The emotional Chicago Cubs will turn to veteran right-hander Colin Rea on Tuesday night in a bid to even their three-game series with host Milwaukee and move back into a tie with the Brewers atop the National League Central.
Rea (8-4, 4.06 ERA), who pitched the previous two seasons for Milwaukee, will oppose fellow right-hander Quinn Priester (9-2, 3.28). Priester has won his last eight decisions.
Milwaukee moved a game ahead of the Cubs with an 8-4 comeback victory Monday in the series opener on a day the Cubs lost their legendary second baseman, Ryne Sandberg, to prostate cancer at the age of 65.
Sandberg was a 10-time All-Star and a nine-time Gold Glove winner in 15 seasons for the Cubs. He was chosen as the National League’s Most Valuable Player in 1984, when he hit .314 with league-high totals of 114 runs and 19 triples to go with 19 homers and 84 RBIs. He was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2005.
After the Cubs’ loss on Monday, manager Craig Counsell said: “I just addressed the team and told them the news of Ryno’s passing. We’re saddened of the loss of a great man.
“We were lucky as a group this year to have Ryno in spring training, and it was an honor to be around a man battling for his life but wanted to come to the baseball park and spend his day with us. I know it meant a lot to everybody in there. We’re grateful that he was willing to spend his time with us when things weren’t going great for him.”
“So it’s a sad day for the Chicago Cubs, and he was a great Cub.”
On Monday, the Brewers overcame a shaky start from All-Star rookie Jacob Misiorowski, who allowed three runs in the first inning with the aid of a bases-loaded wild pitch and his own throwing error.
Christian Yelich, Andrew Vaughn and Sal Frelick each homered for Milwaukee.
Rea is 3-1 with a 3.04 ERA in four starts in July, lasting at least five innings each time out.
He took the loss in his last start, allowing six runs (five earned) and three homers in five innings in an 8-4 defeat versus Kansas City on Wednesday.
Rea has given up 19 homers, fifth most in the National League this season.
In his lone appearance against Milwaukee, in 2020, he yielded three runs on four hits in 3 1/3 innings in a no-decision.
Kyle Tucker extended his on-base streak to 17 games Monday with a single and two walks.
After picking up a win in his last appearance in May, Priester was 4-0 with 1.98 ERA in five games in June. He is 3-0 in four appearances, including three starts, this month.
In his last start, Priester allowed two runs in seven innings in a 10-2 win at Seattle on Wednesday.
“Just get our guys back in the dugout, that’s my goal,” Priester said following his last start. “We’ve been on a hot streak, and it’s so hard to sustain that, right? That’s part of why it’s so hard to be in the big leagues and win games here.”
Priester is 0-0 with a 9.58 ERA in two career relief appearances against the Cubs, including this season when he allowed seven runs in 4 1/3 innings in early May.
Vaughn, acquired from the Chicago White Sox last month for pitcher Aaron Civale, was called up from Triple-A Nashville when first baseman Rhys Hoskins went on the IL with a thumb injury. In 14 games with Milwaukee, Vaughn is batting .341 with four homers, four doubles and 15 RBIs.
The Brewers shuffled their bullpen before Monday’s game, calling up right-hander Craig Yoho from Triple-A and sending down right-hander Tobias Myers.
Yoho relieved to start the ninth inning Monday and issued a pair of two-out walks, requiring closer Trevor Megill to come in and get the final out.
–Field Level Media
