Christian Yelich hits for the cycle, checking in with the Nashville Sounds, a tough road trip continues.

Cycles are cool, the Sounds are hot, road trips need good playlists.

The Milwaukee Brewers lost their second consecutive series this week, dropping two of three to the same Cincinnati Reds team they swept a week previously. It was not very fun. Baseball is supposed to be fun. Milwaukee lost 10-5 in Game 1, won 5-4 in Game 2, and lost 14-11 in Game 3. The Crew still have a 20-12 record and a 2.5 game lead in the NL Central, so this temporary drop in form is nothing to be concerned about yet.

There was one bright spot, however, in Game 3 of the series Christian Yelich hit for the third cycle of his career (all against the Reds). It was an exciting moment as Yelich continues to be productive, asserting himself as an all-around hitter that lives on base and gives the Brewers a spark in the lineup.

The immediate news is more positive for the Nashville Sounds. The music makers thumped the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp 10-1 on Thursday evening to move their record to 22-10, which is good enough to lead the International League West. Ethan Small is the headliner, and the southpaw starting pitcher is 3-1 on the season with a 1.95 ERA in 32.1 innings pitched.

Small’s low 90s fastball plays faster due to the extension and deception provided by his build and windup. He showcased that against the tiny/large shellfish throwing five innings and striking out nine batters in the victory.

Small could play a role in Milwaukee’s rotation or bullpen before the 2022 season comes to a close. Other prospects of note include shortstop/outfielder Brice Turang, former Colorado Rockies first round pick David Dahl, former highly regarded prospect Jon Singleton, and old friend (and likely future friend) Keston Hiura.

Master Brewer Leaderboard

(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.)

Christian Yelich 🍺

As mentioned above, Christian Yelich was the story of Game 3. Yelich’s third cycle of his career, and third against the Reds, featured an opposite field homer and a dramatic 9th inning triple that he ripped down the right-field line. Yelich may not be back to his MVP form just yet, but he is a key cog in this Brewers team and his performance is starting to line up with his batted ball metrics. Per Brewers Sr. Director of Media Relations Mike Vassallo, Yelich is batting .362/.464/.745 with four homers and 12 RBI across his last 13 games.

Jace Peterson 🍺

Jace got on base with regularity in this series. Peterson compiled a 4-for-12 batting line against the Reds with a pair of doubles, one homer, and two walks. He also showed his versatility in the field starting one game at third base, one at first base, and one in left-field.

Freddy Peralta 🍺

Freddy Peralta was easily the best Brewers starting pitcher against the Reds. Peralta pitched 5 and 2/3 innings striking out eight Reds, allowing one run on four hits and one walk. He’s starting to look like the Freddy Peralta of 2021, which is a great sign moving forward. Consistency is key for this Brewers rotation and Peralta seems to have found his.

Leaderboard through 32 games

Rowdy Tellez: 🍺 x6

Christian Yelich, Josh Hader, Willy Adames: 🍺 x4

Corbin Burnes: 🍺 x3

Freddy Peralta, Brandon Woodruff, Eric Lauer: 🍺 x2

Andrew McCutchen, Kolten Wong, Devin Williams, Adrian Houser, Hunter Renfroe, Luis Urias, Trevor Gott, Jace Peterson 🍺