Milwaukee @ Florida preview
Sun Life Stadium
Last Meeting ( May 31, 2010 ) Milwaukee 5, Florida 13
All it took to wake up the Florida Marlins’ offense was a date with the Milwaukee Brewers’ pitching staff.
The Marlins will be looking to keep their offense rolling and push their winning streak to three games when they face the Brewers again on Tuesday.
After managing a total of nine runs in their five previous contests, Florida exploded for 13 runs and 14 hits in the opener of the three-game series on Monday. Cody Ross homered and drove in four and Cameron Maybin added a two-run inside-the-park homer for the Marlins, who received three hits from struggling Chris Coghlan and two RBIs from Jorge Cantu.
It was a stark change for Florida, which was on the wrong end of Roy Halladay’s perfect game on Saturday and managed only six hits in a 1-0 win over the Philadelphia Phillies on Sunday.
But the Brewers staff has been the cure to many offense’s ailments this season, ranking 14th in the National League in ERA and allowing opposing batters to hit better than .290. Part of the problem has been rotation that has needed constant support from an overworked bullpen.
Monday’s starter, Chris Narveson, was one of the more effective members of the Milwaukee bullpen before being moved into the rotation due to the ineffectiveness of Jeff Suppan and Doug Davis’ injury. Narveson held Florida off the board for the first five innings on Monday before melting down in the sixth.
The Marlins ended up charging five runs to Narveson and eight more to a bullpen that ranks 15th in the NL.
The Brewers will turn to Dave Bush in search of a quality start on Tuesday. Bush has struggled all season and has not posted a win since April 20 at Pittsburgh. The right-hander managed to record just one out while allowing seven runs at Minnesota on May 21.
He looked better against the Houston Astros last Thursday, allowing two unearned runs in five innings, but couldn’t come away with the win as the bullpen let another one slip away.
Bush owns a 2-3 record with a 5.70 ERA in five career starts against Florida, yielding five homers in 30 combined innings.
Florida will counter with struggling right-hander Ricky Nolasco. The 27-year-old has taken the loss in each of his last two outings, allowing a total of 11 runs and 18 hits in 9 1/3 innings.
Nolasco has never fared well against Milwaukee, owning a career mark of 0-1 in three starts. In 10 2/3 total innings, he has allowed 14 runs and 16 hits.