By Tom Haudricourt, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel –
MILWAUKEE — When the Chicago Cubs opted to load the bases by intentionally walking Travis Ishikawa to get to Edwin Maysonet, the Milwaukee Brewers’ fill-in second baseman was not thinking grand slam.
“Not at all,” said Maysonet. “I’m just trying to get a good fastball that I can hit for a line drive. I’m not a home-run hitter. You can see my stats.”
Someone forgot to tell Cubs right-hander Chris Volstad because Maysonet hit a sixth-inning slam Saturday on a 0-1 sinker that didn’t sink, propelling the Brewers to an 8-2 victory in front of a sellout of 42,339 at Miller Park.
The 2-hour, 58-minute game, featuring seven strong innings from right-hander Shaun Marcum, was a welcomed development following the 13-inning marathon madness that concluded less than 12 hours beforehand.
It took everything the Brewers had to escape with an 8-7 victory in that one, but Game 2 of the series turned decidedly in their favor after Maysonet broke open a pitching duel between Marcum and Volstad.
Maysonet, called up the previous weekend when shortstop Alex Gonzalez was lost for the season with a knee injury, started at second base only because Rickie Weeks was unavailable after being struck on the left hand by a pitch in the 13th inning of the series opener.
In that game, Maysonet singled as a pinch hitter in the ninth for his first big-league hit since 2009.
That season, he also hit his only homer in the majors off Pittsburgh’s Ross Ohlendorf. Accordingly, with a run in, two on and one out in the sixth, it was not surprising that the right-handed Volstad opted to intentionally walk the left-handed-hitting Ishikawa to get to right-handed-hitting Maysonet.
But Maysonet got all of the 0-1 sinker and hammered it out to left, pointing to the Brewers’ dugout as he left the batter’s box because teammate Cesar Izturis, on deck, so instructed him.
“It feels amazing, you’re helping your team win, especially in that way,” said Maysonet, 30, who has spent most of his 10 years in the minors. “It’s a great day for the Brewers.”
It was the kind of step-up moment the Brewers will need going forward as they deal with a barrage of injuries and slow starts by key players.
“It’s fun to see a guy like that come out and have a big hit like that,” said catcher Jonathan Lucroy, who batted in the second spot for the first time in the majors and continued his torrid hitting (.471 during a nine-game hitting streak) with three hits and a RBI. “It’s a lot of fun to watch. I’m really happy for him.
“We’re down some men, so we’ve got some guys to fill in and hopefully can cover them. That’s what the whole plan is. That’s what we’ve got to do.”
Brewers manager Ron Roenicke certainly wasn’t going to question the strategy of filling the bases to get to Maysonet, a seldom-used player.
“You look at percentages and try to do what gives your team the best chance,” said Roenicke. “We get so much information, that it’s hard not to use that information to do something about it. When it makes sense to do something and the numbers show it, you do it.
“(Maysonet) is a pretty aggressive kid. We saw in spring training if he gets that first pitch right there, he’s swinging. It’s not a tentative swing; he swings the bat.”
It certainly didn’t hurt that Marcum continued a string of four consecutive quality starts from a previously beleaguered rotation.
After surrendering a leadoff double to David DeJesus in the first inning, a bunt single by Tony Campana and Starlin Castro’s run-scoring double-play grounder, Marcum turned off the spigot.
Before departing, Marcum (2-1, 3.07) retired 16 of the final 18 hitters he faced. Overall, he allowed only three hits and two walks while striking out six.
“Marcum was outstanding today,” said Roenicke. “Shaun’s been throwing the ball real well. He’s changing speeds well, locating the ball down in the (strike) zone.
“Hopefully, we’ve got him on that path to three straight great months or four months or whatever it’s going to be.
“Our other starters are throwing the ball well now. For us to turn it around, we have to have that and I think they’re doing what we saw last year for so long.”
Marcum, who has a 7.71 ERA in the first inning and a 2.19 ERA over the rest of the frames he has pitched, noted it was key to limit the early damage and get settled in.
“The biggest thing for me is getting in a rhythm,” said Marcum. “It seems like, especially this season, the first inning has been killing me; getting off to a slow start. Once I finally settle down and get in a rhythm, I’m able to locate my pitches and keep them off-balance and let the guys play behind me.
“After (Friday night), it looked like everybody was pretty sluggish to start off but that’s part of the game. It’s always nice to go out there for seven innings and limit the scoring. We’re starting to come around and play good ball.”
It was the 10th consecutive home victory for the Brewers over the Cubs, who came to town tied for last place with Milwaukee in the NL Central. They will try to explore new territory in 2012 with a sweep on Sunday after going 1-9 on getaway days, including 1-4 on that day of the week.
“Hopefully, we get some momentum going forward to (Sunday),” said Lucroy. We still have to finish the series; it’s not over with. You always have to look to the next day, and that’s what we’re going to do now.”
