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Brewers proving they're not a fluke
By Jeremy Harness July 17, 2008 |
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Last year, the Milwaukee Brewers were in the thick of the National League playoff picture until they were pushed out on the final week of the regular season. Things haven't changed much this year, as the 52-43 Brewers are only five games back in a suddenly-competitive NL Central. And they've added some ammo along the way. Milwaukee traded for left-hander and Bay Area native C.C. Sabathia earlier this month and was solid in his first start for his new team, getting the win against Colorado July 8 with a six-inning, two-earned-run outing. His next outing, which came last Sunday, was even better. He went eight innings against Cincinnati and gave up only a pair of runs on eight hits with only a walk to go along with nine strikeouts. However, if there's one place that he has had problems, it has been the Bay Area. The good news for Sabathia is that he won't be pitching in Oakland, where his struggles have been well-documented, on Friday night but rather across the bay at AT&T Park to face Matt Cain and the Giants. Cain is also coming off a superb start, even though he was ultimately awarded with a no-decision, a scenario which he became quite familiar with last year. He threw seven innings of dominant ball at the Cubs, giving up only three hits and three walks while striking out nine and leaving with a 1-0 lead. He was helpless in the eighth inning, when Tyler Walker gave up a back-breaking three-run homer to Chicago's Aramis Ramirez to screw up his glorious day at Wrigley Field. On Saturday, left-hander Jonathan Sanchez will tussle with this year's All Star Game starter, right-hander Ben Sheets, and on Sunday, Tim Lincecum, who is fully recovered from suffering flu-like symptoms during the All-Star festivities in New York, will take the hill against Manny Parra, who is a native of the Sacramento area. |
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