Giants 2, Brewers 0: A quiet night as offense falls flat with only four singles

SAN FRANCISCO – It was a very unusual night for the Milwaukee Brewers’ offense, and not in a good way.

The Brewers didn’t hit a home run, which almost always portends a loss (they have only 10 victories when they don’t homer). They didn’t strike out much (five times), an anomaly for the team that leads the majors in that category.

And, in a most unusual development, the Brewers did not score runs for starter Zach Davies, who entered the game with the second-highest support (6.6 runs per game) among major-league pitchers.

The result was a quiet 2-0 loss Monday night at AT&T Park to the dreadful, last-place San Francisco Giants, who entered the night 26 games below .500 (50-76). It was only the second shutout of the season for the Giants and their first at home. 

The second-place Brewers fell 2 ½ games behind idle Chicago in the NL Central and 3 ½ games behind Arizona for the second wild-card spot.

BOX SCORE:Giants 2, Brewers 0

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MLB: Live scoreboard, box scores, standings, schedules

So much for the supposed momentum the Brewers brought from Colorado, where they won the last two games of the weekend series, scoring 14 runs. In this game, they mustered only four measly singles, collecting no hits after the fourth inning. 

"It was certainly a quiet night," manager Craig Counsell said. "We had some shots early. After that, it was not much happening. That's baseball. It's just one of those nights that was quiet.

"We're in a completely different environment (from Coors Field). It's one night where we didn't swing the bats well. We'll come get them tomorrow night." 

Davies, who has won many times this season by getting banner offensive backing, deserved a better fate on this night. In six innings, he allowed seven hits and two walks but only two runs while striking out five.

The Brewers were blanked on four hits over six innings by right-hander Chris Stratton, pitching one day before his 27th birthday and making his fourth major-league start. Stratton did not have overpowering stuff, recording only one strikeout, but did not allow an extra-base hit and issued only two walks.

"He did a good job of not letting us get extended," said Brewers catcher Stephen Vogt, who had one of the team's four hits. "He did a good job of just not going over the middle of the plate. The wind early in the game killed some balls we hit to right. But it was more of how good he was."

The Brewers had some early opportunities to score against Stratton but let them slip away. They put two on with one out in both the first and third innings, only to have Stratton pitch out of it.

In the fourth, with Vogt on first and two down, Orlando Arcia punched a single to right. Vogt went to third on the hit, and when shortstop Brandon Crawford cut the throw there, Arcia rounded first too far and was caught in a rundown.

Vogt, not a fast runner and recently back from a knee injury and wearing a brace, tried to score from third during that rundown but was thrown out easily by first baseman Ryder Jones.

"Orlando got too aggressive," Counsell said. "The pitcher is coming up next, so I don't know if that cost us a big inning. That was a base-running mistake there." 

Davies pitched around a one-out double by Pablo Sandoval in the second but was not as fortunate in the fourth. Jarrett Parker led off with a walk, Hunter Pence followed with an infield single and Brandon Crawford hit a liner down the right-field line that hit chalk for a RBI double.

After Sandoval popped out, Nick Hundley delivered a run-scoring grounder to second and the Giants had the only two runs they’d score off Davies.

"It was a tough battle tonight," said Davies, who had one of the Brewers' four singles. "Those games are going to happen. It's not always going to be perfect. It was my job to keep us as close as possible.

"I didn't have a great feel with my fastball command. I was trying to get ahead of guys in other ways and keep myself in good counts. In that situation, I've got to do a better job of getting Crawford and making him hit the ball on the ground instead of in the air."

BEHIND THE BOX SCORE

* For much of the year, manager Craig Counsell used struggling Jonathan Villar and then Eric Sogard in the leadoff spot. Now, with newcomer Neil Walker getting regular starts at second base and not really a leadoff type, Counsell has been using slugger Eric Thames in the top spot.

“He takes his walks,” Counsell said. “He’s a power threat from the first pitch of the game. It’s similar to what Rickie Weeks provided in that spot. I just think it makes the other team and pitcher be on it from pitch one. With how the personnel has changed, he’s the best guy who fits in that spot. That’s an important spot. You’re the guy who’s going to hit more times than anybody else. I think Neil fits better in the second spot when you put those two together.”

* LHP Brent Suter, on the DL with a rotator cuff strain, has made enough progress to be slated to throw a bullpen session before the game Wednesday. There is no timetable for his return to action.

STAT SHEET

* It was Counsell's 47th birthday and the Brewers lost for the first time on that date since he took over as manager, falling to 2-1. 

* The Brewers are 4-15 in their last 19 games at AT&T Park. 

TAKEAWAY

The Brewers don’t win when they fail to hit home runs, so cavernous AT&T Park does not match up well with their primary modus operandi. Still, this was an unusually quiet night against a nondescript starting pitcher with little major-league experience in that role.

RECORD

This year: 65-61 (35-30 home; 30-31 away)

Last year: 56-70

NEXT GAME

Tuesday: Brewers at Giants, 9:15 p.m. Milwaukee RHP Jimmy Nelson (9-6, 3.74) vs. San Francisco RHP Jeff Samardzija (8-12, 4.79) TV: FS Wisconsin. Radio: AM-620.