Randy Lerch

Randy Lerch, Jerry Augustine Blow Game

July 30

Indians 7, Brewers 2
Brewers now 57-42 (2nd)
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MILWAUKEE — Today’s game between the Brewers and Indians was all about pitching. The Indians had it. The Brewers didn’t.

Brewers starter Randy Lerch only faced six batters. He was lucky that the Indians weren’t able to score more than two runs off of him in an inning plus. After helping the Indians score a run and load the bases on two singles, a hit by pitch and a walk in the first, Lerch struck out Chris Bando looking before Rod Craig hit a well-placed shot to Paul Molitor at third that resulted in an inning-ending double play. Lerch wouldn’t be as lucky in the second, as he’d walk the only two batters he’d face on nine pitches.

Just three starts ago, Lerch shut out the powerful Royals offense. But this is the second disaster in a row. On July 25 against those same Royals, Lerch allowed five runs on eight hits and was unable to get through the fifth.

Of course, it wasn’t just Lerch’s two runs that led to a 7-2 loss. Jerry Augustine was no better, allowing five runs on seven hits in five innings. But a reliable fifth starter is more important to this team’s success than a reliable mop-up reliever.

The fans have noticed. They filled County Stadium with boos in the first inning and later in the sixth when Brewers pitchers were unable to throw strikes and get outs.

This staff could use a guy like Indians starter Lary Sorensen, a former Brewer. Sorensen pitched a complete game, holding the Brewers to only two runs on nine hits while not walking a single batter.

“Obviously it feels good to beat the team that traded you,” said Sorensen. “When you beat these guys you know you’ve beat one of the best teams in baseball.”

This team may not deserve that label without a reliable fifth starter. Brewers officials plan to meet in the next couple of days to discuss Lerch’s role on the team. It would seem that a bullpen move is very likely. “There is always concern when you can’t throw the ball over the plate,” manager Harvey Kuenn told the Milwaukee Sentinel.

Who would take his spot? One possibility is Jerry Augustine, but today’s performance was unlikely to help his case. Another option is Jim Slaton, but the Brewers also need his steady hand in the bullpen.

Dating back to July 11, the Brewers have been dancing with the Red Sox for rights to own first place in the AL East. After today’s loss, the Brewers have dropped seven of the last 11 games, failing to take advantage of an opportunity to take first place while Boston struggles.

A trade may be necessary. Another dependable starter is needed to get over the hump.

Brewers Complete 5-Game Sweep of White Sox

July 18

Brewers 9, White Sox 3
Brewers now 53-35 (1st)
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Jim Gantner managed 11 hits in the five-game series.

MILWAUKEE — Today was Helmet Day at Milwaukee County Stadium, and the White Sox could have used those spare helmets to protect their heads from flying baseballs.

The White Sox took an early 2-0 lead in the second inning, but it could have been worse. Through those two innings, they had left three runners on base. Two runs is not enough to hold back the high-scoring Brewers.

“Sure it runs across your mind that today may not be your day,” Ben Oglivie told the Milwaukee Sentinel, “but we were only down two runs. The score doesn’t matter to this team. It doesn’t mean anything.”

In the bottom of the second, the Crew pounced on rookie Rich Barnes, who was making his major league debut. Just not fair, really. The first five batters he faced that inning reached base, and with two down in the inning the Brewers held a 6-2 lead. Barnes’ day was already over, and the White Sox had a big hole to climb out of.

While the Brewers hit .336 with 12 homers, 26 doubles and two triples on the home stand, the story of this five-game sweep was the bottom of the order. Don Money, Charlie Moore and Jim Gantner combined to go 8-for-12 with four RBI and three runs scored today, and of the Brewers’ 56 hits in the series 26 came from the bottom of the order.

Jim Gantner is a big part of that. The White Sox killer went 11-for-15 in the series and has gone 21-for-38 against Chicago this season.

“I betcha Jim Gantner couldn’t tell ya how to get Gantner out,” White Sox starting pitcher Britt Burns moaned.

A three-game sweep isn’t an easy thing to do. A four-game sweep is almost unheard of. And a five-game sweep? Thanks to a make-up game of a contest previously rained out in Chicago, the Brewers pulled off that unthinkable task.

“It’s just one of those streaks,” Gantner said of the eight straight games and overall success against the White Sox. “Chicago’s unfortunate enough to play us right now. They had the lead in four of the five games but we just kept coming back.”

The biggest surprise is that the Brewers kept scoring runs without the home run ball. Coming into the series at a pace to challenge the 1961 New York Yankees for the team record of most home runs in a season, the Brewers’ only homer was by Don Money on July 16.

“We finessed them,” manager Harvey Kuenn laughed. “Seriously, we not only hit for power, we can hit for average too.”

They can. And they can pitch. The bullpen now has a 2.15 ERA under Kuenn. The team is 30-11 under his leadership and now has the second best record in all of baseball, one win behind the Atlanta Braves who are 54-35.

The Boston Red Sox, by the way, lost to the Royals 9-0 today and fell 1 1/2 games behind the Brewers for the AL East lead.

Game Notes: Brewers starter Randy Lerch lasted 6 2/3 innings before handing the ball to Dwight Bernard for his fourth save. The White Sox managed only an Aurelio Rodriguez solo home run off of Lerch after the second inning.

Randy Lerch Shuts Out Royals

July 10

Brewers 7, Royals 0
Brewers now 47-35 (2nd)
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MILWAUKEE — The Brewers have been hitting home runs at a record pace since Harvey Kuenn took over, but it’s games like this one that leave little doubt that they are a serious contender for the AL East title and more.

Sure, the offense was fantastic again. The Brewers scored seven runs on 19 hits. Seven of the nine Brewers hitters had multiple hits. Paul Molitor, Robin Yount and Ted Simmons all hit home runs. Ho hum.

But starting pitcher Randy Lerch was the real story today. Coming in at 5-5 with a 5.38 ERA, Lerch is the clear weak link of the rotation. Yet he shut out what is probably the league’s number two offense, after the Brewers. Nine innings, nine hits, three walks, six strikeouts. No runs.

It was Lerch’s first shutout of the season and the second of his career (his first was in 1979 with the Philadelphia Phillies). Was today’s performance unexpected? You bet. He hadn’t thrown more than seven innings in a game all season, and he reached seven only twice in 15 outings.

But what makes this win most impressive isn’t the offensive explosion or Randy Lerch’s performance. It’s that it was done against the Royals, the AL West’s best team. And the offense teed off on Vida Blue (an accomplished starting pitcher who entered the game with a 3.40 ERA) for four runs on 10 hits, knocking him out before he could get an out in the fourth inning.

The Red Sox beat the Twins 5-4 today to keep the Brewers a game back. But they won’t be able to hold off this impressive Crew forever.

Brewers Benefit from Seven Chicago Errors

July 5

Brewers 10, White Sox 4
Brewers now 45-33 (2nd)
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It was Jim Slaton, not LaMarr Hoyt, who looked like the early Cy Young candidate.

CHICAGO — You know those games when everything possible seems to go wrong? Have no fear, Brewers fans, this wasn’t one of those games for your team on a nationally televised scale. But it was for the White Sox.

Chicago had early Cy Young candidate LaMarr Hoyt on the mound. Coming in with a 10-6 record and 2.34 ERA, there was certainly an expectation that the Brewers would have a challenge scoring runs.

But these are Harvey’s Wallbangers. What Hoyt faced today was a level of competition he hadn’t seen all season. Formerly a reliever, he made his first start of the season against the Brewers on April 27 and allowed one earned run over eight innings for an 11-2 White Sox win. From that point forward, he had lasted eight innings or more in 10 of 13 starts. Only once had he not lasted at least 6 2/3 innings.

Today? Well, today was different. Hoyt would face 11 batters and retire only four of them, though one would be via the sacrifice. By the time he left in the second, he was shellshocked. The Brewers were already up 5-0.

Though the White Sox would come back and make it a 6-4 game, their defense would put this game out of reach. Or I should say, their lack of defense.

Seven errors. Seven. Have you ever seen a big league game where players committed seven errors? I haven’t. I’ve seen Little League games. Maybe some school games. Don’t think I’ve ever seen it on the college level, and certainly not in the big leagues.

Seven errors led to four unearned runs. Shortstop Bill Almon would get the hat trick, flubbing three plays. It got so bad that in the ninth inning Comiskey Park fans were chanting, “We want an error! We want an error!”

“It was an embarrassing loss in front of a national audience,” said White Sox manager Tony Larussa, “or even if there was no audience at all.”

It was embarrassing. For you.

White Sox fans will see this game as one that was lost due to a lack of defense. In reality, there was also some outstanding pitching coming from Milwaukee. While starter Randy Lerch nearly let a big lead get away by giving up four runs on six hits in 2 2/3 innings, Jim Slaton was his usual dominant self in relief. He threw 6 1/3 easy, shutout innings, allowing only three hits.

Slaton’s ERA overall is 3.12, but just as a reliever it’s 1.72 in 47 relief innings. Manager Harvey Kuenn is strongly considering keeping Slaton in the relief role only, even though he’s often used as a spot starter.

Want some bad news? No? Well, I’m going to give it to you anyway. Robin Yount was removed in the fourth after pulling his hamstring while, you guessed it, running out Bill Almon error.

“He said he felt a slight pull after rounding first base and that if we wrapped up he’d be Ok,” Harvey said. “I figured he’d be at 85% and there’s no way Robin goes 85%, it would have been 110% and I was afraid he would pull it more.”

Yount is not expected to play tomorrow.

Game Notes: Of the last 11 games, the Brewers have reached double digits in hits nine times. … Dwight Bernard‘s wife Barbara had a baby girl this morning. Kelly Dawn weighed in at 7 lbs. 14 oz., and both baby and mother are resting comfortably. … Division leading Boston did not play today, so the Brewers are now back to a half game back. … Jim Gantner took infield practice prior to the game without trouble, but Kuenn didn’t think he was ready to return from a shoulder injury.

Stormin’ Gorman Brings Thunder to Yankees

June 30

Brewers 9, Yankees 7 (12)
Brewers now 42-31 (2nd)
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Gorman Thomas — Gorman Thoams hit a two-run homer in the 12th to beat the Yankees.

NEW YORK — What started out as a rout ended up as a thriller. But the Brewers kept their composure and again won in impressive fashion on the road.

The Crew sent Yankees starter Tommy John to the showers early, scoring one in the first and five on six hits in the third. Holding a 6-1 lead midway through the seventh, the lead appeared safe.

But that’s about the point that the clock strikes midnight for Brewers starter Randy Lerch, even on a good day. He quickly hit the wall, allowing three consecutive hits after a leadoff fly out by Graig Nettles. Dwight Bernard and then Rollie Fingers came on to try and stop the bleeding, but by the end of the inning it was a one-run nail-biter.

The drama was a bit unexpected, particularly after a Ned Yost RBI single gave the Brewers a two-run lead heading to the bottom of the ninth with Rollie Fingers still on the mound. Then, Rollie lost grip of the lead again and blew his fifth save, allowing the Yankees to tie the game on two sacrifice flies.

The game was nearly ended in the tenth when Roy Howell hit a two-out single to left with Ben Oglivie on second. But Dave Winfield pegged him out at the plate on a perfect throw, and the game continued.

Gorman Thomas, who previously in the game exacted revenge on Dave LaRoche by smacking a “LaLob” for a single (LaRoche had struck out Thomas on the same slow-pitch softball-styled looper during the playoffs last season), had power in mind in the twelfth. After Cecil Cooper led off the inning with a single, Gorman smashed a booming shot over the left field wall off of reliever Shane Rawley to give the Brewers a two-run lead.

Of course, this was a game filled with dramatic twists and turns, so the bottom of the twelfth wouldn’t be easy. After Rollie Fingers reached the end of his line (he went 4 2/3 innings for his longest outing of the season), Jamie Easterly took the mound. Oscar Gamble and Jerry Mumphrey reached to start the frame, and the Brewers appeared to be in big trouble. But Graig Nettles failed to get a bunt down and would then strike out. Roy Smalley singled to load the bases with one out, and then Dave Collins hit a swinging bunt that Easterly would field and tag out Oscar Gamble at the plate. With two down and the bases still loaded, catcher Juan Espino flied to center to finally end the game.

It was a marathon game, a roller coaster of emotions. But as the Brewers have repeatedly shown under Harvey Kuenn, this team is a powerful, strong-minded and resilient bunch.

The Brewers go for the sweep tomorrow.

Game Notes: After Boston’s 12-3 loss to the Tigers, the Brewers now trail the Red Sox by two games for the AL East lead. … Gorman Thomas now has 19 home runs, tying him with teammate Ben Oglivie and Cleveland Indian Andre Thornton for the league lead. … Thomas is 13-for-24 with five home runs and 13 RBI on the six-game road trip. … Jim Gantner, nursing a sore shoulder, is making improvement and will try to throw in a couple of days. … Don Money has a sore hamstring, but still played.

Harvey’s Wallbangers 1, Green Monster 0

June 25

Brewers 9, Red Sox 3
Brewers now 38-30 (2nd)
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BOSTON — This four-game series pits first against second in the American League East. Most importantly, it’s billed as Harvey’s Wallbangers vs. The Wall, the famed Green Monster of Fenway. After one game, the wall took a beating. As did the Red Sox.

The Brewers scored nine runs on 16 hits, several of which went either into or over the Green Monster. While the Monster gets all of the attention, the Brewers made sure to spray the ball around the field. The action started in the first inning when Cecil Cooper, who complained of blurred vision due to a migraine, clanged a two-run homer off of the right field foul pole.

Gorman Thomas‘ two-run homer over the Monster in the sixth gave the Brewers the lead for good, and the Crew tacked on four more runs in the seventh on six singles for good measure, one of which was a Ben Oglivie smash off of the big wall.

But the key moment in this game may not have involved the wall or the Brewers’ bats. The Red Sox opened the fifth with three consecutive singles, scoring a run to pull to within one of the Brewers. Jim Slaton relieved Randy Lerch and walked Tony Perez on five pitches to load the bases. He then disposed of Dave Stapleton, Glenn Hoffman and Carl Yastrzemski on consecutive infield pop-ups to get out of the jam.

While that may have been the turning point, it was also the story of the game for the Red Sox. Boston’s mashers reached on 15 hits, but 13 were for singles. When it counted, they failed, going 3-for-13 with runners in scoring position and leaving 13 runners on base overall.

While Boston may have come into this game as the favorite, they certainly played the role of the underdog. And the Brewers simply pounded away.

One down, three to go. The Brewers are now to within four games.

Game Notes: The Brewers are now 15-6 under manager Harvey Kuenn … Jim Gantner‘s sore shoulder is still bothering him, and he may go on the DL. He could not throw without pain, so Ed Romero started in his place at second and had two hits while playing flawless defense … The Red Sox placed third baseman Carney Lansford on the DL with torn ankle ligaments and called up Ed Jurak from Pawtucket.