Brewers at Blue Jays 

The Brewers are set to head north of the border for a pair of interleague games, as the Blue Jays open in front of the Toronto fans.

Like the Brewers, the Blue Jays have a lineup that could again prove to be very good but have struggled to start the year. Toronto comes into this series at 1-5, but again like the Brewers, have been competitive just about every night. Two of those losses have already been of the walk-off variety — one on Opening Day in the 11th inning against the Oriels, and the other on Saturday in 11 innings against the Rays. Only one of their losses has been by more than three runs.

Trying to avoid the injury bug the Brewers pitching staff is in for a tough test, yet again. The powerful Lineup lead by Jose Bautista and Josh Donaldson is not one to mess around with. Willy Peralta and Chase Anderson are the expected starters for the crew.

The Brewers completed their season-opening homestand with a 2-5 record, capped by a 7-4 loss to the Chicago Cubs on Sunday. They had Monday off before starting a nine-game trip.

Like the Blue Jays, the Brewers have had to use their bullpen frequently as well as dealing with injuries among relievers. The Brewers beat the Cubs 2-1 on Friday in 11 innings.

The Brewers will start right-hander Wily Peralta (1-0, 0.00 ERA). He pitched five scoreless innings on April 5 in a 6-1 victory over the Colorado Rockies. He has faced Toronto once in his career, allowing four earned runs in six innings in a no-decision in 2014.

Cubs vs. Brewers

The Brewers look to shake off a rocky season-opening series against Colorado, hosting the Cubs to close out their first homestand of the year.

Chicago comes to town on the heels of a series win against the Cardinals to open the year. After losing on Opening Day, the Cubs won back to back to finish the series. Anderson makes his Cubs debut, while Nelson gets his first start of the season for the Crew.

Hendricks was the surprise of baseball last season, winning the ERA crown with a ridiculous 2.13 mark that was probably a run lower than it should’ve been (his FIP was 3.20), but he was still a very good pitcher in 2016. The low ERA and plenty of run support from the Cubs’ offense helped him to a Top-3 Cy Young finish.The Brewers may find it difficult to score runs Saturday night, which probably isn’t great news, considering Milone is making a spot start for the injured Junior Guerra. 

Overall, the Brewers went 8-11 against the Cubs last year, but kept the run differential against the eventual champs close, scoring 75 to Chicago’s 79. Six of their 19 games last year were decided by 1 run.

Rockies vs. Brewers

The Brewers will welcome the Colorado Rockies to town on Monday, to play four games to open up regular season play. This is the first time since 2014 the crew begins the year at home.

After losing three key players to injury during spring training, the Colorado Rockies are eager to turn the page with Monday’s season’s opener against the host Milwaukee Brewers. The Rockies saw first baseman, Ian Desmond, catcher Tom Murphy and outfielder David Dahl go down with injuries this spring but could still have the firepower to surprise in the NL West.

While Colorado hopes to have its trio of injured players back in late April, the Rockies appear to have the pieces in place to contend under new manager Bud Black. The Rockies are especially encouraged by their revamped bullpen, which added veteran Greg Holland to a proven group led by Adam Ottavino, Mike Dunn, and Jake McGee. The rebuilding Brewers must contend with the World Series champion Chicago Cubs in the NL Central but hope to take a step forward with several new faces, including closer Neftali Perez. Milwaukee also has a pair of intriguing names at first base, where Eric Thames hopes to continue his success from the Korean Baseball Organization while holding off a challenge from 26-year-old Jesus Aguilar, whose stellar spring training stats earned him a roster spot.

Junior Guerra is set to make his first opening day start along with Kenon Broxton and Orlando Arcia. With a lack of experience, pitching is gonna be extra important in an area the Brewers have struggled for years. Counsel is going to have his hands full but will be able to move around players in a very versatile lineup.

2017 Milwaukee Brewers April Schedule

Each month I will do a schedule preview to take a look at the upcoming games.

The Brewers open up the year with 8 scheduled series in April. Opening up with a 4 game series against the Colorado Rockies at Miller Park. The Rockies are looking to a get off to a hot start after their lackluster year, last season. The first weekend series will begin at home against the rival, world series champions Chicago Cubs. A 2 game interleague series against the neighbors to the north, Toronto Blue Jays. The Jays will be a tough test, especially for the pitching staff. The Jays were a quality playoff team last year looking to get back to the promise land.  3 National league central series will follow. Set to begin in Chicago then come back to Milwaukee against the Cardinals and the Reds. April will end at home with a series against the Braves at home.

April can be a good month for the young Brewers club. More than a majority of games at will help the young players settle into the big leagues.

My prediction is for the crew to take 18 of the first 26 games keeping them atop of the NL central standings.