Milwaukee Brewers hit just four home runs through first eight games

Let’s face it. The Milwaukee Brewers have not precisely been knocking the duvet off the baseball up to now in 2022.

However in terms of residence run, it has been nearly an entire energy outage.

Getting into Saturday’s matchup in opposition to the St. Louis Cardinals at American Household Area the Brewers had logged simply 4 residence runs, tying them with the Kansas Metropolis Royals for second-fewest within the main leagues.

Solely the Baltimore Orioles had fewer, with three.

And of the Brewers’ 4 homers, three got here of their 5-4 victory over the Chicago Cubs at wind-swept Wrigley Area on April 10 with Willy Adames, Rowdy Tellez and Mike Brosseau all going deep.

Omar Narváez hit Milwaukee’s fourth homer on Thursday within the residence opener.

That meant the Brewers had didn’t take the ball out in any respect of their six different video games. For a unit that is struggling to easily put runs on the board on the whole, it is not precisely been a recipe for early season success.

“We have seen a number of wall balls. We simply have not hit homers,” mentioned supervisor Craig Counsell, whose workforce additionally ranked twenty third in batting common (.216) twenty fourth in slugging proportion (.336) and twenty seventh in runs scored (24).

“Clearly, within the offensive recreation right this moment, you want homers, there is no query about it. I noticed one thing right this moment (saying) singles are taking place much more. That signifies that it is exhausting to string collectively hits. As a result of the only is clearly the simplest hit to get. So, you want extra-base hits for run manufacturing.

“And that is simply what we have been missing proper now. They arrive in bunches. You’d hope you’d get constant, every day, one or two a recreation, however they will are available in bunches just a little bit, too.”

Milwaukee’s two greatest offensive acquisitions within the offseason, Andrew McCutchen (27 homers in 2021) and Hunter Renfroe (31) have been amongst those that fall into the “wall ball” class together with Christian Yelich, who had scorched a number of balls to the fence however had but to get any over.

Kolten Wong, Tyrone Taylor and Keston Hiura are all gamers with energy who coming into Saturday night time have been looking for their first homers as properly whereas Luis Urías, the Brewers’ second-leading energy man in 2021 with a career-high 23, opened the 12 months on the injured checklist and has but to play a recreation.

As a workforce, the Brewers completed 18th in homers final season with 194. Avisaíl García led the way in which with 29 and apart from Urías, Adames was the one different participant to succeed in 20.

“Yeah, we have some guys who’re going to hit residence runs that have not hit homers but,” Counsell mentioned. “However they’re coming.”

Mike Brosseau, Kolten Wong obtain profession firsts

There usually is not a lot good that comes out of a 10-1 blowout just like the one the Brewers suffered Friday night time.

However Mike Brosseau and Kolten Wong have been each speaking previous to Saturday’s recreation about logging their first major-league motion at shortstop.

Brosseau, considered one of two utility males on the roster, changed Adames at first of the ninth inning however solely three batters got here to the plate and no outs had been registered when Brent Suter bumped into the fence in entrance of the St. Louis dugout attempting to glove a popup.

Suter was shaken up and faraway from the sport, leaving Counsell to interchange Suter with Brosseau and Wong to slip over to shortstop from second base.

“That was one of many three (positions) I hadn’t performed – I wanted catcher, quick and heart,” mentioned Brosseau, who noticed motion on the different six spots, together with pitcher, with the Tampa Bay Rays.

“A primary for me,” added Wong, who hadn’t performed shortstop in any respect since highschool in Hawaii. “It was cool. You don’t need to be doing that too many instances, nevertheless it was cool to see it from that aspect.

“I’ve at all times needed to have some innings there, and it’s form of enjoyable to get that.”

Brosseau allowed successful and a stroll however no runs in throwing the ninth, decreasing his profession ERA to three.38. He pitched thrice for the Rays in 2019 and as soon as in 2020.

“(Counsell) got here as much as me and requested me if I used to be capable of do it,” Brosseau mentioned. “I used to be like, ‘Yeah, I’ll get you three outs. I don’t know what’s going to occur earlier than three outs, however I’ll get you three outs.’

“(Simply throwing strikes) is the gist of it, as a result of clearly the circumstances aren’t nice while you’ve received a place participant on the market. Simply pound the zone and get outs as shortly as potential.”

Brent Suter feeling fantastic

The day after his scary collision, Suter was no worse for put on.

“Received actually fortunate,” he mentioned. “Handed all of the assessments, so good to go.”

Counsell was requested if it was a lesson discovered for the hard-charging left-hander.

“Usually, full-speed operating into partitions will not be (a good suggestion),” he mentioned. “However, look, it occurs. A man’s attempting to make a play. So, what do you inform a man attempting to make a play? He simply misplaced himself on the sector just a little bit and clearly it’s not a play that pitchers are required to make very a lot.

“Frankly, we received fortunate that he’s OK.”