Brewers 7, Blue Jays 0
Brewers now 5-6 (4th)
Box Score | Season Schedule
MILWAUKEE — Can the Brewers just play the Blue Jays every game? Please?
Following today’s game, the Brewers are 4-1 against the Blue Jays this season and 1-5 against everyone else. We need to find a way to schedule more of these games.
Following a dreadful five-game slide, the Brewers welcomed the Blue Jays to Milwaukee with open arms. Things started coming together yesterday with a 3-1 win. And now today, Mike Caldwell and the Brewers shut out Toronto 7-0.
Could there not be a better omen for a team that has found no dependable pitching and whose offense hasn’t been able to score than this? We all knew the offense would come around eventually, but a spotless performance like this one from Caldwell couldn’t have come at a better time.
Caldwell allowed but four hits and a walk, and not a single extra base hit. He had full command from the start. He set the tone, and the Brewers offense repaid him by scoring more runs than he would ever need.
A good sign was that the top three batters in the Brewers’ lineup (Paul Molitor, Charlie Moore and Cecil Cooper) collected two hits apiece. Ben Oglivie, the cleanup hitter, connected on his fourth homer of the season. And scrappy Jim Gantner outshone them all with three hits of his own. Desperately needed for a hitter whose batting average is still under .200 (.182) following the performance.
So now the Brewers are in the midst of a modest two-game winning streak. Losing streak? What losing streak? Thank you, Toronto!
Game Notes: It was Caldwell’s first complete game since 6/8/81 (1-0 loss to Twins) and first shutout since 9/13/80 over Mariners … Only time the Blue Jays had a runner past first base was in the third inning when Willie Upshaw was thrown out at the plate by Molitor … Cooper’s booming home run bounced off the Yago Sangria sign on the upper deck in right field … Robin Yount is expected to return to the lineup tomorrow. He’s been recovering from a hamstring injury … Oglivie’s fourth homer today is something of a relief. He had only two extra base hits (both doubles) all spring … Larry Hisle, nursing an injured wrist, isn’t expected to return to the lineup until next week against Chicago … After 5 home games, attendance is down: 128,199 in 1981, 96,755 in 1982. Only 6,199 saw Caldwell’s shutout.