The visiting Milwaukee Brewers will bring the majors’ best record into play on Tuesday night when they look to clinch a series victory over the hapless Atlanta Braves.
After posting a 3-1 win in the opener of a three-game set on Monday, the Brewers are a season-best 24 games over .500 at 68-44 and hold a three-game lead over the Chicago Cubs atop the National League Central. Milwaukee has won four straight games and 12 of 16 since the All-Star break.
For a lineup that produces by committee, helping the cause in the season’s second half has been 28-year-old rookie Isaac Collins. Including hitting a three-run homer on Monday, Collins has reached safely in 13 of 15 games since the break, pushing his batting average to .281 and his OPS to .801.
Admittedly, Collins has kept an eye on fellow first-year players across the league as he chases a possible NL Rookie of the Year Award.
“I mean, it’s hard not to acknowledge and think about that stuff, but we’ve still got two months of baseball left,” Collins said. “I just try to take things one day at a time. … It’s not why I play — it’s just a byproduct of executing. Staying process-oriented and not getting so caught up in the results, when you do that, the results show up.”
Right-hander Freddy Peralta (12-5, 3.08 ERA) will start for the Brewers on Tuesday, looking to rebound from his first loss since June 3. Peralta allowed five runs in four innings against the Cubs the last time out as the Brewers fell 10-3 on Wednesday.
In eight career appearances (seven starts) against the Braves, Peralta is 4-2 with a 4.58 ERA.
As confidently as Milwaukee is playing, the opposite can be said for Atlanta. The Braves appear to be limping to the finish line after losing nine of their last 12 games to fall 17 games under .500.
Each of the Braves’ starting pitchers to begin the season are on the 60-day injured list, and the team hopes it can squeeze out another solid start from its midseason acquisition on Tuesday.
Joey Wentz (2-2, 5.02 ERA) is slated to make his fifth appearance and fourth start for the Braves on Tuesday after being designated for assignment after 25 appearances split with the Pittsburgh Pirates and Minnesota Twins.
The left-hander is coming off his best performance of the season on Wednesday, allowing one hit over 6 2/3 scoreless innings in a no-decision against the Kansas City Royals. Atlanta lost 1-0 in 10 innings.
“It’s going to be challenging the rest of the year, until we hopefully get a guy back from that group,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said of the pitching injuries. “We knew as soon as the last guy (Grant Holmes) went down, it’s going to be challenging. Hopefully, these guys can hold up and give us a chance to win some games.”
Wentz has a 7.20 ERA in four career relief appearances against the Brewers. With Pittsburgh, he threw a scoreless frame against them on May 22 before he surrendered four runs in 1 1/3 innings versus them with the Twins on June 20.
–Field Level Media
