MILWAUKEE — The Milwaukee Brewers struck first for three runs in the first inning against veteran right-hander Michael Lorenzen. Although the Detroit Tigers answered by scoring a couple of runs, the offense couldn’t spark a rally to catch up on the scoreboard.
The Tigers lost, 6-2, to the Brewers in Wednesday’s series finale at American Family Field, winning the three-game series but failing to sweep. The Tigers (9-13) won twice and scored 13 runs on the six-game road trip.
Rookie Joey Wiemer (Temperance Bedford) hit a solo home run off left-hander Tyler Holton in the eighth inning to extend the Brewers’ lead to four runs.
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After scoring two runs in the fourth inning, the Tigers had an opportunity to mount a comeback in the seventh inning when Akil Baddoo ripped a double off the first pitch from right-handed reliever Bryse Wilson.
Jake Rogers advanced him to third base, in part thanks to Baddoo’s speed on the shallow fly ball to center field, but Matt Vierling and pinch-hitter Eric Haase stranded him at the hot corner.
Another opportunity showed up in the eighth inning when Jonathan Schoop hit a one-out double off left-hander Hoby Milner. Manager AJ Hinch inserted Tyler Nevin, a right-handed hitter, as a pinch-hitter for Nick Maton, a left-handed hitter, but the Brewers countered by bringing in righty Peter Strzelecki to face Nevin.
Nevin, who entered with one hit in 18 at-bats since coming up from Triple-A Toledo, struck out swinging on three pitches, then Kerry Carpenter grounded out to strand Schoop at second.
Brewers right-hander Freddy Peralta gave up two unearned runs on four hits with eight strikeouts in six innings. He didn’t walk a batter but hit Javier Báez in the left hand with a 93 mph fastball in the first inning.
Báez exited the game but X-rays came back negative for a fracture.
The Tigers also stranded two runners on base — Vierling (opposite-field double) and Riley Greene (pull-side single) — in the third inning when Schoop worked a long at-bat but struck out swinging.
The fourth inning began with a fielding error by right fielder Brian Anderson on a dropped fly ball from Maton. Two runs scored with two outs in the inning on Baddoo’s double and Rogers’ single.
A rough start early
Lorenzen battled his way through five innings.
He allowed five runs on seven hits and two walks with four strikeouts across five innings, throwing 63 of 100 pitches for strikes. The Brewers scored three runs in the first inning and two runs in the third.
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Lorenzen allowed a one-out single in the fifth inning but responded with back-to-back outs — Brice Turang (strikeout looking) and Oakland U. alumnus Mike Brosseau (flyout) — to complete his third start of the season.
He generated eight whiffs on 44 swings.
Lorenzen opened his outing by hitting Christian Yelich, who stayed in the game, with a third-pitch cutter. (The hit-by-pitch happened almost immediately after Peralta’s fastball hit Báez in the left hand in the top of the first inning.)
Then, Lorenzen walked Jesse Winker on eight pitches.
With one out, Rowdy Tellez hit an RBI double to right field. The next batter, Brian Anderson, drove in two more runs, putting the Brewers ahead 3-0, on a single up the middle.
In the third inning, the Brewers benefited from Victor Caratini’s two-run home run to right-center field. The home run extended the Brewers’ advantage to 5-0. He hammered Lorenzen’s first-pitch cutter with a 109.4 mph exit velocity.
The ball traveled 403 feet.
Bullpen pitches in
Two relievers guided the Tigers through the final three innings.
Right-hander Will Vest — recently recalled from Triple-A Toledo — pitched a scoreless sixth. He worked around a walk to Yelich and racked up three strikeouts against Wiemer (swinging, slider), Winker (looking, fastball) and former Tigers farmhand Willy Adames (swinging, slider).
Vest threw 13 of 20 pitches for strikes.
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Holton handled the seventh and eighth innings.
He retired six of seven batters, but the one batter he didn’t shut down launched a solo home run off his changeup with two outs in the eighth. Wiemer’s homer traveled 383 feet to right-center field.
Contact Evan Petzold at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter @EvanPetzold.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Tigers can’t rally in 6-2 loss to Milwaukee Brewers