The Dodgers arrived in Milwaukee on Thursday to open a three-game set with the Brewers after an off day and a 4-0 win over the San Diego Padres at Petco Park. Milwaukee entered the series atop the NL Central by 1.5 games over the Chicago Cubs, and Friday’s matchup already carried the feel of a first-place test.
The game set for Friday pairs Logan Henderson for Milwaukee against Justin Wrobleski for Los Angeles. Henderson has been sharp since returning from Triple-A, allowing two or fewer runs and working at least five innings in each of his three outings while striking out 20 and walking two. Wrobleski has been just as steady on the road for the Dodgers, where he is 4-0 with a 1.50 ERA and has gone at least six innings in his last six starts.
Milwaukee’s numbers tell the story of a team that has found a way to score without big power. The Brewers had 33 home runs, the fewest in the majors to this point, and they also sat last in total extra-base hits. Even so, they came in tied for third in on-base percentage, fourth in batting average with runners in scoring position and with the highest ground-ball rate in MLB, a mix that has kept innings alive and pressure on opposing defenses. They also had the fourth-lowest strikeout rate in the league.
That approach was enough to keep Milwaukee in front of the division after a three-game sweep of the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field, and the lineup got a boost with Christian Yelich, Jackson Churio and Andrew Vaughn back after missing significant time to injury. The Brewers still had Jacob Misorowski out of the series, but their rotation and contact-heavy offense have kept them in position to make every home game matter.
The Dodgers, meanwhile, came in after taking two of three from San Diego and doing it with a bullpen that should be well rested because of the off day. But the offense has still not been producing consistently, and that leaves little margin against a Brewers club that wins with traffic on the bases, balls in play and enough timely hits to survive the lack of home-run damage. Friday’s start is the kind of game that can show whether Los Angeles can keep up in a series built on execution rather than power.
