The Crew posts nine runs in weather-impacted contest as several bullpen arms still get their work in
Weather was expected to cut this one short, which is why the Brewers decided to scratch swingman Tyler Alexander from his intended start. Alexander needed to get a certain number of ‘up-downs’ to continue his preparation, with the club worried that newly acquired pitcher José Quintana won’t be ready for the beginning of the season. Thus, the Brewers elected to have Alexander throw outside of the day’s game against the White Sox to ensure he got his work in before the looming weather threat arrived.
The Brewers’ offense got off to a hot start thanks to back-to-back doubles from Brice Turang and Jackson Chourio to lead off the game. Two batters later, Mark Canha squared-up a two-run home run, giving the Cactus Crew a 3-0 lead in the top of the first.
With Alexander scratched, Jared Koenig was first to pitch for the Brewers. He looked stellar in his inning of work, giving up no hits, runs, or walks and striking out one. Koenig’s sinker sat 93-94 throughout his outing and topped out at 96. Trevor Megill covered the second inning and gave up a few singles, but no hard contact. His outing remained scoreless thanks to an outfield assist from Jackson Chourio, throwing White Sox infielder Miguel Vargas out at home plate.
The Brewers offense was quiet in the second and third innings before Elvis Peguero entered the game to pitch the bottom of the third. Right fielder Cal Mitchell took Peguero deep on the first pitch of the inning, hopping on a fastball that clocked in at just 93 MPH. Peguero’s velocity has been a tick down so far this spring, with his sinker sitting 93-94 and topping out at 96 this afternoon. A walk and a few softly hit singles gave the White Sox another run, making it 3-2 after three innings.
The White Sox tied the game in the bottom of the fourth inning as pitching prospect Craig Yoho allowed his first run of the spring exhibition season. After walking veteran outfielder Travis Jankowski, Yoho surrendered an RBI double to White Sox catcher Korey Lee on a fastball that got too much of the plate. Yoho didn’t locate the fastball well in today’s outing, but he was able to get three outs and finish the inning while keeping Lee at second base.
The Brewers broke the tie in the top of the fifth thanks to three straight walks by opposing pitcher James Karinchak and an RBI fielder’s choice from Jackson Chourio. They added three more runs in the sixth inning on an RBI single from Manuel Margot and RBI groundouts by Caleb Durbin and Eric Haase, giving them a comfortable 7-3 lead.
Grant Wolfram, Tyler Jay, and Blake Holub each posted a scoreless inning for the Brewers with Jay striking out two of the three batters he faced in the bottom of the seventh inning. Holub benefitted from some impressive defense by Brewer Hicklen in right field, who threw a runner out at home to end the seventh.
The Brewers got two more runs on Isaac Collins’ first home run of the spring, scoring Andruw Monasterio, who doubled in the prior at-bat. The score remained 9-3 until the game was called in the bottom of the eighth due to rain, giving the Crew their ninth win of the spring and their third win in a row.
The Brewers are back in action tomorrow against the San Francisco Giants with first pitch scheduled for 3:10 p.m. CT.