Milwaukee, WI
In logging his first career save against Brewers, Josh Hader looked like his former self
Brewers’ Gasser is first in team history to win his first two games
Brewers pitcher Robert Gasser gave up just one run in five innings and became the first in franchise history to win his first two career outings.
HOUSTON – For the first time ever, it was Josh Hader against the Milwaukee Brewers in a save situation.
It looked pretty similar to how most of Hader’s showings with his former team did, too.
One, two, three went the Brewers in the ninth inning Friday night at Minute Maid Park against Hader on 12 pitches with two flyouts and a strikeout to punctuate a 5-4 win for the Houston Astros.
Hader, who tallied 125 of his 170 career saves and won three National League Reliever of the Year awards with Milwaukee, now has earned a save against all 30 MLB clubs.
The matchup didn’t quite possess the same pizzazz as it would have last season when Hader, pitching for the team the Brewers traded him to, was on the San Diego Padres. But his two appearances against the Brewers in 2023 were in non-save situations.
Back in his comfort zone and protecting a one-run lead late on a stormy evening in Houston, Hader looked like his old self and not the reliever who has been up and down this year with the Astros.
“He’s one of the best in the game,” Brewers manager Pat Murphy said. “There’s no doubt about it. He’s one of the best in the game. “
Joey Ortiz put up a decent fight against Hader, taking the count full and on the seventh pitch lining out on a well-struck ball to right. But once Hader got that first out of the inning, it was a quick exit for Milwaukee. Blake Perkins popped out to second and Owen Miller, pinch-hitting for the .302-batting Brice Turang, to get a lefty-righty matchup, struck out on three pitches.
“Hader’s a tough at-bat for (Turang),” Murphy explained of the pinch-hit decision. “That’s a tough at-bat for lefties. We had prepped Owen before the game that if we get in that situation, to be ready.”
Freddy Peralta unable to keep the ball in the yard
Freddy Peralta has shown signs of being able to take the leap forward as a No. 1 starter this year, yet one important piece is eluding him: Pitching through the order a third time.
After getting off to a rip-roaring start to the season with a 1.90 earned run average through four outings, Peralta has had a rougher go of things on the mound.
With five more runs – all earned – in five innings Friday, Peralta now sports a 6.23 ERA over his last five starts.
“It’s not typical of Freddy, but, again, he’s the guy you want out there,” Murphy said. “Anytime we’re playing, if he’s healthy I want him out there.”
The steady trend throughout this recent blip is an inability to avoid trouble once the lineup flips a third time.
On April 25 against the Pirates, Peralta allowed two runs on a walk, RBI single and RBI double in the fifth, his final inning of the day.
He didn’t get a chance to face the order a third time against the Rays because he was ejected for hitting Jose Siri, but the next time out against the Cubs, Peralta gave up a two-run double, two walks and a run-scoring wild pitch in a decisive fifth.
Then in his last time out against the Cardinals, Peralta allowed a two-run single in the fifth as soon as the order flipped and a RBI double in the sixth.
It burned him against the Astros, too.
With one out, one on and holding a 4-2 lead, Jose Altuve started Houston’s third turn through its lineup with an infield single, which in fairness was little fault of Peralta’s. But Jeremy Peña battled Peralta to a full count one batter later and golfed out a slider at the knees — but over the meat of the plate — 380 feet to left for a go-ahead three run blast.
Peralta was more frustrated than usual following this loss.
“Honestly, I thought I threw the ball really good today,” he said. “Sometimes things happen in the game that I can’t control. That’s it.”
Peralta felt off the bat that Peña’s blast, which traveled 380 feet at 98.2 mph off the bat and would have been a homer at 13 out of 30 ballparks according to Statcast, was staying in the yard.
“The way that he hit it, for me, I don’t know how hard he hit it but I didn’t look like it was gone,” Peralta said. “I thought it was a fly ball – a regular fly ball.”
Turned out it wasn’t.
And now, across Peralta’s last five outings, batters have hit .363/.462/.636 with three doubles, a homer and four walks in 22 at-bats.
Peralta’s velocity is maintained in the later innings, if not even a tick higher than early on. The slider is still getting whiffs, but when batters are making contact the third time through, they’re squaring it up with an average exit velocity over 96 mph.
Neither Murphy nor Peralta identified what might be the malady for Peralta in those middle innings.
“I don’t think it’s reason to be concerned,” Murphy said. “I think any time he doesn’t blow through things, people are like, ‘Whoa, what’s going on?’ That’s not how it is. You have to understand the game. There are a lot of guys who are doing a lot of research on him and doing everything they can to put their A-game on him.”
Joey Ortiz continues to mash
Joey Ortiz’s glove was touted when he was brought over to Milwaukee from Baltimore in early February as part of the Corbin Burnes trade.
Turns out the bat plays, too.
Ortiz hit a go-ahead three run homer in the fourth before Peña reclaimed the lead for Houston an inning later. It was part of a game where Ortiz reached base three times and finished a triple shy of the cycle.
With a single to lead off the seventh, Ortiz had reached base safely in eight consecutive plate appearances.
His lone out of the day was even an impressive battle with one of the game’s in Hader that ended in loud contact.
“He’s looked great,” Murphy said. “He really has. Both offensively and on defense. He’s stepped up.”
Milwaukee, WI
Milwaukee police officers injured in separate holiday weekend incidents
MILWAUKEE – On Tuesday, July 7, Milwaukee officials are set to release new quarterly crime numbers, following two separate incidents over the holiday weekend in two of the city’s popular entertainment districts that injured two police officers.
Holiday weekend violence
What we know:
Shortly after midnight Sunday, Milwaukee police said officers were chasing after people setting off fireworks in the Brady Street area when a firework injured an officer, a 33-year-old woman, near Cambridge and Brady Streets.
Viewer video of the fireworks
About two hours later, police said officers were running to the sound of gunshots near Water and Knapp Streets, when a car fleeing the scene hit an officer.
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In that incident, Milwaukee Police Chief Jeffrey Norman said the injured officer, as well as other officers, shot at the vehicle – which sped off. Norman said the car was found about 12 blocks away, near 12th and Fond du Lac, as well as the injured 18-year-old driver. He was taken to the hospital for treatment of gunshot wounds, and is expected to survive. Police said a gun was found in the suspect vehicle, as well as in the area where the man was arrested.
Milwaukee police said both officers are recovering.
Officials respond
What they’re saying:
On Monday, Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson noted the hundreds – if not thousands of people – who celebrated the holiday weekend responsibly, while calling out the upbringing of people who cause chaos in the city.
“This is beyond a policing thing,” said Johnson, following a press conference in the city’s Uptown neighborhood at 55th and Wright. “I don’t want to put this at the feet of the police department. Those folks who go down there and cause problems, they make a decision to do that,” Johnson said.
The events are just the latest incidents to happen in the city’s entertainment districts. Brady Street recently implemented its pilot safety plan.
“Is there a concern these have an impact on business and drawing more people that want to be there, to enjoy a safe environment?” asked FOX6’s Bill Miston.
“I’m always taking a look, and trying to be cognizant of what these sort of events mean for businesses, for public safety, and for the city as a whole,” Johnson said.
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Milwaukee Downtown said it was disheartened by the incidents on Water and nearby Brady Streets, and wished the officers a quick and full recovery. In a statement, Milwaukee Downtown thanked police for their dedication to keeping the entertainment districts safe.
“Downtown Milwaukee welcomed tens of thousands of guests over the milestone holiday weekend. It is unfortunate that these actions overshadow the many positive experiences shared by residents and visitors,” said CEO Matt Dorner.
Portions of this article were formatted using A.I. FOX6’s Bill Miston and an editor reviewed it for accuracy and tone prior to publishing.
The Source: Information in this story was gathered from the Milwaukee police, Milwaukee Police Chief Jeffrey Norman, Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson, and Milwaukee Downtown.
Milwaukee, WI
Vice President JD Vance to visit Milwaukee on Wednesday
JD Vance emphasizes unity in July Fourth speech
JD Vance highlighted unity and shared purpose in a Fourth of July speech celebrating 250 years of America’s strength and future.
Vice President JD Vance will be in Milwaukee on July 8 at the Wisconsin Air National Guard’s 128th Air Refueling wing, Republican Party of Wisconsin Chairman Brian Schimming said.
It will be an official event, Schimming told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
The Republican vice president was last in Wisconsin about four months ago, when he spoke at Pointe Precision in Plover on Feb. 26, two days following President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address. That visit was part of a campaign by the White House to put the president and top administration officials in front of voters in battleground districts.
In August 2025, Vance visited La Crosse to promote provisions of the Trump administration’s sweeping tax and spending law.
And he made multiple stops in Wisconsin during the 2024 campaign.
The White House has not yet released details about Vance’s visit.
Milwaukee, WI
Two Milwaukee officers hurt over Fourth of July weekend
MILWAUKEE – Two Milwaukee female officers were injured on duty over the weekend. Police said one was hit by a car, while the other was hurt by fireworks.
Video shared on social media shows a blast blowing a Milwaukee police officer to the ground.
“The next thing you know, police coming from everywhere,” said Tracey Dent, a community activist.
Witnesses told FOX6 News it happened around midnight Sunday. They said someone was setting off and throwing fireworks in a crowded parking lot near Brady Street and Cambridge Avenue.
“It’s just a small minority of people who want to mess it up for everybody and think it’s funny, and it’s not funny,” Dent said.
But this was not the only overnight incident where an officer was hurt on duty. Milwaukee Police Chief Jeffrey Norman said a suspect hit a female officer with a car, which led to an officer-involved shooting around 2:15 a.m. near Knapp and Water streets.
“Uniformed Milwaukee police officers patrolling our downtown entertainment district heard multiple gunshots,” said Norman.
Norman said officers responding on foot saw an Audi leaving the area. He said the 18-year-old male suspect hit a 25-year-old female officer with his vehicle while fleeing.
“Officers, including the injured officer, discharged their weapons at the vehicle,” Chief Norman said.
The officer was taken to the hospital with nonfatal injuries. The suspect was found and also taken to the hospital with nonfatal injuries. He was later arrested.
Police found the unoccupied suspect’s vehicle with a gun inside on Fond du Lac Avenue near Walnut Street.
Police told FOX6 News all the officers involved in this morning’s shooting will be placed on administrative duty which is standard protocol.
Additional officers involved in this incident are a 28-year-old male with over 7 years of service and a 27-year-old male with over 8 years of service. The injured officer has served for less than year.
Chief Norman said two other people arrived at hospitals with gunshot wounds, though it is unclear if they are connected to the officer-involved shooting.
FOX6 News is still waiting on more information from the Brady Street fireworks incident.
The Source: Information in this story was gathered from Tracey Dent, Milwaukee Police Chief Jeffrey Norman, a police scanner broadcast, Facebook video and the Milwaukee Police Department.
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