After losing five of six to begin a 10-game road trip, the Milwaukee Brewers hope an apparent offensive turnaround ignites them on Tuesday as they begin a three-game set against the host Chicago White Sox.
Milwaukee stopped a four-game slide Sunday behind an 11-hit attack that keyed its 7-1 victory at St. Louis. Every starter hit safely, with Jackson Chourio and Christian Yelich leading the way with two hits apiece.
“We were convicted. We hit some line drives and we didn’t roll over,” Brewers manager Pat Murphy said. “We didn’t hit pull-side ground balls, you know. We hit line drives. We went the opposite way. We didn’t try to do too much. That’s who we have to be.”
After extending his career hitting streak against the Cardinals to seven games, Yelich will try to improve his output against a foe the Brewers don’t face nearly as often.
In 18 games against the White Sox, Yelich is batting .254 (17-for-67) with one home run and eight RBIs.
Chicago returns to Rate Field on the heels of a 3-7 road trip that concluded with Sunday’s 3-2 loss to the Athletics in 10 innings.
Veteran left-hander Martin Perez’s season-ending forearm strain coupled with shorter outings from a core of young starters has placed additional workload on the bullpen in the first month of the season.
“We’ve got a good group down there,” right-handed reliever Jordan Leasure said. “We can help us win games, try to put the team in a good position. But we’re just going in there, attacking guys and doing what we do best.”
Righty Bryse Wilson aims to follow that blueprint Tuesday. Wilson (0-0, 4.30 ERA) made a spot start at Minnesota on Wednesday, pitching 2 2/3 innings of one-run ball while allowing five hits.
Wilson credits the approachability of pitching coach Ethan Katz for helping him adapt.
“He’s just hands-on with every individual, catering to every individual’s needs more so than just one structured plan,” Wilson said. “Just how they’re able to do that, stay on their toes and devote so much time to each individual person has been awesome.”
Wilson is 1-2 with a 4.88 ERA in 31 1/3 innings over seven career appearances against the Brewers, including six starts. He will oppose Milwaukee righty Freddy Peralta (2-2, 2.43), who is 2-0 with a 1.50 ERA in 18 innings over four appearances (three starts) against the White Sox.
Peralta is coming off Wednesday’s 4-2 road loss to the San Francisco Giants. He spaced three runs and five hits in five innings with two walks and a season-low three strikeouts.
White Sox infielder Lenyn Sosa has collected at least one hit in 13 consecutive starts over the last 14 games, which includes going 0-for-1 as a pinch hitter against the Twins on Wednesday.
“He’s really just been the same guy for me from Day 1,” manager Will Venable said. “(Sosa) takes good cuts and lets it go. He’s got confidence. I know there’s some chase in there, but he’s impacting the ball and a guy who’s dangerous up there.”
Milwaukee is looking to win consecutive games for the first time since earning three straight victories from April 15-18.
–Field Level Media
