Notes: Hernán Pérez suddenly swinging a hot bat
In a move that came as a surprise to no one, Hernán Pérez was back in the lineup for the third consecutive game on Wednesday afternoon as the Milwaukee Brewers closed out their three-game series with the Cincinnati Reds at Miller Park.
The utility man opened the series at third base and started at shortstop before moving to center field in the seventh on Tuesday night while finally coming alive at the plate. Pérez went 2 for 4 with a double and four runs batted in Monday in an 11-7 victory and 3 for 4 with two triples, a home run and three RBI to help lead a 9-1 rout on Tuesday.
In the span of just those two games, Pérez bumped his season average from .179 to a respectable .261 and his OPS from .580 to .955.
"Just the scope of what he’s able to provide (has been big)," manager Craig Counsell said of Pérez, who got the start in center on Wednesday.
"He had 10 total bases (Tuesday). That’s a big offensive night. That’s a drive-the-bus night, in addition to playing multiple positions. He helps you in a lot of different ways I guess is the point of that – bat, glove, baserunning, versatility.
"He’s checking a lot of boxes, for sure, in the ways he can help you."
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Of Pérez's five hits Monday and Tuesday, three were to center, one was to right and the other to left. It was the type of all-field approach that helped him break out in 2016 when he finished with a .272 average, 13 homers, 56 RBI and 34 stolen bases to work his way into the Brewers' future plans.
Pérez again went to center in his first plate appearance Wednesday, driving in a run with a sacrifice fly as Milwaukee tattooed Reds starter Rookie Davis en route to a 9-4 victory and a series sweep. He then singled to right in the fourth.
"That’s a sign that I’m swinging at good pitches and seeing the ball good," Pérez said of his recent surge. "I’ve been working on that. Earlier in the season I was getting out in front, trying to hit everything they were throwing me.
"Right now I’m seeing the ball good, I’m waiting for better pitches and putting good swings on it."
Pérez stands at .260 with three homers, 12 RBI and an OPS of .913 heading into this weekend's series with the Atlanta Braves.
Two other Brewers hitters off to slow starts, second baseman Jonathan Villar and shortstop Orlando Arcia, continued their upward climb Wednesday. Villar had a pair of singles to reach an even .200 while Arcia doubled, homered and drove in three runs to raise his average to .229.
On the flip side, Domingo Santana was given the day off with Nick Franklin making a start in right field. Santana is just 1 for 21 on the team's current 10-game homestand and hitting .169 with two homers and five RBI overall.
"I don't think Domingo is that far away," Counsell said. "Unfortunately, there's nothing falling in for him right now. I still think he's close to getting on it."
No glove: While the Brewers swung the bats particularly well against Cincinnati, their defense was a different story.
With three more errors on Wednesday they closed out the three-game series having committed eight in all. They headed into the evening tops in the major leagues in that category with 20. Villar (four), Travis Shaw (four) and Pérez (three) are atop the leader board for the Brewers individually.
"There are certainly things we can clean up and you're always going to find things you can do better," Counsell said. "I think our defense is run prevention. Defense goes into run prevention. We’ll do a better job of preventing runs if we catch the ball and make the plays we are supposed to make.
"Making it harder on your pitchers eventually costs you."