Burnes, McCutchen, Brosseau lead Brewers past Blue Jays 5-4
MILWAUKEE (AP) — Corbin Burnes pitched into the eighth inning, Andrew McCutchen and Mike Brosseau homered, and the Milwaukee Brewers beat the Toronto Blue Jays 5-4 on Saturday.
The reigning NL Cy Young Award winner extended his winning streak to a season-high three games, but he wasn’t as crisp as in a 2-0 win over the Cardinals on Monday.
“He's picked up right where he left off last year,” Brewers manager Craig Counselll said. “In the middle innings, I thought he really got cooking.”
In his first career start against Toronto, Burnes (6-4) allowed home runs to Matt Chapman and Bo Bichette and an RBI groundout by Cavan Biggio. He struck nine and walked two, then turned over a 5-3 lead with runners at first and second and two outs in the eighth to Devin Williams, who fanned Alejandro Kirk.
“Those two lazy pitches that were hit out for homers, other than that, it was pretty good,” Burnes said. “Lot of room to grow with the cutter. It was kind of all over the place. I got lazy with it.”
Chapman doubled with two outs and scored on a base hit by Lourdes Gurriel Jr. off Josh Hader, but the closer escaped with his 22nd save when Gabriel Moreno grounded out to first.
Five days earlier, Burnes stymied the Cardinals on two hits, two walks and 10 strikeouts in seven innings.
The Brewers gave him an early 5-0 lead.
Brosseau’s home run leading off the third chased Blue Jays starter Yusei Kikuchi (2-4).
McCutchen hit his sixth home run of the season, a two-run shot in the second. Willy Adames had an RBI single before McCutchen’s homer.
Tyrone Taylor’s hit drove in a run in the first for Milwaukee.
Kikuchi allowed five runs, two earned, on six hits with five strikeouts, a walk, a wild pitch and a hit batter. He slipped to 1-3 in his last seven starts.
“You got to keep working at it," Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo said of his pitcher. “Again, I’m not going to sit here and make excuses for him. He hasn’t pitched well. He put us in a tough spot today.”
Kikuchi knows it.
“I’ve struggled the last few outings mostly with command, falling behind in the count and then pitches where I try to get back into the count are the ones that are getting hit pretty hard," he said through an interpreter.
Toronto’s bullpen shut down Milwaukee’s offense the rest of the game. Trent Thorton relieved Kikuchi and handled the third and fourth. Max Castillo pitched scoreless ball in the fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth.
Kirk was back in the lineup as Toronto’s DH. In Friday night’s 9-4 win, his hand got clipped by the backswing from Jonathan Davis in the seventh. Kirk stayed behind the plate for the rest of Davis’ at-bat, but he was replaced by Moreno when the Blue Jays went to the bullpen. Precautionary X-rays were negative.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Blue Jays: Gurriel got hit near his right elbow as he checked his swing in the third. After attention from the trainer, he stayed in the game. ... OF George Springer was out of the lineup for a third consecutive game with an elbow issue. ... INF Santiago Espinal got the day off. “We’re going to play 18 or 19 (in a row) so everybody’s going to get a day,” Montoyo said. Espinal pinch hit in the ninth.
Brewers: Brosseau got hit in the back in the first. ... OF Hunter Renfroe missed a third straight game with a calf injury.
BLUE JAYS ROSTER MOVES
C Zack Collins was recalled from Triple-A Buffalo and activated for the game. INF Otto Lopez was optioned to Buffalo.
BREWERS ROSTER MOVES
RHP Trevor Gott (right groin) and RHP Jandel Gustave (right hamstring) were reinstated from the 15-day injured list. RHP Peter Strzelecki was optioned to Triple-A Nashville. RHP Miguel Sánchez was placed on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to June 22, with right UCL discomfort.
UP NEXT
RHP José Berríos starts for the Blue Jays and RHP Chi Chi González (0-1, 7.36) goes for the Brewers when the three-game series concludes on Sunday.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
From outer space? Sask. farmers baffled after discovering strange wreckage in field
A family of fifth generation farmers from Ituna, Sask. are trying to find answers after discovering several strange objects lying on their land.
This iconic Canadian song is turning 50
Andy Kim's 'Rock Me Gently' is marking a major milestone, as it celebrates its 50th anniversary.
Oprah Winfrey: I set an unrealistic standard for dieting
Oprah Winfrey said on Thursday evening that she has long played a role in promoting unhealthy and unrealistic diets.
Prince Harry, Meghan arrive in Nigeria to champion the Invictus Games and meet with wounded soldiers
Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, arrived in Nigeria on Friday to champion the Invictus Games, which he founded to aid the rehabilitation of wounded and sick servicemembers and veterans, among them Nigerian soldiers fighting a 14-year war against Islamic extremists.
Countries struggle to draft 'pandemic treaty' to avoid mistakes made during COVID
After the coronavirus pandemic triggered once-unthinkable lockdowns, upended economies and killed millions, leaders at the World Health Organization and worldwide vowed to do better in the future. Years later, countries are still struggling to come up with an agreed-upon plan for how the world might respond to the next global outbreak.
Toronto police called to Drake's Bridle Path mansion for another alleged intruder on Thursday
Toronto police say a man who allegedly attempted to access Drake’s Bridle Path property was taken to hospital on Thursday after an altercation with security guards.
Ontario family receives massive hospital bill as part of LTC law, refuses to pay
A southwestern Ontario woman has received an $8,400 bill from a hospital in Windsor, Ont., after she refused to put her mother in a nursing home she hated -- and she says she has no intention of paying it.
Flat tire on a highway? Here's why you shouldn't try to fix it
If you're cruising down a highway and realize you have a flat tire, you may want to think twice before stopping to fix it on the side of the road.
Storm-battered U.S. South is again under threat. A boy swept into a drain fights for his life
Dangerous storms crashed over parts of the U.S. South on Thursday even as the region cleaned up from earlier severe weather that spawned tornadoes, killed at least three people, and gravely injured a boy who was swept into a storm drain as he played in a flooded street.