Milwaukee @ Pittsburgh preview
PNC Park
Last Meeting ( Apr 28, 2010 ) Pittsburgh 6, Milwaukee 5
If the Milwaukee Brewers plan to make any noise in the National League Central this season, they are going to have to find someone who can protect a lead.
The Brewers will be attempting to keep the ball out of their closer's hands when they open a two-game series today against the Pittsburgh Pirates.
When Milwaukee elected to bring 42-year-old, all-time saves leader Trevor Hoffman back on a one-year, $8 million deal last offseason, they had to expect some regression from his 37-save, 1.54 ERA 2009 campaign. But Hoffman hasn't just regressed, the former All-Star seems to have fallen off a cliff.
Hoffman allowed three runs in the ninth inning Tuesday against Cincinnati for his fifth blown save already this season, lifting his ERA to 13.15. The right-hander has never blown more than seven saves in any full season and botched only four opportunities in all of 2009.
His biggest problem has been a tendency to allow crushing home runs, with Scott Rolen doing the damage with a two-run blast in Tuesday's loss. Hoffman has yielded seven bombs this season after surrendering two in 2009. He has never given up more than 10 in any full season.
Hoffman has not posted an ERA over 3.90 in his career.
The owner of a major league-record 596 saves, Hoffman will have a tough time reaching the 600-mark if he doesn't find a way to turn it around quickly.
Part of the problem for Milwaukee is a lack of other options for the role should they decide Hoffman has reached the end of the line. With a starting rotation already stretched thin, Brewers manager Ken Macha has been forced to use two of his better relievers - Chris Narveson and Manny Parra - as starters recently.
The Pirates are coming off a 2-1 win over the Philadelphia Phillies on Tuesday in which Zach Duke outdueled Roy Halladay. Garrett Jones had three hits and an RBI in the win and has been on a tear recently, going 9-for-21 with six RBIs in the last six games.
Veteran left-hander Randy Wolf will get the call for the Brewers today. The California native signed a three-year, $29.75 million deal with Milwaukee in the offseason after going 11-7 with a 3.23 ERA for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2009. But Wolf has yet to bring that level of pitching to his new club.
Wolf has allowed four earned runs or more in half of his eight starts and is coming off his worst outing of the season against the Phillies last week, when he surrendered six runs in five innings to suffer the loss.
He has already faced Pittsburgh twice this season, however, and put together his two best starts against the division foe, allowing a total of two runs in 14 innings. For his career, Wolf is 8-1 with a 3.07 ERA in 14 starts against the Pirates.
Pittsburgh will counter with swingman Brian Burres. The left-hander has made four starts among seven appearances this season and is no stranger to bouncing back and forth between roles. He has made 45 starts in 88 appearances for three organizations in five seasons.
Burres started against the Cubs last week and lasted just four innings, yielding six runs - five earned - and seven hits. He made a relief appearance against Milwaukee back on April 20, allowing two runs in four innings.
The Brewers have taken four of the six meetings between the teams this season, including a three-game sweep last month in which the Pirates were outscored, 36-1.