The Milwaukee Brewers, who already have clinched a playoff spot, will be looking for a bounce-back start from veteran right-hander Freddy Peralta against the visiting Los Angeles Angels on Tuesday in the opener of the three-game series.
Peralta (16-6, 2.69 ERA) will be opposed by rookie right-hander Caden Dana (0-1, 6.32 ERA). Both Milwaukee and Los Angeles were off Monday.
Milwaukee lost to the Cardinals 3-2 on Sunday, after winning the first two games of the series. Solo homers by rookie Caleb Durbin and Danny Jansen provided the Brewers runs. Starting pitcher Jose Quintana was pulled after four innings with a calf injury and was scheduled for an MRI. His status has not been updated.
Durbin, listed at 5-foot-7, is hitting .262 on the season since becoming the regular third baseman, and is batting .324 over his last 21 games with four homers, six doubles and seven RBIs.
The Angels (69-81) dropped their fourth consecutive game, 11-2, at Seattle on Sunday.
Milwaukee (91-59), which clinched a playoff berth over the weekend and has the best overall record in the majors, entered Monday with a 5 1/2 game lead in the NL Central over the Cubs, who opened a three-game series at Pittsburgh on Monday.
The Brewers head into the week with a magic number of eight to clinch their fourth division title in five seasons. Milwaukee has a two-game lead over Philadelphia for the best record in the National League.
Peralta, whose 16 victories lead the National League, lost his last start, allowing five runs in five innings in a 6-3 defeat at Texas, snapping his streak of 30 consecutive scoreless innings. It was his first loss since July 30, a span of six starts.
“You’re going to see people around, probably getting mad when you have a bad outing,” Peralta said following his last start. “At the end of the day, we all want to win. You see the results at the end when you compare the good games, the bad games, the so-so. It’s part of the game.”
Peralta was 4-0 with a microscopic 0.32 ERA in five starts in August, allowing one run in 28 innings.
Peralta is 1-0 with a 6.75 ERA in two career starts against the Angels, giving up seven runs in 9 1/3 innings.
Dana, who made two early season relief appearances, will be making his third start since being recalled in early September. He is 0-1 with a 5.59 ERA in his two starts this month, allowing seven runs, six earned, in 9 2/3 innings.
He took the loss his last time out, giving up five runs, including two homers in 4 2/3 innings in a 12-3 defeat against Minnesota. He did strike out a career-high nine, but walked five.
“Giving up five runs can’t happen,” Dana said following his last start. “Move on from there. Make pitches when it counts. Today I didn’t do that.”
Angels slugger Mike Trout is one home run short of 400 for his career. Trout has four homers in 39 plate appearances in 11 career games vs. the Brewers with a .462 batting average. All four homers have come in Milwaukee at American Family Field.
The Angels have not won a series in Milwaukee since a three-game sweep in 2013.
–Field Level Media
