Rhys Hoskins, Freddy Peralta lead Brewers to win over D-backs

PHOENIX — The Brewers have had so much turnover in their starting rotation dating back to last season. But among the carousel of starting pitchers that have taken the bump for Milwaukee in 2024, it’s been Freddy Peralta who has been the standard of consistency.

That could not have been displayed more perfectly than in Friday night’s 2-1 win over the D-backs under the roof at Chase Field.

The right-hander earned the win in his 30th start of the season, marking the second consecutive season he’s reached that mark for Milwaukee.

“It means a lot,” Peralta said. “That’s my goal all the time. … There’s a lot more baseball coming and left, but I already feel good about what I have done, and we just have to move forward. I feel really good right now.”

Although it may not have been a dominant lights-out outing, the 28-year-old pitcher struck out five batters over five frames, allowing just one run on six hits and four walks. Peralta continues to show that he can take the ball about every fifth day and put the team in a position to succeed.

Milwaukee needs that more than ever from him, especially at this point in the season. The club shipped prized starter Corbin Burnes to the Orioles over the offseason, traded starter Adrian Houser and lost key pitchers such as Wade Miley, Brandon Woodruff and Robert Gasser to injuries.

The Brewers made the necessary move of adding Frankie Montas, who was the Reds’ Opening Day starter, at the Trade Deadline to bolster the rotation, but Peralta’s resilience through the season has set the standard among his fellow pitchers.

“It’s just a tribute to who he is,” Brewers manager Pat Murphy said. “That was leadership on his part because then the other guys just started saying stuff like, ‘I got to keep taking the ball. Hey, I don’t feel great. I got to still take the ball.’”

He also helped the Brewers drop their magic number to clinch the National League Central over the Cubs to five and picked up a key win to start the series against the team that eliminated them at home in last year’s NL Wild Card Series.

Peralta knew firsthand how dangerous the D-backs lineup can be. He was the starting pitcher in the Game 2 loss, giving up four runs and receiving the loss in the contest that saw the Brewers season end. He vowed to come into this start against Arizona with one clear goal.

“I knew since the beginning that my plan was to try to put up zeros,” Peralta said. “It doesn’t matter if I was going only for four innings or seven. The bullpen has been great, so I know that they were going to take care of that, but my goal was just to try to put up more zeros because I know who [the D-backs] are, and they know me too a little bit. So it was just a battle.”

Peralta experienced trouble in the first inning when he had two runners in scoring position with one out. He was able to limit the damage to one run, which came on a sacrifice fly from Pavin Smith.

The Dominican Republic native navigated through the game with no run support, but that all changed with one swing from Rhys Hoskins. The first baseman smoked a sinker on the inside part of the plate from D-backs pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez that stayed to the right of the left-field foul pole, giving him his 24th homer — a two-run jack — of the season to score the two runs the Brewers needed to win the game.

Following Peralta’s departure in the fifth inning, four relievers — Joel Payamps, Jared Koenig, Trevor Megill and Devin Williams — combined for four innings of hitless relief.

While the win may not have come in the most lavish style, it still reflects what the Brewers have been doing all season — winning by any means necessary. With 15 games left in the season, 12 of which come against teams who are contending for a playoff spot, it’s the ultimate test for a team that is more than likely going to win its division and get ready for October baseball.

“Just think less and just be yourself,” Peralta said. “Let the game keep going. It doesn’t matter what happens. You just move forward to the next place if something bad happens. I think that we’re starting on the right foot. You just keep it that way.”