Crew heads to Florida to take on the Tampa Bay Rays of George M. Steinbrenner Field
The Milwaukee Brewers are set to head to Florida as they’ll take on the Tampa Bay Rays for three games beginning Friday night. The Crew is coming off a 3-3 homestand against the Cubs and Astros, including a series win over Houston. They sit at 19-19 this season.
On the other side, the Rays are 16-20 on the year, winning two of three over the Yankees over the weekend but looking to avoid a three-game sweep at the hands of the Phillies in Tampa Bay tonight.
The Brewers have had another rough week for injuries, as Sal Frelick is facing knee discomfort, Brice Turang has dealt with an illness, and William Contreras has a fracture in his catching hand. Luckily, it sounds like all three players should be active and ready to go for this series. Beyond that, several pitchers are still working their way back, with Brandon Woodruff potentially set to return in the next week or so, depending on if the team wants to give him another rehab start.
The Rays have also dealt with a myriad of injuries, with shortstop Ha-Seong Kim, utilityman Richie Palacios, and outfielders Jake Mangum, Jonny DeLuca, and Josh Lowe all on the IL. Pitchers Hunter Bigge, Shane McClanahan, Kevin Kelly, Alex Faedo, and Nate Lavender are also out for this series.
Milwaukee’s offense has been incredibly inconsistent to this point in the year, seemingly falling to one end of the extreme or the other depending on the day. That’s resulted in plenty of average statlines. Jackson Chourio is hitting .256/.273/.463 and is tied with Christian Yelich (.197/.301/.356) for the team lead with six homers. Rhys Hoskins is hitting .266/.377/.422 with four homers, Brice Turang is still hitting over .300, and William Contreras is hitting .242/.358/.331. Eric Haase and Jake Bauers lead the team in OPS at .929 and .858, respectively, though neither officially qualify due to their utility roles. As a team, the Brewers are hitting .237/.315/.358 (.673 OPS ranks 22nd) with 31 homers (tied for 22nd) and 175 runs scored (11th).
The Rays’ offense is led by Junior Caminero, Jonathan Aranda, and Yandy Díaz. Caminero leads the squad with six homers, while Aranda’s .317/.417/.554 leads the team. Díaz has added five homers and leads the team with 37 hits in 144 at-bats. The speed on the team is also apparent, as José Caballero, the injured Mangum, and “fastest baseball player alive” Chandler Simpson are all a threat to run. Simpson is lightning fast (six steals in 16 games) but basically only hits singles, which reminds me of the pesky Billy Hamilton. As a team, the Rays are hitting .239/.307/.361 (.668 OPS ranks 23rd) with 29 homers (tied for 25th) and 135 runs scored (22nd).
The Brewers’ bullpen is led by Nick Mears, Abner Uribe, Jared Koenig, Grant Anderson, and Trevor Megill, with Megill bouncing back lately after a rough stretch. Mears has been the team’s fireman, with a 0.68 ERA and 12 strikeouts in 13 1⁄3 innings. Joel Payamps and Elvin Rodriguez are the “working from behind” bullpen at this point, while Tyler Alexander also provides length. As a staff, Milwaukee has a 4.27 ERA (20th), including a 3.77 starter ERA (12th) and a 4.91 reliever ERA (26th). They’ve struck out 300 batters (19th) this season.
Tampa Bay’s bullpen is about as solid as they come. Manuel Rodríguez and Edwin Uceta lead the team in appearances and have ERAs of 2.25 and 3.00, respectively. Closer Pete Fairbanks is a perfect 8-for-8 in save opportunities with a 1.88 ERA, Garrett Cleavinger has a 2.03 ERA in 14 appearances, and Eric Orze has a has an 0.73 ERA through 12 1⁄3 innings. Mason Englert, Cole Sulser, and Mason Montgomery are really the only weak links with ERAs of 6.00, 7.36, and 4.97, respectively. As a staff, Tampa Bay has a 3.78 ERA (13th), including a 4.17 starter ERA (19th) and a 3.16 reliever ERA (seventh). They’ve struck out 285 batters (24th) this season.
Probable Pitchers
Friday, May 9 @ 6:05 p.m.: Jose Quintana (2.83 ERA, 4.38 FIP) vs. Zack Littell (4.61 ERA, 5.63 FIP)
Quintana is coming off his worst start in a Brewers uniform, which isn’t saying much considering how good he was before that game. He allowed just three runs across the first 23 2⁄3 innings (1.14 ERA) in his first four starts before giving up six runs in just five innings against the Cubs on Saturday, earning his first loss of the year. In 10 career appearances (nine starts) against the Rays, Quintana is 1-5 with a 5.40 ERA and 52 strikeouts across 46 2⁄3 innings. His last appearance against them came last May while with the Mets, when he allowed eight runs in just 2 2⁄3 innings (27.00 ERA).
Littell, 29, is in his third seasons with the Rays after spending time with the Twins, Giants, and Red Sox. This is also his second season as a full-time starter, as he made 29 starts with a 3.63 ERA and 3.88 FIP a year ago. In seven starts this year, he’s spanned 41 innings with a 4.61 ERA, 5.63 FIP, and 25 strikeouts. His last two starts have resulted in wins over the Padres and Yankees, allowing four runs and striking out four across 12 total innings. Littell has made nine appearances (all relief) against Milwaukee, going nine total innings, striking out seven, and allowing just one run, which came in his first appearance against the Brewers back in 2018.
Saturday, May 10 @ 3:10 p.m.: Tobias Myers (3.65 ERA, 4.79 FIP) vs. Taj Bradley (4.43 ERA, 4.62 FIP)
Myers is coming off his best start of the young season, as he went 5 1⁄3 innings and allowed one run on six hits and no walks with two strikeouts in a win over the Astros. He’s allowed five runs over 12 1⁄3 innings through four appearances (three starts) this season. This is Myers’ first career appearance against Tampa Bay.
Bradley, still just 24, is a former fifth-round draft pick and top prospect. Through three MLB seasons, he hasn’t had a ton of success, with a career 4.70 ERA and 4.43 FIP. He’s close to those numbers this year, with a 4.43 ERA and 4.62 FIP through seven starts. He’s struck out 30 in 40 2⁄3 innings but also walked 18 and allowed 36 hits for a 1.328 WHIP. He’s allowed three runs or less in five of seven starts this year, including his last start when he went 5 1⁄3 innings and allowed two runs in a win over the Yankees. This is Bradley’s first career appearance against Milwaukee.
Sunday, May 11 @ 12:40 p.m.: TBD vs. Drew Rasmussen
The Brewers haven’t yet announced a starter for Sunday’s series finale, but this is expected to be Freddy Peralta barring any setbacks as he is considered day-to-day with a groin injury he suffered Sunday. That game also happened to be one of his best starts this year, as he went six scoreless innings, striking out seven while allowing four hits and a walk on just 89 pitches. He has a 2.18 ERA and 3.47 FIP through eight starts this season. Peralta is a perfect 3-0 in three career starts against Tampa, with a 3.86 ERA and 15 strikeouts across 16 1⁄3 innings, including two runs allowed and seven strikeouts across 5 1⁄3 innings last April.
Rasmussen, a former sixth-round pick by the Brewers, was part of the Willy Adames trade back in 2021. Over six career MLB seasons, he has a 2.97 ERA and 3.08 FIP, with 333 strikeouts over 345 2⁄3 innings. He’s close to those marks this year, with a 3.09 ERA and 3.69 FIP through seven starts, spanning 35 innings with 32 strikeouts. Despite those solid numbers, he’s allowed three-plus runs in each of his last three starts, raising his ERA from a sterling 0.87 to the current 3.09 mark. Rasmussen has never pitched against his former team.
How to Watch
Friday, May 9: FanDuel Sports Wisconsin, MLB Network (out-of-market viewers), and MLB.TV (out-of-market viewers); listen via radio on the Brewers Radio Network
Saturday, May 10: FanDuel Sports Wisconsin, MLB Network (out-of-market viewers), and MLB.TV (out-of-market viewers); listen via radio on the Brewers Radio Network
Sunday, May 11: FanDuel Sports Wisconsin and MLB.TV (out-of-market viewers); listen via radio on the Brewers Radio Network
Prediction
The Rays look a lot like the Brewers in terms of just about everything, so I think this is a fairly even matchup, as evidenced by both teams having records hovering around .500. I’ll take the Brewers to win two out of three at Steinbrenner Field.