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 Each marked his return in a big way Thursday night, leading the
Brewers' rally for a 6-5 victory over the Washington Nationals at
Miller Park.
Smith was seeing his first action after being sidelined the previous
six games because of a suspension levied by Major League Baseball
for having an illegal substance on his arm.
The left-handed reliever came into the game charged with preserving
a 5-5 tie that was created on a solo home run by Milwaukee center
fielder Gerardo Parra an inning before.
Smith allowed a leadoff walk to right fielder Bryce Harper, struck
out catcher Wilson Ramos, got shortstop Danny Espinosa to fly out to
left, then escaped the inning by catching Harper trying to steal on
a pickoff move.
"Harper's got good speed," Smith said, "so you've got to pay
attention to him a little bit. What was it ... 0-1 count, guy's
probably expecting breaking ball and takes off, and we guessed
right."
Milwaukee got some luck in the bottom of the eighth as third baseman
Aramis Ramirez struck out but reached on a wild pitch to start the
inning.
An error by second baseman Anthony Redon on a fielder's choice
grounder allowed Shane Peterson to reach second, representing the
tying run and with two outs. Gennett then came through with a base
hit down the line in left, putting the Brewers ahead.
"I was just looking for something to put in play at that point,"
Gennett said. "The first pitch almost hit me; tried to get out of
the way. But that pitch, I was just trying to get something out over
the plate and just put it in play, really."
Gennett was in his first game back with the Brewers, having spent
the past three weeks with Triple-A Colorado Springs. He was sent
down May 18 to get back into a groove after starting the season
batting just .154 with a home run and three RBIs.
He was retired his first three times up Thursday, but manager Craig
Counsell saw progress.
"I thought he had good swings tonight," Counsell said.
The late rally helped erase the sting of three errors that put the
Brewers in a 5-1 hole and spoiled a good start from right-hander
Matt Garza, who allowed eight hits over six innings while striking
out seven. Only two of the five runs he yielded were earned.
"You just have to keep making pitches," Garza said. "(Stuff) like
that happens, and you keep going, keep moving forward. You can't
look back."
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After the teams traded first-inning runs, first baseman Clint
Robinson gave Washington a 2-1 lead in the second with his first
career home run. He finished 2-for-3 with two runs.
The Nationals bumped the lead to 5-1 in the top of the fourth, as
two Milwaukee errors led to three runs.
In the bottom of the fourth, right fielder Ryan Braun and first
baseman Adam Lind both scored on groundouts to get the Brewers
within two, and Lind's RBI single in the fifth made it a one-run
game.
Milwaukee tied it in the seventh on Parra's homer. The first five
Brewers runs came at the expense of right-hander Tanner Roark, who
went 6 2/3 innings and allowed nine hits while striking out four.
"He really struggled tonight to find location," Washington manager
Matt Williams said. "The balls were up in the strike zone all night.
We got some runs via some miscues on their part tonight, but Tanner
struggled to find consistency down in the zone. But we had a chance
to win it."
Brewers right-hander Francisco Rodriguez worked a scoreless ninth
for his 13th save in as many tries this season.
NOTES: Washington RHP Aaron Barrett left the game because of an
undisclosed injury with two outs in the eighth inning. He will be
re-examined Friday. ... Milwaukee recalled 2B Scooter Gennett from
Triple-A Colorado Springs and optioned RHP David Goforth on
Thursday. Goforth made four appearances for the Brewers and allowed
a hit with a strikeout in 2 1/3 innings. ... Washington acquired RHP
David Carpenter from the New York Yankees in exchange for INF Tony
Renda, who was designated for assignment last week. ... The
Nationals also placed 1B Ryan Zimmerman on the 15-day disabled list
retroactive to June 10 with left foot plantar fasciitis and recalled
OF Matt den Dekker from Triple-A Syracuse.
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