The highs, lows of Brewers giving up 14 or more runs in a game
By JERRY TAPP
Let’s be honest, the Milwaukee Brewers pitching staff had a rough weekend. In two games on Saturday August 17 and Sunday August 18 against the Washington Nationals, the Brewers pitching staff gave up 14 runs in one game and 16 in the other. What makes this all the more interesting is that the Brewers did not lose both games; they split these two games with the Nats.
On Saturday the Brewers needed 14 innings to win 15-14 over the Nationals. On Sunday, Washington got off to a 13-0 lead and eventually won the game 16-8.
In the 15-14 win, Eric Thames hit a two-run HR in the 14th inning to put the Brew Crew up 15-13. It was the team’s seventh HR in the contest, tying a club record. The Brewers became the first team since 2008 to win a game where they allowed the opposition to score 14 or more runs. Back on September 2, 2008, the Atlanta Braves defeated the Florida Marlins 16-14.
There have been only 61 games since 1911 where a team won a game where their opponents scored 14 or more runs in a contest. It was the first time for the Brewers franchise. The Brew Crew is now 1-78 in games where they allow 14 or more runs in a game. It was also the fourth game this season that the Brewers allowed 14 or more runs in a game. The team record is six games in a season; they allowed 14 or more runs in six games in 1991.
Prior to Thames’ 14-inning HR, the Brewers had tallied 13 runs with six HRs. Teams that score 13 or more runs in a game with six or more home runs have won 197 of 200 games in MLB history. The three times when a team that scored 13 or more runs with six homers in a game were:
4-27-1965: Philadelphia, 6 HRs, 13 runs in a 14-13 loss to San Francisco
5-17-1979: Cubs, 6 HRs, 22 runs in a 23-22 loss to Philadelphia
6-30-1996: Dodgers, 6 HRs, 15 runs in a 16-15 loss to Colorado.
The Brewers finished Saturday’s win over Washington with 15 runs and seven home runs. Teams that have scored 15 or more runs in a game with seven or more home runs are now 50-0. There have already been six games this season in the majors where a team had 15 or more runs and seven HRs in a game. The previous MLB high for a season was four games.
One final note: In Sunday’s game, a 16-8 loss for the Brewers, the Brew Crew hit four HRs. In 2019, they have had 10 games where the team hit four or more home runs, compiling an 8-2 record in those games.
The most games with four or more home runs in a season for the Brewers was in 1982 when they had 12 games with four or more home runs. They did it 11 times in 2012. They also had 10 games with four or more HRs in 1980. The Brewers are 145-33 (a .815 winning percentage) in their history in games where they hit four or more home runs.
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