W: Yovani Gallardo (4-2)
L: Edwin Jackson (1-4)
SV: Trevor Hoffman (5)
ARI HR: Cole Gillespie (1)
MIL HR: Rickie Weeks (5), Jim Edmonds (2)
Yo isn’t getting very much run support lately, but he’s been making the best of the support he is getting. For the second straight start (and the third time in four starts), he struck out at least 10 batters, becoming the first Brewers pitcher to ever accomplish that feat. He did also walk 4 batters last night, and all the extra pitches led to a short outing — he was only able to get through 5 innings after throwing 103 pitches (and only 55 for strikes).
After Yo left with a one-run lead, there were (understandably) concerns that the bullpen would waste another solid starting pitching performance. Carlos Villanueva pitched another two scoreless innings (dropping his ERA to 0.54), Todd Coffey pitched a perfect 8th, and Trevor Hoffman managed to get the save with relatively little trouble. I will admit, though, that every time a Diamondbacks batter made contact against Hoffman, my heart jumped a little. Hoffman was able to get the final two outs on a hard-hit double play ball that would’ve been trouble if it got past Casey McGehee at third.
The offense wasn’t as good as I would’ve expected facing one of the worst pitching staffs in the National League, but I suppose Jackson couldn’t give up 10 runs in every start this year. Weeks was the only Brewer with more than one hit and also the only Brewer to reach base three times. One of those hits was an absolute moonshot to left center, conservatively measured at 459 feet.
Gillespie’s homer for Arizona had a bit of poetic justice to it. The former Brewers farmhand was traded to Arizona last summer in the Felipe Lopez deal, and hit his first career big league home run last night off Gallardo.
The win puts the Brewers back above .500 on the road — 9 of their 13 wins have now come away from Miller Park.
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