‘Rocky’ Start to Spring Training Opener
“Brewers get chilled by Colorado”
The people of Milwaukee were thawed out
during the sunny home opener, at American Family Fields of Phoenix on sunday. Although the weather was hot, the Brewers bats remained frosty against Colorado. It wasn’t a day to remember for the brew crew, but there’s time to sharpen up before opening day! Getting all the guys together in the locker room both rookies and vets, a new skipper getting settled in, and faithful fans travelling with, Wisconsin is ready for baseball season! Brewers fans nationwide are tuning into the valley of the sun and the Cactus League spring training, here’s what we saw out there!
The home fans got up to cheer early, as the very first pitch to William Contreras was smacked out over the wall in right-center. That would be the highlight for the rest of the day, as the Brewers were out hit 18-5, with relief pitching being anything but. Starter Colin Rea pitched one perfect inning with 2 strikeouts. As soon as Taylor Clarke took over in the second he was lit up with back to back homers on consecutive pitches, could have been retaliation for that one Contreras hit earlier.. But then it really got out of hand after that. “I thought Rea was very good,” remarked Pat Murphy after the exhibition. Clarke caught the skippers eye as well, showing his grit and mental composure from the mound. Taylor Clarke is a 5 year vet now with 183 games under his belt between Arizona and Kansas City, and will be in the bullpen this year. Pat Murphy commented “he responded really well, he showed some good things after he gave up the two big hits.”
Things spiraled during the 5th inning massacre for the non-roster invitee Harold Chirino, who gave up five runs on six hits without finishing the inning. Giving up a long double off the wall by Rockies SS Cabreras drove in a runner and set the table for Colorado to keep hammering Chirino. Multiple doubles and line drives between our third base and shortstop kept the Brewers defense hemorrhaging. With the awful pitching outing aside, William Contreras carried more than his own weight, both behind and at the plate. He had the early home run that sounded like it was hit a ton, not to mention 2 throw outs at second base on defense! I’m super excited to keep him on the radar after seeing him gun down 2 runners, plus a dinger, what more do ya want from the guy?
Other orders of business include the restructured contract for Gary Sanchez, explaining his early absence. While both sides agreed to the initial offer, an issue with his physical led to both parties reworking the deal. Now the Brewers only have to guarantee 3 million instead of the full 7, but leaving opportunities for him to get there still, depending on his health/availability. Other recent news includes adding former pro Justin Bour to the staff in the player development department role. He spent 6 seasons in the league between 2014-19, was a finalist for rookie of the year with the Marlins, and played in a few foreign leagues before retiring from playing last February. Lots of baseball to go, so take it easy on that grape big league chew gum, PLAY BALL!
