[BirdWatcher]

Brewers record: 6-1 (week), 50-21, 1st place, MGL (season)

June 18-19, at Phoenix: 8-7, 5-6.

June 20-22, versus Charlotte: 7-1, 10-1, 2-0.

June 23-24, at Detroit: 9-3, 8-2.

In game 2 in Phoenix, the Brewers jumped out to an early lead which they nearly relinquished, particularly due to Ben Flynn's continued uneven work out of the bullpen. Jim Atwell (8-2, 2.99) got the win in spite of the poor bullpen work. Atwell allowed 4 runs on 5 hits over his 6 innings worked. Flynn gave up 3 runs on 3 hits in his 1 inning pitched. Fortunately, Jason Gottula and Tim Shore were able to shut it down after that, with Shore earning his 14th save. Josh Schaeffer was one of the biggest heroes on offense, with a 2 for 5, 2 runs scored, 3 RBI, 2 homer game, which gets him to 8 on the season. Bobby Erbakan went 2 for 5 with 2 runs scored in the game and hit his 7th double.

Phoenix managed to avoid being swept by taking the final game of the series as Steve Green's poor 1978 season continues. Green did not get take the loss but gave up 4 runs on 6 hits over 6 innings and now sports a 5.86 ERA. The loss went to Jason Gottula (4-4, 2.89) in relief. Bobby Erbakan was 2 for 4 in the game and hit his 1st home run of the 1978 season. Joe McPhillips chipped in with his 9th homer and Rich White hit his 4th of the season.

The Brewers then returned home to Denver to take on the Charlotte Sting and got an easy win in game 1. Sadahige Kawasaki (6-5, 2.61) lasted 8 innings, giving up just 1 run on 7 hits. Brett Taranto led the way on offense with a 2 for 4, 1 run scored and 3 RBI game, hitting his 12th double of the season. Bobby Erbakan went 2 for 4, hit his 1st triple of 1978 and also picked up his 1st stolen base. 25-year old shortstop Geoff Bartholomew, having recently been brought up to the big leagues from AAA for the first time to take the place of the injured third baseman Jose Figueroa, went 2 for 4 and scored a run in the game. Bartholomew was tearing up AAA (.356/.422/.465) and while he doesn't profile as a future starter in the WPK, he is a solid defender with plus speed and an adequate hit tool.

More of the same in game 2, with Sekien Hamasaki (11-0, 2.00) continuing his brilliant 1978 campaign- lasting 8 innings while giving up 1 run on 4 hits with 7 K's and no walks in this one- and getting plenty of run support. Joe McPhillips has been heating up of late and in this one he went 3 for 4 with 3 runs scored, 4 RBI, and hit a pair of home runs to get to 11 on the season while also hitting his 10th double. Val Guzman went 2 for 3 in the game, driving in 2 runs and hitting his 14th double of 1978. League leading batter Brett Taranto only had 1 hit in this one but it was his 8th home run of the season.

Game 3 was a pitcher's duel in which veteran team captain Matt Helm continued his inexplicably fine season. Helm (2-0, 1.93) lasted 7 innings, giving up no runs on 3 hits while striking out 3 and walking 4. Victor Colon and Tim Shore each pitched an inning to preserve the shutout, Shore getting his 15th save. Bobby Erbakan drove in a 3rd inning run with his 8th double of the season, against former Brewer Justin Peacock, who is having a fine season. Brett Taranto's 8th inning solo homer, his 9th of the season, gave the Brewers the only other run in the game. Josh Schaeffer threw out a runner at the plate to also make a huge contribution to the shutout win.

The scene then shifts to East Lake Park in Detroit as the Brewers start a 3-game series against the lowly Falcons, who often seem to give us more than we bargained for.
But in game 1 the Brewers scored 7 runs in the first two innings and went on to get an easy victory. Erik Sloan (2-0, 1.53) nearly went the distance, running out of gas with just a single out needed to complete the game. In his 8 2/3rds, he gave up 3 runs on 8 hits. Bobby Erbakan was 2 for 5 with 2 runs scored and 2 driven in and hit his 2nd triple of the season. Brett Taranto went 2 for 4 with 2 runs scored and an RBI, hit his 13th double and stole 2 bases to get to 11 on the season. But probably the biggest hit of the game came courtesy of the recently acquired Antonio Acuna, who hasn't played much yet but has shown great promise when he has. Although he only had one hit in this one, that hit was his 3rd home run in limited action with the club, a 2nd inning Grand Slam that broke the game open for the visitors.

Game 2 was far closer than the final score makes it look. In fact, at the end of the regulation 9 innings it was tied at 1-1, thanks to great pitching from Denver starter Jim Atwell (9-2, 2.82) and former Brewer Hector Hard for Detroit. The young Atwell worked 9 strong innings, giving up just 1 run on 5 hits while striking out 5 and walking 1. The lone run he gave up was on a solo home run. The Brewers then broke things open in the top of the 10th by plating 7 runs, the big hits being Val Guzman's 2-run, 1-out home run, his 6th of the season, and catcher Kirk Patnode's 2-out, 2-run scored triple, his first three bagger of the season. Antonio Acuna went 3 for 5 in the game, scoring twice and hitting his 1st double.

With the productive week, the Brewers now lead the MGL by 9 games over their nearest competitors, the Oklahoma City Diamond Kings and the Brooklyn Aces.