The Battle for Third Place II: Brewers- Astros Preview

Well the weekend is here and another opportunity for the Brewers to lose 2 out of 3 is upon us. So, what's going on for games 3 through 5 of the post- Bill Castro/Bill Hall/[possibly J.J. Hardy era]...well it is a rematch of last weekends series with the Houston Astros

Brewers [56-58 3.9% playoff chance]
Astros [56-59 1.5% playoff chance]



Friday
Rodriguez [11-6 2.51 era 167 ERA+] vs. Gallardo [10-9 3.54 era 120 ERA+]

A rematch of last Sunday's pitching duel. Hopefully this one won't be decided by Geoff Blum.....again. Hopefully the Brewers don't leave the entire state of Wisconsin on base......again.....hopefully the Brewers don't waste another strong effort by Gallardo.......again.......

Saturday
Moehler [7-8 4.67 era 79 ERA+] vs. Burns [2-4 5.89 era 72 ERA+]

This is a somewhat winnable match-up. The Astros have Brian Moehler getting the start. Moehler is a pitcher who has never impressed me. The Brewers will score some runs in this one but whether they win depends on how much the Crew gets out of Mike Burns. Burns has definitely been a frustratingly inconsistent pitcher. When he's good....he's still not great...but he has managed to out-pitch Johan Santana and keep a strong Dodgers team in check. When he's not on.......it's not very pretty to watch.........

Sunday

Oswalt [6-4 3.87 era 109 ERA+] vs. Looper [10-6 4.99 era 85 ERA+]

This game is a lost cause. The Brewers play poorly on Sundays....they've played poorly all season [except for the month of May] and they have Braden Looper who's impact on baseball this season has been leading the NL in Home Runs allowed.....but on the bright side he's a more imposing hitter than both Jody Gerut and Jason Kendall..........hopefully Chris Bosio turns out to be a miracle worker and Burns, Looper, et. al. prove me wrong....