In the midst of a challenging season, and after having suffered two tough losses on the road against division rival San Francisco (the first an extra inning loss and the second a game in which the Brewers relinquished the lead twice), the Denver Brewers got a soul-satisfying win in the final game of the three game series at Bank of the West Ballpark, winning 17-4. (This was the game of August 7th, 1985.)
Two Brewers players compiled 5 hits each in the game, led by the Player of the Game,
Javier Hernandez (.356/.425/.559 in 135 PA), whose 5 for 5 day included 2 doubles, a triple, a walk, 2 runs scored, and 6 driven in.
Hernandez is one of the revelations of this season, having been the Brewers 11th round draft pick in 1982 out of East Tennessee State. The 26-year old late bloomer wasn't a particularly good collegiate hitter but really took it to another level in pro ball as he has been excellent at pretty much every stop along the way in his ascension through the Brewers system. He profiles as being quite similar to
Val Guzman, with even greater speed and running skills than
Guzman at his peak, but a bit less range in the outfield. (Although
Hernandez has been playing quite a bit of center field for the Brewers this season, he is really best used in left field.) He likely won't have quite as much over-the-fence power as
Guzman but might have a better overall hit tool and makes good use of his speed with an advanced eye.
Also collecting 5 base knocks in this one was first-year Brewer second baseman
Justin Banks (.317/.337/.490), who came to the club in an off-season trade last winter with Oklahoma City (that sent Russell Fleming to the Diamond Kings).
Banks has had a fine campaign and is on pace for a 4.5 WAR season. Like
Hernandez, he is considered one of the harder workers on the club.
It's also only fitting that in probably the best victory of the season for the Brewers thus far,
Val Guzman (.306/.395/.574) hit another home run, his team-best 18th. And that
Austin Bond (13-4, 2.71, 1.19 WHIP) go the win, continuing to be by far the most successful member of a very disappointing and under-achieving starting rotation. (The Brewers continue to be 12th in starting pitcher ERA with a collective 4.76, while Bond is 5th in the MGL in ERA.)
The Brewers are now 10 games behind the Velocity in 3rd place in the MGL West (just 1 game behind Los Angeles).