Brewers at Indians
Slugger Edwin Encarnacion looks to extend his hitting streak to 12 games when the Cleveland Indians go after a two-game sweep of the visiting Milwaukee Brewers on Wednesday afternoon. Encarnacion had a double and scored a run as the Indians edged Milwaukee 3-2 on Tuesday and is 18-for-43 with six homers and 15 RBIs during his streak to raise his batting average from .202 to .248.
Jason Kipnis is also warming up with multiple hits in six of his last 10 games and Jose Ramirez homered in five of nine contests for Cleveland while teammate Lonnie Chisenhall (calf) had a two-run single Tuesday in his return from a near two-month stint on the disabled list. Carlos Carrasco hopes to find the form that led to a 14-strikeout, complete-game victory over the Brewers on May 9 when he takes the mound Wednesday and faces fellow right-hander Chase Anderson in the finale. Milwaukee has lost back-to-back contests for the first time since a four-game losing streak April 26-29 and is 1-3 in the middle of its current road trip. Travis Shaw launched his 14th homer in the ninth inning Tuesday for the Brewers and Lorenzo Cain added a pair of hits in the loss after managing the same amount over the previous six contests.
TV: 1:10 p.m. ET, MLB Network, FS Wisconsin (Milwaukee), STO (Cleveland)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Brewers RH Chase Anderson (4-4, 4.45 ERA) vs. Indians RH Carlos Carrasco (6-4, 4.50)
Anderson has had problems in his last two starts, allowing nine runs (eight earned) on 12 hits over 9 1/3 innings combined while picking up a loss and a no-decision. The 30-year-old Texan registered four quality starts in his first six trips to the mound in 2018, but accomplished that just once in his last five outings. Michael Brantley is 2-for-3 with a homer versus Anderson, who lost his only career start against the Indians while yielding four runs over five innings.
Carrasco limited the Brewers to two runs on five hits and one walk, but is just 1-3 in four starts since and struggled in the last two appearances. The 31-year-old Venezuela native had seven quality starts in his first 10 outings of 2018, but permitted 11 runs on 14 hits across 9 1/3 innings combined in the past two contests. Cain is 13-for-36 with a double and a triple against Carrasco, who owns a 5.59 ERA at home as opposed to a 3.83 mark on the road.
WALK-OFFS
1. Milwaukee OF Ryan Braun needs one stolen base to become the third player in franchise history to reach 200.
2. Indians CF Bradley Zimmer was optioned to Triple-A Columbus to make room for Chisenhall on the roster.
3. Brewers 1B Eric Thames (thumb) is slated to continue his rehab assignment with Triple-A Colorado Springs on Wednesday.