Greinke strikes out zero, lasts only two innings; Yankees crush Brewers

Great extension Curtis, but you should have been out.

Coming into Tuesday night’s game Larry had mentioned Zack Greinke‘s unusual ERA-FIP split of 4.70 to 2.30 in his series preview. For a split second during the game, we got a taste of why. In the first inning, after Brett Gardner reached base on a hit by pitch, Curtis Granderson lofted what should have been a routine fly ball to center field. Instead of catching the ball, Nyjer Morgan tripped on the grass, and the bloop dropped in for what was ruled an RBI triple for Granderson. In the next at-bat, Mark Teixeira grounded one to the first base side, which produced an out, but also allowed Curtis to score. For anyone trying to understand how a pitcher can have a light’s out FIP but a below average ERA, that’s how. Instead of having a runner at first with two outs, Greinke’s official line after one inning was two runs allowed and two base runners. It was the first of the Brewers’ many bad defensive plays on the evening.

While anyone watching the game got a glimpse of why Greinke has such an unusual stat line on the season, in all fairness to the eight guys backing him up on the field, Zack was abysmal last night. Morgan’s non-error may have explained two of the runs Greinke allowed, but it doesn’t excuse the other five, all of which came in the second inning. Tex grounded out another RBI. Robinson Cano singled in a run. The big blow came from Nick Swisher, who continued his hot hitting with a three run homer.

In total, Greinke lasted just 2.0 innings on 56 pitches. He allowed seven runs (granted, two of them shouldn’t have been earned) on five hits and three walks and zero strike outs, which was the first time in his career that Greinke struck no one out.

After that, the Yankees had their way with the Milwaukee bullpen. Marco Estrada allowed three more runs. Zach Braddock allowed a run. So did Tim Dillard. Only former Yankee LaTroy Hawkins managed to get out of his appearance in the game unscathed. In total, the Yankees scored twelve runs on the night, beating the Brewers by ten.

Freddy Garcia, meanwhile, continued his season long string of starts that look stronger on paper than they were on the field. Garcia lasted just six innings, but he tossed only 76 pitches and allowed just two runs. He gave up eight hits and struck out just one, but he walked none and managed to get out of trouble consistently. Hector Noesi and Cory Wade took it from there.

Other notable performances on the night include Tex, who hit his 24th homer of the night later in the evening, giving him sole possession of the major league lead, which is pretty cool. Alex Rodriguez went two for three with a walk, but the star of the evening was Nick Swisher. He hit the three run homer that knocked Greinke out of the game. He hit an RBI double in the eighth. He also had the defensive play of the night, throwing Corey Hart out at home in the sixth.

Boston lost to Philadelphia, giving the Yankees a 1.5 game lead in the AL East. Tonight’s game features Shaun Marcum for the Brewers versus A.J. Burnett. Game time is at 7pm.