MILWAUKEE (AP) - Colorado manager Bud Black gave Wily Peralta all the credit for the Milwaukee Brewers’ latest win over the Rockies.
Peralta pitched five effective innings, and Eric Thames, Travis Shaw and Jonathan Villar each homered to help the Brewers beat the Rockies 6-1 Wednesday night.
“I think it was more him,” Black said of Peralta. “You saw his fastball velocity and enough breaking pitches to keep us off balance. As the game went on, he mixed in a changeup to our left-handed hitters.”
Peralta threw 90 pitches, 56 for strikes.
“It was about velocity to pretty good spots at the top of the zone and breaking balls to disrupt our timing,” Black said. “I think it was more about him for five.”
Peralta (1-0) allowed three hits, struck out five and walked one. He’s already off to a better start than a year ago when he lost his first three outings and struggled through 10 more before being demoted to Triple-A Colorado Springs. He pitched effectively in his final 10 starts after being recalled, posting a 3-4 record with a 2.92 ERA.
“It feels good being able to have my velocity back, especially locating it,” Peralta said. “Since coming back from Triple-A, I’ve been able to define my mechanics and other stuff, and since then it’s been good.”
Thames hit a 3-1 pitch 450 feet to deep center and Shaw teed off on a 1-0 pitch for a two-run homer job off Tyler Chatwood (0-1) in the bottom of the fourth. The Brewers added the left-handed hitting tandem to rebalance last season’s predominantly right-handed lineup.
Villar ended the Colorado bullpen’s scoreless streak at 9 1/3 innings this season with a two-run shot in the eighth.
Neftali Feliz came on with two outs and the bases loaded and struck out Charlie Blackmon for his first save of the season and the 100th of his career.
Carlos Torres pitched a scoreless sixth and seventh, working his way around three walks. Corey Knebel handled the eighth.
Mark Reynolds had a run-scoring single off Taylor Jungmann in the ninth.
“It was more about their pitching,” Black said. “We just couldn’t solve it.”
Chatwood, who was 8-1 away from Coors Field and had a franchise-record 1.69 road ERA last season, allowed four runs on seven hits over six innings. He walked one and struck out five in his first appearance at Miller Park.
Hernan Perez doubled home a run in the sixth.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Rockies: LHP Chris Rusin (right oblique strain) throws Thursday at Triple-A Albuquerque. “Hopefully, he’ll get to 45 pitches,” manager Bud Black said. The plan is to lengthen him out to three innings or the pitch count. … RHP Chad Qualls (right forearm tightness) threw a bullpen session in Arizona. He is scheduled to throw another one Saturday at Coors Field with a rehab assignment to follow. … RHP Jairo Diaz (recovering from Tommy John surgery) threw Wednesday and briefly remains in an extended spring-training routine before his rehab assignment.
Brewers: INF/OF Nick Franklin was claimed off waivers Wednesday from Tampa Bay and takes the roster spot of RHP Michael Blazek, who was designated for assignment. . Thames played for the NC Dinos of the Korean Baseball Organization the past three seasons and led the league with 40 home runs in 2016.
WHERE’S HOME?
Orlando Arcia’s base-running blunder possibly cost the Brewers a run.
Arcia tripled and tried to score on Peralta’s soft fly to right. Right fielder Carlos Gonzalez’s throw home was late, but Arcia slid past home. Chatwood, backing up the play, yelled at catcher Tony Walters to tag Arcia when he made no effort to come back and touch the base.
“It was a good defensive play right there,” Gonzalez said. “That’s what you want to do when you’re on the field. You want to play for your teammates. You want to play for your pitchers. In the first three games, we’ve shown some good defense in the infield and the outfield, too.”
UP NEXT
Rockies: RHP Antonio Senzatela makes his major-league debut. He spent the 2016 season with Double-A Hartford where he went 4-1 with a 1.82 ERA in seven starts. This spring, he was 0-4 with a 4.61 ERA in eight games (five starts).
Brewers: RHP Chase Anderson makes his first start of the season. He went 9-11 (ERA 4.39) in 31 games (30 starts) last season. He is 3-3 with a 5.30 ERA in 10 career starts against the Rockies.
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