The Milwaukee Brewers will look to bounce back behind left-hander Robert Gasser and even their three-game series on Saturday night against the visiting Colorado Rockies, who are within one victory of matching their win total for all of last season.
Gasser (2-4, 4.91 ERA) will oppose right-hander Ryan Feltner (3-4, 5.48).
Colorado won the series opener 5-2 on Friday behind Tomoyuki Sugano, who scattered six hits — allowing two runs on a pair of solo homers — in 5 1/3 innings to improve to 6-0 over his last seven starts.
Christian Yelich and Brice Turang had solo homers for the Brewers, who lost for just the second time following the All-Star break.
Milwaukee has a six-game lead over the second-place Chicago Cubs in the National League Central and is 1 1/2 games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers for the best record in the majors.
Gasser bounced back from a poor start and pitched effectively his last time out, allowing one run on three hits in five innings, but did not get a decision in a 3-1 win over Miami on Sunday.
Gasser was tagged for seven runs in three innings in the start before that, a 14-5 loss to Pittsburgh on July 12.
“Not a ton different physically, I just executed it better, especially early getting the fastball at the top of the zone,” Gasser said following his last start.
Opponents are batting .242 against Gasser, who will face the Rockies for the first time.
Prior to Friday’s game, the Brewers activated infielder David Hamilton from the injured list and designated infielder Braden Shewmake for assignment.
Hamilton, on the IL since July 7 with a strained left hamstring, was in the starting lineup at third base in the series opener, going hitless in three at-bats.
The Rockies improved to 42-63 with their win in the series opener, one victory shy of their win total from last season, when they finished 43-119, worst in the majors and 50 games behind the first-place Dodgers in the NL West.
TJ Rumfield remained hot for the Rockies with two hits in the opener after entering as a pinch hitter in the seventh inning. Rumfield is batting .333 (21-for-63) with four doubles, a homer and eight RBI in 19 games in July.
Feltner has lost each of his last two starts, allowing 12 runs on 13 hits in 6 2/3 innings. He lasted just 2 1/3 innings his last time out, giving up eight runs on seven hits with four walks in a 9-6 loss to Cincinnati on Sunday.
Feltner has given up 14 home runs in 65 2/3 innings, including three against the Reds.
“Today, I thought the command wasn’t real good at all,” Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer said following Feltner’s last start. “He wasn’t sharp. The walks hurt, and then obviously the homers. The off-speed pitches were hung. Just not a lot of command with the off-speed stuff today, and he got hurt for it.”
Feltner is 1-1 with a 2.67 ERA in six career starts vs. Milwaukee. He faced the Brewers in June, allowing one run on one hit in six innings, but did not get the decision a 9-7, 10-inning loss.
–Field Level Media
