Brewers, Cubs Split in a Battle at the Bottom

So uh...things haven't exactly gone as planned for the Brewers this year. We had some decent series' to start the year, then lost 4 straight series'. Any hope of competing is mostly shuttered. And now we're just trying to stay out of last. Which made this a very fitting moment for the Brewers to face the Cubs, another rebuilding team trying to win what they can. Last year, the Brewers-Braves series were among the most fun of the season, with miraculous events and huge stalemates illuminating how evenly matched my and Jordan Borenstein's teams truly were. 

With a new manager and a new location, this series was no exception. Rob and I traded paint in a very fun manner, with the best and worst of each squad on full display. The split may have kept things as they are standings-wise, but a lot was accomplished by both teams to keep it there.

Here now the writeup,

Game 1- Brewers 7, Cubs 1

W: Matt Boyd

L: Michael McGreevy

First blowout win for me since game 16 in Philly. To remind you all, this was game 37 for me. 20 games passed without a blowout win, and all the wins I had in that time were close, if won at all. 

This one came down to two real factors. One was Matt Boyd, absolutely working for me at last. Undeniably, this was Boyd's best start of the season, going 7 strong innings, allowing just 3 hits, one walk, and a run on a 3rd inning sacfly by Ozzie Albies, made a scoring situation by a freak error by my 2E8 2nd baseman Matt McLain [I rolled a lot of 17s on good defensive splits last night]. Boyd struck out 8 batters in all, including three in the 7th to end his day. Boyd's gone this long without getting the win, despite a pair of starts he should have won spoiled by bullpen shenanigans.

The other factor was Michael McGreevy, with a card flawed enough to make you wish it was great. In the third, Matt McLain [right after making the error] tripled on, then Blake Perkins singled him home. J.P. Crawford doubled to follow, and Kyle Stowers, finally getting back to business, launched one into the seats to bring them home. He'd get walked a lot in his other appearances this series, but he did reach on an E2 in the 5th. McGreevy, in between some pesky runs [Norby and Perkins threw 2 more runs on the board in the 6th via small ball], did strike out 4, but the Brewers' offense proved too much for him.

In the 7th, against Charlie Morton, something inexplicable happened. Liam Hicks, after singling Heliot Ramos home, was on 1st base. As a 2-for-a-20, Rob allowed me to give it a shot. Sure enough, snake eyes. The last time I actually got a 2-for-a-20 roll was when I still had Jeimer Candelario...against the 2025 Braves. Funny how this always happens against this team. 

Bullpen made this cut and dry, which is rare for the Brewers. Just not much cooking for the Cubs this game.

Game 2: Brewers 5, Cubs 2 [F/10]

W: Daniel Palencia

L: Charlie Morton

So first of all, the wildest stat there is. The Brewers have 7 extra innings wins. This was our 13th win. So the majority of the Brewers' wins this year...have been extra innings wins. Meaning the number of games we've won while leading at the end of regulation...is SIX. What a baseball club.

This shouldn't outshine the strength of this win, as it could have gone either way in multiple points. Despite a very holey Spencer Strider card, the Brewers couldn't do a heck of a lot with him on, with 6 baserunners left on during his time on the mound. He did wind up giving up an RBI double to Gavin Lux in the 6th, but it would have been much more lethal had Heliot Ramos not just grounded into a double play. The Cubs had a similar issue, with 5 baserunners left on during Jameson Taillon's 5.1 innings, and 9 left on in total. Taillon, despite leaving in the 6th with an injury [ROG thankfully], had his best start yet, allowing only 5 hits and 1 run, on a solo shot by Dylan Crews.

That's the thing about this game, the runs for the Cubs were scored by people named Crews or Cruz. Dylan had the 2nd inning jack, then Oneil [not his brother, as far as we know], smoked one in the 9 hole off Lake Bachar in the 7th. Luckily, my 9 hitter responded with a homer of his own, as Nick Fortes blasted his first homer of the year off of Braxton Ashcraft. Thanks to some simple power from 9 hitters, we were tied at 2. And despite a triple from Liam Hicks in the bottom of the ninth, Charlie Morton K'ing the side ensured this would be yet another extra-inning game for the Brewers.

Jhoan Duran, despite quieting the side in the ninth, got into some trouble with 2 straight singles, leaving runners at 1st and 3rd with Teoscar Hernandez coming up. Daniel Palencia had a do-or-die moment on his hands, and one batter was all he needed, getting Teoscar to ground into a double play to end the inning. Palencia's been one of my best relievers this year. A Brewers reliever that actually keeps runs down? What a concept.

So then it was up to Charlie Morton to keep the game going. He was close, getting 2 outs with 2 baserunners that walked aboard. Heliot Ramos came up, and did what Teoscar couldn't, going yard to walk it off and ending the game. Absolutely huge. 

Game 3: Cubs 4, Brewers 2

W: Nolan McLean

L: Lake Bachar

SV: Taijuan Walker [!!!!!!]

Here was where the D20 I switched out before the Padres series started wearing off. Lot of missed splits this game. Rob kept getting all the good ones.

Sonny Gray, despite getting the no decision, honestly wasn't too terrible here. He went 6, struck out 7, allowed only 4 hits and 2 runs. One of them came on a Kody Clemens homer in the 2nd, the other came on some baserunning prowess from Dylan Crews in the 5th. The veteran wasn't obliterated in any sense, but...compared to Nolan McLean, I completely get why he got the loss.

McLean, in his last start of the season, kept the Brewers' offensive output to only 2 home runs: a solo shot from Nick Fortes, and a solo shot from Kyle Stowers. Around that, he struck out ELEVEN Brewers. Three of those Ks were just Nacho Alvarez alone, who had four this game. He'd have been the big loser of the series had Jackson Chourio, who was hitting .300 heading into things, not gone 0-for-13. Smartly, Rob let McLean go into the 8th so he'd be eligible for the win, as Lake Bachar gave up runs to Otto Kemp and Kody Clemens [on his second solo shot of the day] to cement the Brewers' loss. 

Taijuan Walker may have been the real hero though, getting a 5-out save despite the Brewers inching slightly closer in the 8th. Somehow I couldn't find any of his many weak spots. 

Game 4: Cubs 7, Brewers 3

W: Seth Lugo

L: Zack Littell

SV: Orion Kerkering

The two most shockingly unhittable pitching cards squared off here. It'd be a matter of who'd hit the clearly black-inked column first. Rob won.

That Zack Littell 4 column, the one so many guys have struggled to capitalize on [Sam, Mike and Andy all missed it], was essentially all Rob rolled into. The most glaring evidence was the 2nd inning, where he hit the same N-HR chance twice, first with Oneil Cruz on a solo shot and then for Nick Gonzales with 2 men on. That, combined with the Brewers' repeated errors this game, plus Gonzales' well-timed triple in the 4th, put this one out of reach for Milwaukee early. Littell got roughed up and left after 5. For once the bullpen didn't make it worse.

Lugo, on the other hand, cruised, as he has seemed to all year. Through 7 innings, he only struck out 2, but only allowed 5 hits and 2 runs, one being scored on a passed ball. The other was a Nacho Alvarez RBI single, redeeming himself slightly after the 4-K game. The only real power moment of the game came once Colin Rea made it on, thanks to Kyle Stowers' HR hitting once again. The Brewers had runners on 2nd and 3rd in the ninth, but Orion Kerkering swiftly got out of the jam and made the series a split.

With 40 games played, the Brewers are 13 and 27, and are already looking forward to 2026. The Cubs are 9 and 19 through 28. Currently I have the edge, but you never know when my crap rolls will strike again.