Brewers pitching staff thriving in early goings of 2018
It may seem difficult to take any optimism from the Chicago Cubs’ four-game sweep of Milwaukee over the weekend, but third baseman Travis Shaw shared one word with Brewers fans on Sunday evening.
“Chill.”
I’m not gonna steal @AaronRodgers12 “relax” so I’ll just go with.. “C...H...I...L...L” ?
— Travis Shaw (@travis_shaw21) April 29, 2018
It’s much easier to R-E-L-A-X when examining the performances Milwaukee is getting from its pitching staff of late.
In their last 12 games, the Brewers have allowed more than three runs just once -- a 6-5 win over Miami on April 21. Only three Milwaukee pitching staffs since 1985 have had a better ERA in March and April than this 2018 squad.
Milwaukee Brewers, Lowest ERA in March/April – Since 1985
| SEASON | ERA |
| 2014 | 2.82 |
| 1990 | 2.87 |
| 1998 | 3.02 |
| 2018 | 3.14 |
| 1985 | 3.23 |
The Brewers lead the National League in ERA on the road (2.87), and all signs point to that continuing when they visit Cincinnati for a three-game series beginning Monday night. Milwaukee’s pitching staff has held the Reds scoreless in 19 consecutive innings, thanks to back-to-back 2-0 wins on April 17-18 at Miller Park.
The Reds, however, won’t go out without a fight. They suddenly look like a competent MLB offense after scoring 24 runs in a three-game series win over Minnesota last weekend, including a season-high 15 runs on Friday.
NOTABLE
-- Milwaukee's Josh Hader leads all relievers with 18.20 strikeouts per nine innings (minimum 10 innings pitched) in 2018.
-- The Brewers scraped together just two runs against Chicago last weekend, which tied the franchise record for fewest runs scored in a four-game series.
-- Jhoulys Chacin is 2-0 with a 1.72 ERA over his last three starts after going 0-1 with a 6.59 ERA in his first three starts as a Brewer.
-- Milwaukee is 14-15 in its last 29 games at Great American Ballpark.
-- Reds starting pitcher Tyler Mahle has recorded 52 strikeouts in his first 10 MLB starts. He set a career-high with 11 Ks against Atlanta on April 24.
-- Ryan Braun is four stolen bases away from reaching 200 in his career.
Statistics courtesy STATS
