Diamondbacks-Brewers Preview (5/5-5/7)

Brewers previews to get you ready for the series where we have five things to watch, pitching matchups and prediction. We add a YouTube video in the mix, it could be really anything.   

Pitching Matchups
Monday: Mike Bolsinger (1-3 5.79) vs. Matt Garza (1-3 5.00)      7:10 pm FSNWI
Tuesday: Josh Collmenter (1-2 3.77) vs. Marco Estrada (2-1 3.13)    7:10 pm FSNWI
Wednesday: Bronson Arroyo (2-2 6.03) vs. Wily Peralta (4-1 2.04) 12:10 pm 620 WTMJ

Five Things To Watch
1.) Will the offense wake up? - The last time Milwaukee had five or more runs in a nine inning game was Saturday, April 26th against Chicago. That was also the last time Ryan Braun found himself in the lineup. There is a clear correlation with Braun's injury and the struggling offense. It also hasn't helped Aramis Ramirez has hit the struggle bus plus Jean Segura hasn't hit a hot streak. Not to mention, Khris Davis' OBP is a dangerously low .265. Arizona's pitching and defense are some of the worst in baseball so if there would be a time to break out, this week seems ideal. Diamondbacks pitching staff has a 4.95 ERA with 186 runs scored already with 167 earned. Houston seems miles away coming in second with 167.

2.) Matt Garza's bad April - This has not been the way Garza wanted to start off his Milwaukee's career. He seemed very frustrated after leaving the game with a thumb injury on Wednesday afternoon. Garza needs to put together two solid starts in a row, and it could start tonight against the Arizona offense. Now, their offense is a little better than their pitching, but the only player that really seemed to give Garza trouble in the Arizona's offense is Aaron Hill. Even if Garza scuffles his feet tonight, it should not be a cause for concern. It is still early in the season, and we have seen pitchers before rite the ship in the dog days of summer.

3.) Brewers dealing with pitcher's demons - We talk about Brewer Killers all the time because it is a fun part of being a fan, and something that seems more common with baseball versus any other sports. Josh Collmenter is one of the biggest ones of recent memory. Even though, it is an extremely small sample size, Brewers hitters have three total hits against him. THREE! Out of 23 so it is not a huge sample, but you get the point with Collmenter. Also Bronson Arroyo might have an ERA over six right now, but he only gave up seven runs in 27 innings pitched last season when he faced the Brewers as a member of the Cincinnati Reds. Two out of the three pitchers this week are ones where Milwaukee had some issues with it.

4.) Not underestimating the opponent - Basically, this sums up number three, but just because Arizona struggled to start the season, it is not given Milwaukee will win two or three games this week at Miller Park. Diamondbacks are not a good team, but at the same point, I don't know if Milwaukee is a good one right now with their offense at the moment. Brewers need to set the tone early in all of the games. If they beat down Arizona in the early innings, Diamondbacks will likely be forced in submission thinking this is a 'Here we go again' sort of feeling.

5.) Return of Brian Anderson - This is pretty minor, but I missed BA. I know he talks too much about the Cardinals, but it will be good to have Anderson back in the fold as I believe his NBA Playoffs run is over. I could be wrong though. Either way, Anderson did a hell of a job with the playoffs and it's likely, he will be moving to the big leagues next season. We as a fans are pretty damn fortunate to have a guy like Anderson calling the games for the Brewers. Welcome back BA.

Appropriate YouTube Video




Of course, it will be Game 5 of the NLCS. Sat on my recliner, didn't turn on the lights, only got up to get beers. One of the greatest weekends of my life.  Gotta have Uecker's call. One of the best ever.

Prediction 
Brewers take two of three. No way they can get past Collmenter and Arroyo given their problems with both pitchers.