Game Thread #20: Milwaukee Brewers (9-9) vs. San Francisco Giants (13-4)

The Brewers welcome the Cactus League leading Giants to Phoenix this afternoon

Just 13 days remain until Opening Day in New York. After pulling even to a .500 record with yesterday’s win, the Brewers look to improve that to a winning record this afternoon. They’ll try to do that against the San Francisco Giants this afternoon, who currently lead the Cactus League.

Nestor Cortes gets the start in today’s game. This will be his second appearance this spring and first start. Even though it’s just his first start of the spring, he has been building up towards a spot in the starting rotation. In his first appearance on March 9, he pitched 2 ²⁄₃ innings and allowed one run against the Royals. He reached 47 pitches in that start, so we should expect to see something closer to the 60-pitch mark today.

Also scheduled to pitch today are Easton McGee, Bryan Hudson, and Joel Payamps. McGee last pitched on Tuesday against the Cubs, throwing two scoreless innings with two strikeouts and a walk. Payamps also last pitched on Tuesday, throwing a clean inning. Hudson hasn’t pitched in a week, with his last appearance going two innings against the Padres.

The regulars are getting more playing time as well, with Opening Day approaching. Brice Turang is leading off against RHP Jordan Hicks today. Jackson Chourio has already heated up, going 10-for-27 this spring with a .433 OBP. Christian Yelich and William Contreras bat third and fourth, with Sal Frelick moving up to fifth in the lineup. Rhys Hoskins has also continued a hot spring, batting .350 with five home runs as he bats sixth. Garrett Mitchell, Joey Ortiz, and Oliver Dunn round out the lineup. Dunn has made a strong push for a roster spot with a .379 batting average and .438 OBP this spring.

Here are the full lineups. Just radio for this afternoon’s game, with the game broadcast on the Brewers Radio Network.