Brewers finish off 11 game road trip with series split against the Cubs

Home is where the heart is.

The Milwaukee Brewers finally completed their 11-game road trip by splitting a four-game series against the Chicago Cubs. Injuries and battling through adversity have been the theme of the last few weeks, and that was never more apparent than in this series.

The series against the Cubs was filled with both positives and negatives, a feast for all the emotions that baseball can bring.

Ethan Small made his MLB debut and showed flashes of what makes him an intriguing prospect, but he also struggled with command. Meanwhile, Jason Alexander excelled in his debut, pitching seven innings with only two earned runs allowed.

Overall, the Crew finished 6-5 on the trip and now return home to face the San Diego Padres.

Master Brewer Leaderboard (through 52 games)

(The Master Brewer Leaderboard is a season-long leaderboard tracking and ranking exceptional performances from Brewers players in the form of Master Brew Points 🍺, which at the end of the season will tally up to crown our Crewsing for a Brewsing Player of the Year.)

Aaron Ashby 🍺

If Aaron Ashby keeps pitching like this he’ll be near the top of the leaderboard in no time. Ashby offered six innings with only one earned run allowed and 12 strikeouts. When Ashby is locked in with his command, he has been dominant. Brewers fans have known that the future is bright for Ashby, but now it’s clear the present is pretty damn bright too.

Josh Hader 🍺

Hader completed a baseball rarity in this series by saving both games of a doubleheader. Hader’s run of brilliance this season has been nothing short of spectacular. Hader has pitched 16 and 2/3 innings this season with 18 saves and 26 strikeouts. Right now he’s the best reliever in baseball and it’s not close.

Jason Alexander 🍺

George is NOT getting upset because Jason Alexander turned in an excellent MLB debut on Thursday night. With the Brewers bullpen needing a break, Alexander pitched seven innings, heavily relying on his sinker to get ground-ball outs. He exited with only two earned runs allowed and the Brewers locked in a 3-3 tie. Alexander did his job and gave the team a chance to win. He more than earned another start as the Brewers look for options with Brandon Woodruff and Freddy Peralta on the IL.

Jace Peterson 🍺

Jace Peterson became extra base Jace in this series, especially in Game 4. Peterson has been an incredibly valuable player for Milwaukee this season due to the rash of injuries they’ve had to deal with. Peterson has played first base, right field, third base, left field, and second base over the course of 43 games. He’s done so while compiling a .231/.314/.444 batting line with a WRC+ of 112.

Tyrone Taylor 🍺

Say it with me again: “everyday starter Tyrone Taylor”. Except for the occasional off-day, which is probably needed at this point, don’t expect Taylor’s name to be absent from the lineup very often. He hit his fifth and sixth homers of the season in this series, adding some thump to the middle of the Milwaukee lineup.

Victor Caratini 🍺

Victor Caratini has proven to be an excellent acquisition by David Stearns and company. During his 21 game timeshare with Omar Narvaez, Caratini is batting .230/.324/.443 with 4 homers and 10 RBI. A homer in Game 1 and Game 3 of the series against the Cubs led to one of his most productive series with the bat this season.

Brad Boxberger 🍺

Boxberger allowed what would become the game-winning homer in Game 3 of this series, but his performance in Game 2 earned him a beer. In that game Boxberger delivered two scoreless innings with a pair of strikeouts before handing the ball to Josh Hader for the save.

Leaderboard through 52 games

Rowdy Tellez: 🍺 x7

Corbin Burnes: 🍺 x6

Josh Hader 🍺 x5

Jace Peterson, Christian Yelich, Willy Adames: 🍺 x4

Tyrone Taylor, Aaron Ashby, Freddy Peralta, Eric Lauer, Hunter Renfroe, Devin Williams 🍺 x3

Brandon Woodruff, Kolten Wong, Andrew McCutchen, Luis Urias, Adrian Houser, Keston Hiura: 🍺 x2

Brad Boxberger, Jason Alexander, Victor Caratini, Trevor Gott, Omar Narvaez: 🍺