ATLANTA – The Milwaukee Brewers arrived in Atlanta a team in need of a confidence boost.
They left Thursday afternoon looking like world beaters.
Season highs in runs and home runs will do that, as the Brewers annihilated the Atlanta Braves, 16-7, at Truist Park to clinch their first sweep in Atlanta since May 24-26, 2016, and a winning road trip after opening 1-2 against the woeful Washington Nationals.
Rookie Jackson Chourio notched his first career two-homer game and William Contreras, Garrett Mitchell, Willy Adames and Jake Bauers also went deep to put the wraps on a series defined by Milwaukee’s offensive domination and Atlanta twice pitching a position player.
The grand total? Try 34 runs, 52 hits and eight homers – an output rarely seen against any team, let alone one like the Braves, who won two of three at American Family Field last week and, while admittedly injury ravaged, are far from a tomato can.
BOX SCORE: Brewers 16, Braves 7
Milwaukee starter Frankie Montas was staked to a 3-0 lead before he even threw a pitch and an 8-0 lead after he’d only thrown two innings, with the Brewers offense supplying the damage against Braves veteran Charlie Morton. Montas needed 91 pitches to navigate four innings and strike out seven in his second start for the Brewers.
"I just look at today," said manager Pat Murphy, once again espousing his day-by-day approach to the schedule. At 65-49, the Brewers headed home with a 6 1/2-game lead in the National League Central Division -- with and the second-place St. Louis Cardinals yet to play Thursday.
"I'm trying not to think about the last two games and be ready for tomorrow's game. That's it. Pleased today that they came out and pecked away against a very, very good pitcher. I don't think he was feeling great, but we had a really good game against him in terms of pecking away, and it turned out good.
"So, I don't want to evaluate a series. I just want to evaluate today."
A two-run, 438-foot blast to left-center by Contreras, who was once a battery mate of Morton's with the Braves, four batters in started the day with a bang. Adames, up next, barely missed a homer with a double off the wall and the first of Sal Frelick's four singles on the day capped the first.
There was more two-out damage by Milwaukee's offense in the second, starting with a walk drawn by Brice Turang. Chourio followed up by homering to left-center one pitch after pulling a bunt attempt foul down the third-base line.
Not to be outdone, Mitchell then took Morton out to left-center, giving the Brewers back-to-back homers for the third time on the season as well as a 6-0 lead.
In a 1-2 count in the third, Adames joined the homer party by taking Morton over the wall in left-center. His 20th of the season broke a tie with Rhys Hoskins for the team lead. Bauers reached on a fielder's choice two batters later, was balked up to second and scored on yet another two-out hit, this one a single by Eric Haase that made it 8-0 and ended Morton's day.
A three-run homer by Austin Riley on a 1-2 pitch got the Braves onto the scoreboard in the bottom of the third. Montas walked the first two batters to set it up.
But it really didn't matter.
With right-hander Parker Dunshee making his major-league debut, Frelick opened the fifth inning by walking. That brought up Bauers, who walloped a long two-run homer to right that gave Milwaukee its second 10-run output in the series.
But the Brewers weren't done, as Haase singled two batters later and then with two outs, Chourio went deep for the second time on the day – this one to right – to make it a 13-3 game. The six homers were one more than they hit against the Pittsburgh Pirates on May 15.
"Extremely happy," is how Chourio described his mood following the game. "To be able to go through a good moment, both myself and for the team, hopefully we can try to keep this rolling."
A bases-loaded walk drawn by Andruw Monasterio in the seventh extended Milwaukee's lead to 14-3, then Atlanta scored once in the bottom of the frame on a Marcell Ozuna homer and three more times in the eighth against Bryse Wilson and Hoby Milner.
The Brewers capped their scoring surge with a pair of runs in the ninth off outfielder Luke Williams.
Brewers time, TV, radio
The Brewers game starts at 11:20 p.m. CT.
TV: Bally Sports Wisconsin. Radio: AM-620 and a state network.
Brewers lineup
- Brice Turang 2B
- Jackson Chourio LF
- Garrett Mitchell CF
- William Contreras DH
- Willy Adames SS
- Sal Frelick RF
- Jake Bauers 1B
- Joey Ortiz 3B
- Eric Haase C
Braves lineup
- Jarred Kelenic CF
- Austin Riley 3B
- Marcell Ozuna DH
- Matt Olson 1B
- Orlando Arcia SS
- Travis d'Arnaud C
- Ramon Laureano RF
- Adam Duvall LF
- Whit Merrifield 2B
Brewers schedule
Brewers vs. Reds, 7:10 p.m. Friday.Milwaukee RHP Aaron Civale (2-8, 5.14) vs. Cincinnati RHP Carson Spiers (4-3, 3.59). Broadcasts: TV – Apple TV+. Radio – AM-620.
Brewers vs. Reds, 6:10 p.m. Saturday.Milwaukee RHP Tobias Myers (6-5, 3.02) vs. Cincinnati RHP Nick Martinez (6-5, 3.43). Broadcasts: TV – Bally Sports Wisconsin. Radio – AM-620.
Brewers vs. Reds, 1:10 p.m. Sunday.Milwaukee TBA vs. Cincinnati LHP Nick Lodolo (9-4, 3.93). Broadcasts: TV – Bally Sports Wisconsin. Radio – AM-620.
