Ouch! The Brewers Swept the Mariners

The bad news is that the Milwaukee Brewers won three games against the Mariners at T-Mobile Park: 7-3 on Monday, 6-5 in extra innings on Tuesday, and 5-3 on Wednesday. The Mariners lost the battle, but that does not mean that they did not put up a fight.

To put the games in context, the Milwaukee Brewers are currently one of the top teams in MLB. The Brewers have the third best win-loss record in MLB at 14-5, behind the Tampa Bay Rays and the Atlanta Braves. Their pitchers’ cumulative ERA is currently third in MLB and the team’s cumulative batting average is ninth in MLB. The Mariners are 10th in pitchers’ cumulative ERA and 24th in cumulative batting average.

Mariners v Brewers: The Pitchers for Both Teams Were Strong

On Monday, Brewers' Corbin Burnes pitched 5.1 innings, allowing the Mariners to score twice. Relief pitchers Peter Strzelecki, Hoby Milner, and Joel Payamps allowed no additional runs.

On Tuesday, Milwaukee's Colin Rea allowed four runs in five innings.  The relief pitchers allowed no runs except for B. Wilson who allowed one run in the tenth inning by Kolten Wong.

On Wednesday, Brewers' Eric Lauer pitched into the seventh inning, allowing two runs. The Mariners had one score when Strzelecki pitched in relief.

Mariners' starting pitchers Chris Flexen, Logan Gilbert, and Marco Gonzales threw very well. Several relief pitchers came in and held the fort. Speier, D. Castillo, Brash (Tues), Gott, Sewald, and Saucedo allowed no runs while they were pitching.

Milwaukee's batters were just straight up better than the Mariners

Although I think that the Mariners’ pitchers did a fine job slowing their batters down, the Brewers hit ten times on Monday with seven runs, seven times on Tuesday with six runs, nine hits on Wednesday with five runs. They had 26 hits and 18 runs total.

The Mariners had 19 hits and 9 runs.  The team did not always capitalize on their opportunities. In the final inning of the third game, the bases were loaded but only one Mariner scored. In the third inning of the second game, however, the Mariners scored four points as Raleigh, Hernandez, and La Stella hit and had RBIs.

Our pitchers held their own, for the most part. Our players in the infield and outfield played well. The team’s weakness at this point seems to be at bat.

Mariners v Brewers: In Other News

Eugenio Suarez was hit in the elbow twice by Brewers' pitchers. Suarez, I hope that these injuries heal soon! Garrett Mitchell, center fielder for the Brewers, left the game after a long hard throw to home base. At first it was unclear what happened. Luckily, it was not a heart issue, but hopefully it is not a scary shoulder problem. He is currently on the Brewers’ 10-day IL.

Logan Gilbert and Marco Gonzales looked great on the mound! Gilbert pitched six innings with four runs and 99 pitches. Gonzales allowed two runs over six innings.

Jesse Winker was back in town. He did strike out at least once but also was part of the single hit bonanza the Brewers managed to create in the seventh inning on Wednesday. He has been batting over .300 in Milwaukee, a team that is a better fit for him.

Jose Caballero was a new addition to the infield, spelling JP Crawford on Tuesday and Kolten Wong on Wednesday. Welcome! He hit very confidently and made some excellent defensive moves.

I noted that our win-loss record was weaker than the Brewers even before the series. Our last homestand series is against the St. Louis Cardinals. They have the same record as the Mariners. On the subsequent road trip, the Mariners will visit the Phillies, a team that also has the same win-loss record. These games may highlight more of the Mariners' strengths.