[BirdWatcher]

The Brewers lose the first of the two game set at L.A. after failing to protect an early lead. The Spinners prevail 4-3.
But then Harry Lyerly takes the mound in the second game and for once the Brewers give him ample run support. Not that he needed much. Lyerly worked a strong 8 1/3rd, allowing just 2 runs (the score was 10-1 when he left, having given up a single and then inducing a force-out at second- but Jaden Francis then came into the game and gave up 3 straight hits before hitting a batter, so again Lyerly deserved a bit better than he got from the bullpen.) Lyerly was a bit uncharacteristically wild in the game as he walked 6 while striking out 7 (a small number, for him) but he did not allow a HR and is proving to be better in that area then expected. (Oh, and he also drove in a run with his bat, contributing an RBI single in the midst of the Brewers 3-run rally in the top of the 8th.) He improves to 7-3 with a 3.15 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, 1.0 HR/9, 3.2 BB/9, 9.7 K/9 and a WAR of 3.0 (rWAR 3.3.) All in all, an impressive rookie campaign. At this point, Lyerly is clearly one of the more consistently impressive Brewers starters. And this is on a staff that leads all of the WPK in starters ERA.

The Brewers lead the MGL by 5 1/2 games over Phoenix and their magic number is down to 4. (Everyone else has been eliminated from contention at this point.) The Columbus Whalers, with 99 wins now, are down to a magic number of 3 and only the Jacksonville Wolf Pack, who are 6 1/2 games back, still have a very narrow mathematical chance of catching them.