank Engine and win some goddamn games. All that I really ask is to see some good ballgames. Well let's be honest here, I suppose I also ask for the ladies to pay me some attention but that's just standard guy stuff. A cold beer would also be pretty good right about now too. Where is that woman with my drink? She has been gone for over a half hour. The refrigerator isn't that far away. Damn it. I knew that girl was cheatin' on me.
- pookon -
www.pookon.com
email: pookondotcom@gmail.com
http://www.facebook.com/MilwaukeeIceman
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