There's an old (supposedly Chinese but probably English) curse. It goes: May you live in interesting times. This was an interesting game.

Winning Pitcher: Mike Fiers

Losing Pitcher: Nathan Eovaldi

SV: Francisco Rodriguez (41)

HR: Ryan Braun (19), Matt Clark (2), Marcell Ozuna (23)

Win Expectancy Chart

Boxscore

For avid readers of the site, and for my twitter companions, it's well known that I've been screaming for the Brewers to bench Ryan Braun. So of course, the first run of the game comes via a second inning lead off, opposite field home run by none other than the beleaguered Braun. Maybe a short rest really was all he needed. I think that's probably not the case, but I'll most certainly and happily celebrate my being wrong, should that turn out to be the case.

The second run of the night also belonged to the Brewers. After Mike Fiers struck out, Carlos Gomez his second hit of the night for a double. Scooter Gennett advanced him to third on a ground out. Jonathan Lucroy drew a walk to put runners at the corners for Aramis Ramirez who sent a fly ball over the left fielder's head for a ground rule double. Had the ball the stayed in play Lucroy probably scores as well, but instead the inning would end on a Braun grounder. But hey, that's baseball. The Brewers left the third inning with a 2-0 lead and that's nothing to complain about.

Mike Fiers cruised through 3 innings before running into trouble in the fourth. He walked Donovan Solano and then Giancarlo Stanton lined a double putting runners at second and third for Casey McGehee. After falling behind 2-0 in the count, Fiers came back to get the strike out. Then he struck out Marcell Ozuna (who had homered in all 3 games of the series prior to this one) on 3 pitches. Garret Jones was able to draw a walk to load the bases for Adeiny Hecchavarria. One-two-three pitches. It was Mike Fiers 7th strikeout of the night and certainly his biggest. Brewers 2-0 lead remained intact.

That 2-0 lead wouldn't last much longer though. Matt Clark hit his second home run in as many games in the bottom half of the fourth. This time it was a no-doubter to left center. Jean Segura lined a single and advanced on a bunt from Fiers. Gomez drew a walk and then Scooter Gennett lined one through the middle of the infield to drive in Segura. The inning ended after that and the Brewers found themselves with a 4-0 lead after four.

Fiers ran into some more trouble in the fifth inning. Once again the first two batters reached. The first out came on a fly ball. The runners stayed put. The second out came on a grounder. Segura grabbed the ball and raced the runner to second. On the replay footage it looked as though they both touched the bag at the same time. The call on the field was out and after a look, Marlins manager Mike Redmond chose not to challenge. Then something truly horrific happened.

Giancarlo Stanton was batting and took a fastball flush in the face. The ball appeared to to hit him on the left cheek an inch or two below the eye, but it's possible it hit his nose too. It was obviously an accident and Mike Fiers looked visibly upset. I won't go into graphic detail but it was really horrible to see live. Stanton never appeared to lose consciousness but he was carted off the field on a stretcher. Head trauma is nothing to take lightly, so he went to a hospital to be check out. As of writing the only update was that he suffered a laceration to the face and was undergoing further tests.

Somewhat surprisingly, the umpires did not give the batter the base. It was ruled that Stanton had swung through and so it was not a hit-by-pitch. Then it got really crazy. Reed Johnson came to the plate to pinch hit for Stanton. Fiers threw up and in again and once again the batter was hit. That's not the crazy thing. The crazy thing is that this too was ruled as a strike because the batter swung at the pitch. Casey McGehee understandably enraged started yelling at the umpire. Fiers started yelling too. I'm just guessing here but I think he thought McGehee, or someone else, was suggesting he did it on purpose. Then the benches cleared. After everything settled down it became apparent the inning had somehow ended. It turns out the pitch that hit Reed and was ruled a strike, was strike 3. I've never seen anything this insane in baseball before.

Casey McGehee was thrown out of the game. So was the Marlins' manager Mike Redmond. Ed Lucas took over at third base and Reed Johnson stayed in the game in right field. Anthony DeSclafani took the mound for the Marlins in the bottom of the fifth. I have to tip my cap to the Marlins here for not retaliating. DeSclafani did not hit a single batter he faced.

After everything that happened Ron Roenicke understandably took Mike Fiers out of the game. Jeremy Jeffress took over in the sixth. He got through the inning unscathed.

After the whole benches clearing incident. both teams were warned. In the bottom of the sixth inning DeScalfani hit Carlos Gomez on his left elbow pad. I for one do not think it was intentional, but the home plate umpire either didn't feel the same way or didn't want to take any chances. DeScalfani was thrown out (along with bench coach Rob Leary) and Dan Jennings replaced him and ended the inning with a strikeout.

Will Smith pitching in the top of the 8th induced a grounder to the first hit. He fielded it cleanly and threw a good throw to first baseman Matt Clark who just dropped it. Smith got the next two batters out before giving up a 2-run home run to Marcell Ozuna. Smith then got out of the inning the a strike out. The Marlins cut the Brewers lead in half. Going into the bottom of the eighth they'd have just a 4-2 lead.

They'd take that lead to the top of the ninth for Francisco Rodriguez. Ground out, fly out, strike out. Game over. Brewers won 4-2.

The Cincinnati Reds come to town for a three game series this weekend. First game starts tomorrow at 7:10 pm CT as Kyle Lohse takes on Mat Latos.

Other notes:

• The Cardinals were shut out by the Reds today. That makes 3 losses in a row to Cincinnati. That drops their division lead over the Pirates to 2.5 and the Brewers to 4. They go back to St. Louis now for a 9 game home stand. First up is a 3 game weekend series with the Rockies. They face the Brewers next week for 3 games (last 3 games the two teams will meet in the regular season).
• The Giants beat the Diamondbacks to hold onto their 4 game lead on the second wild card spot.
• The Pirates beat the Phillies to remain 1.5 games up on the Brewers for the second wild card spot.
• The Braves did not play today so they drop a half game back of the Brewers.
• Ryan Braun's second inning home run was the 230th of his career tying him for 2nd in franchise history with Prince Fielder.

The Miami Marlins lost their MVP contender, Giancarlo Stanton, in a gruesome hit-by-pitch injury, and a subsequent hit-by-pitch led to multiple ejections and a benches-clearing altercation. Meanwhile, the Fish fell short in a 4-2 loss to the Brewers.

The Miami Marlins have a chance for a series win against the Milwaukee Brewers as the two teams fight to desperately stay alive in a close Wild Card race. The Fish have Nathan Eovaldi, he of the confusing struggling versus succeeding situation, versus Mike Fiers for the Brew Crew.

Pitching Matchup

Eovaldi has "struggled" to a 3.61 ERA in the last month and change worth of starts, but fans only see the negatives in his recent play. Meanwhile, he's also struck out 20.1 percent of batters faced with only eight walks in 42 1/3 innings (4.3 percent rate). Everything that Eovaldi has done in the last month has been spectacular, and there was supposedly some good reason for it, as Chuck Hernandez supposedly worked on lengthening his stride.

Lineup

The Marlins are throwing out a pretty typical lineup for them, with the hopes that the offense gets a spark. Marcell Ozuna has certainly found a spark, as he has been on fire with homers in three straight games. The team would like Giancarlo Stanton to join in on the fun though.

Bold Prediction: Marlins def. Brewers 4-2

In a wild, event-packed night at Miller Park, the Milwaukee Brewers got out to an early lead and beat out the Miami Marlins 4-2.

It turns out there was more than just baseball tonight between the Miami Marlins and the Milwaukee Brewers.

The Marlins sent out Nathan Eovaldi to the mound to face the Brewers, but he put up one of his worst starts of the season. The Brew Crew put up four runs in four innings against Eovaldi, who struggled to put away batters and gave up two home runs along the way to Ryan Braun and Matthew Clark. The Brewers eventually ran past Eovaldi, who put up his worst start since his latest month-plus stretch of strong performances. Miami had to pull him early, as Eovaldi was not able to last beyond the fourth inning.

Of course, after the fourth inning, all the fireworks began. The fifth inning contained the Giancarlo Stantoninjury on the hit-by-pitch from Mike Fiers. Subsequently, the benches-clearing altercation occurred when Reed Johnson stepped in after Stanton and was also hit and struck out in one fell swoop. The benches were restless with emotion, and Mike Redmond and Casey McGehee were ejected for arguing with the umpires. In the subsequent innings, Marlins reliever Anthony DeSclafani and bench coach Rob Leary were also ejected after DeSclafani hit Carlos Gomez with a pitch.

In the meantime, Miami actually mounted something of a comeback. In the eighth inning, with a runner on base, Marcell Ozuna hit another home run, cutting the lead in half. It was Ozuna's fourth home run in as many days, putting him in a list of very few Marlins in team history.

But the home run was not enough. Francisco Rodriguez entered the game and shut the door in the ninth and Miami took the loss, 4-2.

Stanton will return to Miami for further evaluation on Friday.

Miami Marlins superstar slugger Giancarlo Stanton suffered facial lacerations which required stitches, multiple facial fractures and dental damage after being hit in the face by a pitch in the fifth inning against the Milwaukee Brewers on Thursday night at Miller Park, the Marlins announced after the game.

The outfielder will return to Miami on Friday for further evaluation.

Stanton was hit in the face by a fastball from Brewers starter Mike Fiers in the fifth inning, causing Stanton to immediately fall to the ground. Stanton remained on the ground for several minutes before being carted off on the field on a stretcher.

Stanton was treated at a Milwaukee hospital, undergoing X-rays and a CT scan.

The Marlins lost to the Brewers, 4-2, and are 5½ games behind the Pirates for the second Wild Card position in the National League.

Stanton, 24, is having arguably his finest season in 2014, hitting .288/.395/.555 with 37 home runs and 105 RBI. He leads the National League in home runs, RBI, slugging percentage, OPS, walks (94) and total bases (299). Stanton also has a streak of 165 consecutive games played, including all 145 games this season, that will end on Friday.

It is unknown when Stanton will return or even if he will be able to return this season.

"We've lost our MVP," said Marlins manager Mike Redmond after the game. "It doesn't look good." That isn't stopping Stanton from wanting to come back, though:

Tooth lodged in cheek. Hole in lip so big doc's index finger fit in it. And get this: Giancarlo Stanton still wants to return this season.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) September 12, 2014

Marlins outfielder Giancarlo Stanton suffered multiple injuries to his face and teeth after getting hit by a pitch against the Brewers on Thursday in Milwaukee.

Marlins outfielder Giancarlo Stanton left the field on a stretcher after being hit in the face by a pitch from Brewers starter Mike Fiers in the fifth inning on Thursday.

He suffered a laceration on the left side of his face, the Marlins announced, and underwent X-rays and a CT scan at a local hospital in Milwaukee.

Redmond said it "doesn't look good" as far as Stanton returning this season.

— clarkspencer (@clarkspencer) September 12, 2014

Stanton took a called strike from Fiers before the second pitch of the at-bat -- an 88 mph fastball -- caught the star slugger in the left side of his face in an area unprotected by his helmet. Stanton was down for about five minutes before an ambulance was called onto the field. Fiers, who had not hit a batter in 10 big league appearances entering Thursday, was visibly shaken after the incident, according to Fox Sports Wisconsin's Andrew Gruman.

Scary scene at Miller Park as medics tend to Giancarlo Stanton after he was hit in the face by a pitch pic.twitter.com/SMPcyHsUfp

— Adam McCalvy (@AdamMcCalvy) September 12, 2014

A considerable amount of blood was visible on Stanton's face and around the home plate area. Umpires ruled that Stanton swung at the pitch, so Reed Johnson was sent to the plate to finish the at-bat. Johnson was promptly hit in the hand by Fiers, resulting in both benches emptying. Johnson, too, was not awarded first base, but rather given a strike for allegedly swinging at the pitch. The unprecedented plate appearance ended in a strikeout.

Stanton, 24, is in the midst of an MVP-caliber campaign for the 71-74 Marlins. He entered Thursday hitting .287/.395/.554 with 37 home runs.

Fiers after the game took to Twitter to express his concern for Stanton.

@Giancarlo818 I am deeply sorry about what happened tonight. I can't imagine what you and your family are going through. (Continue)...

— Mike Fiers (@Fiers64) September 12, 2014

@Giancarlo818 my thoughts and prayers are with you at this time. I feel horrible and hope for a speedy recovery.

— Mike Fiers (@Fiers64) September 12, 2014

The initial results on Giancarlo Stanton's imaging have returned, and they indicate a significant laceration that required stitching and multiple fractures and dental injuries.

The initial results of the imaging on Giancarlo Stanton's ugly hit-by-pitch injury at the hands of Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Mike Fiers are back, and the results do not sound good. According to Joe Frisaro of MLB.com, Stanton has suffered several injuries, including multiple fractures, a significant facial laceration, and dental injuries.

Marlins slugger Giancarlo Stanton suffered multiple facial fractures, dental damage and a facial laceration requiring stitches after being hit in the face by a pitch from Brewers starter Mike Fiers in the fifth inning on Thursday night.

The update on Stanton's condition was released by the Marlins, who said Stanton would return to Miami on Friday for further evaluation. It was not known how long Stanton would be sidelined, although Marlins manager Mike Redmond and teammates were not optimistic.

The fractures could involve a variety of different bones in the face. Much of the concern involves whether or not there was orbital involvement. The orbit is the socket that houses the eye and is formed by multiple bones of the head and face. Any orbital involvement would be concerning for subsequent eye injury or progression of damage to the eye, which may lead to severe impairment if not repaired. The thought is that an orbital injury may have required more immediate surgery, and the fact that Miami is capable of releasing Stanton to travel to Miami on Friday may be a good sign, according to noted sports injury writer Will Carroll.

It's a very good sign that Stanton can travel. If his eye was in question, would be immediate surgery. I'll have article up soon at B/R.

— Will Carroll (@injuryexpert) September 12, 2014

My thought is that the fact that the club is suturing and traveling is likely that there will not be much in the way of emergent orbital care. I encourage you to read the full article from Carroll, as it is an excellent, informative piece.

If the damage is lower than the level of the orbit, there is a question as to whether surgical management is necessary. It would depend on the oral maxilofacial surgeon who eventually sees Stanton at the team's behest and what they view as necessary for reduction or what can likely heal on its own. Carroll mentions that dental injuries may be a better sign in terms of avoiding the eye, as the injury may have occurred lower in the maxilla rather than closer to the orbit. But dental injuries carry their own risks, including introduction of oral mucosal bacteria into the sinuses that sit in the cheeks.

The major bony concern in terms of fracture appears to be the zygomatic arch, which is apparently a difficult repair.

Giancarlo STANTON @Marlins hit in face w/ pitch. Main worry is zygomatic arch fracture. Orbit/eye thankfully appear ok. Scary. Hope he's ok.

— David J. Chao, MD (@ProFootballDoc) September 12, 2014

Either way, it seems pretty apparent that Stanton will not return to the Marlins this season. Jason Heyward serves as a reasonable example of a similar problem. Heyward was hit by a pitch and suffered a fractured jaw last season, and he missed a month of time before returning to play. Stanton's maxillary injury may leave more structures unstable, so even if surgical intervention is minimal, it is likely that he will need to be given a good amount of healing, non-contact time after this week. I would not expect Stanton to return to the lineup in 2014.

Stanton was closing in on finishing a six-win campaign and a possible MVP season. This major health concern and injury severely derails his best season and will probably cut it short. Fish Stripes hopes for the best in Stanton's recovery! Stay tuned right here for more news as we receive it.

A number of major league players, teammates and from around the league, took to Twitter to express support and concern for Marlins slugger Giancarlo Stanton, who suffered multiple injuries after getting hit in the face by a pitch on Thursday night.

Miami Marlins star outfielder Giancarlo Stanton is one of the most popular players in the game, and not just for his prodigious power displayed both in batting practice and during games. After he was hit by a pitch in the face against the Brewers and left Thursday night's game in Milwaukee, the outpouring of support for Stanton from his peers was overwhelming.

Stanton suffered numerous facial injuries and dental damage, and will return to Miami on Friday for further evaluation.

Mike Fiers, who delivered the fastball that hit Stanton, was emotional after the game both when talking to reporters...

Very distraught and emotional #Brewers P Mike Fiers expressed sorrow for hitting Stanton and made it clear wasn't throwing at anybody.

— Tom (@Haudricourt) September 12, 2014

Mike Fiers fought back tears when talking about Stanton. Hopes to reach out to Stanton & Marlins to express well wishes.

— Adam McCalvy (@AdamMcCalvy) September 12, 2014

.. and when talking directly to Stanton on Twitter:

@Giancarlo818 I am deeply sorry about what happened tonight. I can't imagine what you and your family are going through. (Continue)...

— Mike Fiers (@Fiers64) September 12, 2014

@Giancarlo818 my thoughts and prayers are with you at this time. I feel horrible and hope for a speedy recovery.

— Mike Fiers (@Fiers64) September 12, 2014

Fellow major league players expressed concern and support for Stanton as well.

More then a game. Get well soon big fella. Everyone keep @Giancarlo818 in your thoughts and prayers.

— Tom Koehler (@TKREFRESH22) September 12, 2014

That was one of the to hardest things I've ever had to watch here's to hoping Big G is alright and makes a full recovery prayers ur way bud

— Christian Yelich (@ChristianYelich) September 12, 2014

Scary stuff tonight that no one likes to see but we need to all be praying for @Giancarlo818 for good x-ray results and a healthy recovery.

— Steve Cishek (@srSHREK31) September 12, 2014

Sending thoughts and prayers up for big G. Tough to witness, and just goes to show it's more than a game. Get well soon big fella.

— Chris Hatcher (@handlebars41) September 12, 2014

Everyone please keep @Giancarlo818 in your thoughts and prayers for a fast recovery

— Anthony DeSclafani (@ADeSclafani) September 12, 2014

I invite you to come together and pray for my teammate @giancarlo818#prayforstantonhttp://t.co/HZZVh31RS5

— Donovan Solano (@DonovanSolano17) September 12, 2014

Please keep @Giancarlo818 in your thoughts and prayers. I absolutely hope and pray he has a fast recovery. #prayforstanton

— Bryan Morris (@Bryan19Morris) September 12, 2014

Everyone please keep G in your thoughts and prayers.

— Andrew Heaney (@Heandog8) September 12, 2014

Praying hard for @Giancarlo818 tonight goes beyond the game

— Dan Jennings (@LtDanJennings) September 12, 2014

Please join the me &@Marlins family in sayn a few prayers for @Giancarlo818 tonight, #mvp#brother#GetWellGiancarlo

— Aj Ramos (@theajramos) September 12, 2014

Get better soon my man @Giancarlo818

— Hanley Ramirez (@HanleyRamirez) September 12, 2014

Thoughts and prayers go out to @Giancarlo818 ....speedy recovery man

— Drew Butera (@drewbutera) September 12, 2014

Got @Giancarlo818 on my mind, hoping for the best news & a speedy recovery big guy!!

— Justin Turner (@redturn2) September 12, 2014

I hope you gone be ok @Giancarlo818 praying for you homie!

— Dee Gordon (@FlashGJr) September 12, 2014

Prayers go out for my boy @Giancarlo818

— Jimmy Rollins (@JimmyRollins11) September 12, 2014

Huge prayers to @Giancarlo818#GetWellGiancarlo

— Bud Norris (@BudNorris25) September 12, 2014

Today there is many things to be praying about. But please take a min. and pray for @Giancarlo818

— Mike Dunn (@DunnForAll40) September 12, 2014

My heart goes out to @Giancarlo818 and his family. I will pray for your speedy recovery. Get well soon bro

— Jose Reyes (@lamelaza_7) September 12, 2014

Thoughts and prayers go out to @Giancarlo818! Hope you have a full and speedy recovery brother!

— Enrique Hernandez (@kikehndez) September 12, 2014

Praying for my teammate @Giancarlo818 for a healthy recovery. God Bless my teammate! . Resandoo. Por mi companero que este saludable

— Jordany Valdespin (@jordany023) September 12, 2014

The Miami Marlins were furious after a series of strikes were called against them on consecutive hit-by-pitches at the hands of Brewers pitcher Mike Fiers. Here are the rules behind Giancarlo Stanton's and Reed Johnson's strikeout.

Emotions were running high last night in the game between the Miami Marlins and Milwaukee Brewers. When Giancarlo Stanton was hit in the face by a Mike Fiers pitch, there was bound to be some concern and some caution with regards to any further close pitches. When Reed Johnson, who replaced Stanton, was also hit in the same area, there was bound to be a little bit of anger. Both Fiers and the Marlins' dugout got into it, and the benches quickly cleared, leading to some ejections on the side of the Fish.

Through it all, Marlins TV commentators Rich Waltz and Tommy Hutton had a hard time hiding their emotions as well. Hutton, in particular, was adamant that neither situation was a swing and that, even if it was, the result should not have led to a strikeout, but rather should have been treated as a foul ball.

Unfortunately, the letter of the law, according to MLB's official rules, does not agree.

The Swing

The first part of this was hard to argue against. Rule 2.00 suggests that, even if a hitter is hit by a pitch, if he offers at it, it is still considered a strike.

A STRIKE is a legal pitch when so called by the umpire, which—

(a) Is struck at by the batter and is missed;

(b) Is not struck at, if any part of the ball passes through any part of the strike

zone;

(c) Is fouled by the batter when he has less than two strikes;

(d) Is bunted foul;

(e) Touches the batter as he strikes at it;

(f) Touches the batter in flight in the strike zone; or

(g) Becomes a foul tip.

The question is whether either play led to a "strike at" the pitch. In both situations, there is definitely an argument that the batter offers at the pitch. In Stanton's case, he appears to begin a swinging motion as the pitch is delivered.

(I promise that's the only time I'll ever show that video again)

You can see that Stanton picks up his right leg and starts a motion. His left arm, the lead arm, begins moving forward. Very early on, however, he attempts to bail on the motion with a checked swing and an attempt to avoid the pitch, but the pitch catches him and he turns and goes down.

Imagine now that the pitch does not hit Stanton, but he does the same thing. You can see at the end of the play that the bat flies out and into the strike zone. While it may not be in the spirit of the rule that that pitch is called a strike, it is certainly within the letter of the rule. Stanton's bat goes right through the plane of the strike zone and is rightfully considered a strike, no matter how inhumane that call is to an injured player.

Stanton is carted off to be evaluated, and Johnson steps in at the plate. On the very next pitch, Fiers throws another one off the handle that flies towards Johnson's head. In his case, the checked swing appears even more clear.

If you take a look at that video, you can see that Johnson's bat is well through the plane of the strike zone once again. Had that pitch flown past him and to the backstop, it would have been hard to argue against it being called a swinging strike. But instead, it hit his hand. But because it would have been a swing by any definition, it still counts as a swing even if it hits the batter, as per Rule 2.00.

Hutton questioned whether or not such a swing could result in a strikeout. He figured that that kind of swing would be considered more like a foul ball rather than a pure out. But according to Rule 6.05, an out occurs if the ball touches a player on a swing attempt with two strikes.

6.05
A batter is out when --
(a) His fair or foul fly ball (other than a foul tip) is legally caught by a fielder;
(b) A third strike is legally caught by the catcher;
(c) A third strike is not caught by the catcher when first base is occupied before two are out;
(d) He bunts foul on third strike;
(e) An Infield Fly is declared;
(f) He attempts to hit a third strike and the ball touches him;
(g) His fair ball touches him before touching a fielder;

The attempt to hit a third strike is considered in the swing. The fact that he began holding up has never stopped checked swings from being considered strikes, and it likewise would not affect this rule. Intent is not judged in these cases, as it is clearly a subjective thing. As per the umpire, Johnson tried to check his swing and failed to do so, moving the bat through the strike zone plane and causing a swing.

The letter of the rule was upheld. Unfortunately, it could be argued that for Miami, the spirit of the rule was missed. After all, a player was seriously injured with a facial trauma from a fastball. While Stanton may have begun swinging at the pitch, much of the rest of the motion was involuntary, the result of a natural inability to control his follow-through after being hit in the face. One of these two pitches could have easily been called a hit-by-pitch, and no one would have questioned it much on either side. The umpires held steadfast to the letter of the rule, which is totally within their discretion. It was just disappointing that this happened twice and that the umpires never gave the Marlins something of a break for the trouble they went through.

It is asking for a lot for umpires to empathize and bend rules, but this situation perhaps warranted more empathy. With the benefit of hindsight, perhaps the benches-clearing situation could have been avoided if one of these two pitches were given a hit-by-pitch rather than called (correctly) a strike,

In the wake of yesterday's Brewers-Marlins game, let's take a look at everything that happened again and the reaction of players & coaches following the game.

If you missed last night's game, you missed quite a bit of action. The Brewers did win their second game in a row for the first time in a few weeks. However, that paled in comparison to everything else that happened during the game. To help you sort through it, let's take it piece by piece.

All of the trouble started in the top of the fifth inning. With the Brewers up 4-0, Giancarlo Stanton was at the plate and had an 0-1 count with two outs and runners on first and third. Jonathan Lucroy set up to catch a throw low in the zone, but Mike Fiers missed and ended up hitting Giancarlo Stanton in the left cheek. Stanton went down and immediately coaches and trainers from both sides went to attend to Stanton. Here is video of Stanton getting hit by the pitch and what followed.

(Note: While the video doesn't show anything too graphic, just a fair warning that what is in the video may be hard for some people to watch. If you get squeamish in cases of injuries like this, you may want to avoid this video.)

Some more details came out about Stanton's injury following the game. He suffered a facial laceration that required stiches, multiple facial fractures, and dental damage. He is returning to Florida for further tests, but good news out of this so far is it there are no reports of any brain damage, he never lost consciousness (which is generally a good sign), and he has feeling in all of his extremities. While there are more tests to conduct, it sounds hopeful that he can make a full recovery.

Once Stanton was off the field, play resumed. Because Stanton had offered at the pitch, the umpire ruled it a strike instead of a hit by pitch. Reed Johnson came in to replace Stanton, taking over with an 0-2 count. This time, Lucroy set up down and away, but Fiers' pitch went inside and hit Reed Johnson's hand. It was ruled a strikeout since Johnson swung at the pitch, but this caused tempers to flare and both benches to empty. On the Marlins broadcast, the announcers were very irate around it. Here's video of the benches clearing from the Marlins broadcast:

If you want to see the same video from the FOX Sports Wisconsin perspective, you can find that here.

Both benches were warned after this incident, and third baseman Casey McGehee and manager Mike Redmond of the Marlins were both ejected. The strikeout stood and the inning came to an end, ending a potential Marlins rally there.

The rest of the game played out mostly without incident, but there was another ejection in the sixth inning, after Anthony DeSclafani hit Carlos Gomez with a pitch.

The Brewers did get into a little trouble (in the runs column) a little later when the Marlins made it a 4-2 game, but the Brewers bullpen kept the Marlins offense mostly in check to record the 4-2 win.

After the game, both sides had their own takes on what had happened in the game. MLB.com compiled all of the reactions into one video, which you can see below:

Ron Roenicke also addressed all of this in his postgame press conference, with more details on what happened in the game:

It's tough to focus on the Brewers win after everything that happened in this game, but a positive for the team is that they did win their second straight and are showing some signs of turning it around again. While you hate to see something like what happened to Giancarlo Stanton, the games go on and we have to go on as well. We wish Giancarlo Stanton well as he recovers, and once reports come out in more detail about Stanton's injury, we will pass them along here. For now, the season moves on, and there's still a playoff chase to follow.

All videos from MLB.com.

The Tribe sweeps a Twin(s) bill and readies for a battle with Detroit

Is it time for another miracle September? I dunno. What do I look like, a Magic 8-Ball? What I do know is that it's time for the weekend, and we've got some sexy MLB links to start your morning right:

Yesterday's games

The Tribe swept the doubler to keep hope alive as they head into a three-game series with Detroit. Corey Kluber and T.J. House both dominated, and Carlos Santana had a monster day.

• LGT recaps (Game 1 | Game 2)
• Indians.come recaps (Game 1 | Game 2)
• Cleveland.com recaps (Game 1 | Game 2)

Indians news & notes

Santana's boom or bust bat is booming again | Cleveland.com - Paul Hoynes knows how much walks clog the bases, so he's happy to see Carlos Santana smacking the hell out of the ball once again. Terry Francona never lost faith, though.

Santana ties club record for homers by switch hitter | Indians.com - Carlos tied his own record with his 27th homer in Game 2 yesterday. I mean, 27 is no 30, but it's still something.

Kluber hates Indians fans | Cleveland.com - Just kidding. But he does seem to have an aversion to tipping his cap while receiving an ovation. The Klubot insists it's nothing against fans, but he's just totally locked in after a strong performance.

Which Kipnis is the real Kipnis? | Did The Tribe Win Last Night? - Jason Kipnis had a breakout year in 2013, but his struggles this year are well documented. Which version of Kipnis is closer to the real one?

Captains fall behind 2-0 in Championship Series | Cleveland.com - The Lake County Captains lost 6-0 against the Kane County Cougars in Game 3 of the Midwest League Championship series. Now facing elimination in the best of five series, the Captains lok to salvage some hope Saturday at Classic Park.

Tribe fan tumbles trying for foul ball | Indians.com - This one's for you, Pyro.

Tidbits from around MLB

• Giancarlo Stanton was hit in the face with a pitch and things escalated quickly between the Marlins and Brewers
• Fox Sports' Gabe Kapler looks at what may be the next "Moneyball" phenomenon in MLB
• Fangraphs forces a reason to worry about Mike Trout again
• Sports On Earth takes a look at twelve rookies who are likely to have a big impact next year
• SOE also looks at the idea of Justin Verlaner in the 'pen

Today's lessons include reactions to yesterday's strange Brewers win.

Yesterday's Results

Brewers 4, Marlins 2

The Brewers got their second straight win for the first time in a few weeks, but it came at a cost. In the fifth inning, Giancarlo Stanton was hit in the left cheek by a fastball and had to leave the field on a stretcher and in an ambulance. This led to the benches clearing after the next pitch, in a game where everything else was going well against the Marlins. Matt Clark and Ryan Braun both homered in the game, and Mike Fiers provided five shutout innings before being lifted early after the events of the fifth inning.

After the game, we received more details on the extent of Stanton's injuries. He suffered a facial laceration, multiple fractures, and some dental damage. He is returning to Miami today for more tests. Earlier this morning, we compiled some videos from the game into one post for you to view, as well as reactions from players and managers following the game.

Cram Session

The First Base Situation

• Matt Clark homered for the second straight day yesterday. Prior to the game, Noah asked if Matt Clark could be a solution for the Brewers at first base.
• Steven Jewell of Reviewing the Brew also talked about Matt Clark, in addition to Jason Rogers and other potential options for first base.
• With Matt Clark putting together a few good games in a row, Ron Roenicke may give him more chances at first base as the hot hand.

Other Notes

• In the wake of Giancarlo Stanton's injury, David Schoenfield of ESPN SweetSpot reminded everyone about the dangers of baseball, as well as a HBP rate that has grown over the years. Also, if you have access to ESPN Insider, Buster Olney asked if MLB can do more to protect hitters.
• Khris Davis was out of the lineup yesterday, but it wasn't completely about performance. Ron Roenicke gave Davis the day off due to a sore forearm, which also may explain a drop in power.
• The situation with Mike Fiers hitting Giancarlo Stanton brought up some comparisons to former Brewer Matt Wise last night. Bill Berg of Reviewing the Brew remembers what happened to Matt Wise after he hit a batter in the face with a pitch.
• Yesterday, Carlos Gomez met with Zachary Spader, a young fan at Chidren's Hospital of Wisconsin, for an interview. Caitlin Moyer has the video of the interview.
• Something else we learned yesterday is that it doesn't take much to startle Carlos Gomez. Robert J. Baumann of NotGraphs has a GIF of a started Gomez, as well as Ed Sedar calming him down.

Division Update

• Reds 1, Cardinals 0
• Pirates 4, Phillies 1
• Cubs had the day off.

This Weekend's Division Games

• Rockies @ Cardinals
  Friday: Jorge de la Rosa vs. Adam Wainwright - 7:15 pm
  Saturday: Franklin Morales vs. Shelby Miller - 6:15 pm
  Sunday: Jordan Lyles vs. Michael Wacha - 1:15 pm
• Cubs @ Pirates
  Friday: Tsuyoshi Wada vs. Gerrit Cole - 6:05 pm
  Saturday: Felix Doubront vs. Jeff Locke - 6:05 pm
  Sunday: Justin Turner vs. Edinson Volquez - 12:35 pm

This Weekend's Action

The Brewers open a three-game series against the Cincinnati Reds tonight. Here are the matchups for the weekend:

Friday: Mat Latos vs. Kyle Lohse - 7:10 pm
Saturday: David Holmberg vs. Yovani Gallardo - 6:10 pm
Sunday: Mike Leake vs. Matt Garza - 1:10 pm

The game of baseball is fascinating and endearing. But it does not last forever, which is why you ought not tune it out before it is too late to go back.

The Brewers have stunk. I do not begrudge anyone who has become ornery or temporarily shut down their fandom for sanity's sake. But I will still make an effort to talk you off the ledge, because I shut it down before the end of last season and I spent a winter regretting it despite the fact that the Brewers were virtually irrelevant.

I recall a scene in the latest Batman film where Bane explains to Batman why he had not killed him despite having a perfect opportunity and no particularly logical reason to not do it. Bane, in short, wants Batman to feel as poorly as possible, and as is the case with the applicable story trope, Bane regards death as not the poorest option. True despair is; and in theory, it is avoided with the release of death. One can only truly despair if there is an infinitesimal shred of hope poisoning the living soul's knowledge that, in all reasonability, there is no hope.

This is, of course, melodramatic and overthought nonsense. Death is clearly worse. Why? Because you are dead. It is better to have hoped and lost than to never have been alive at all. In fact, it is better to have done or felt anything rather than be dead.

In this extremely loose analogy, hope is whatever chance remains that the Brewers claim the division title or a spot in the wild card game. Interpreting death is more subjective; some may consider official mathematical elimination from the playoffs to be death - others, like me, consider death to simply mean the end of baseball games.

Baseball death is the death of a phoenix. Every November thirty teams pass by fire and burn to ash – some literally, some figuratively - and rebirth in late February to blossom and flourish in summer months. At the moment, the Brewers' wing is clipped, its beak chipped, its right big talon has gone numb, and its feathers wither. Though its expression droops, life remains in its eyes in spite of its inevitable fate.

Baseball is more fun when you have a positive outlook

Sometimes you just have to believe there is a chance things will go well, even when it looks darkest.

A fan is a mirror of its pet phoenix. I know that when this phoenix's time has come, it doesn't mean the end. I know it will be reborn. But it is like having a pet that dies every October. If you befriend it every year, you must cope with the pain of its loss and the resulting grief of its absence until another replaces it. Though there is joy in embracing a new friend, the memory of your former ally is not easily forgotten.

Though I am a fan of baseball, I have grown attached to this group of Brewers as any fan might. Its ups, its downs, its gimmicks and idiosyncrasies. It will be a shame when they hang up the cleats, regardless of when they do. I watch the Brewers in particular because of geography, but what I'm really watching is baseball. I love baseball. Most of you wouldn't have stuck it through the ridiculous rhetoric this far if you didn't love baseball; its staggering variables, its traditions, its relative randomness, and perhaps most, its characters. Winning is nice, but it is the special unscripted, spontaneous moments that keep us coming back.

Take this, for example: On Wednesday night Francisco Rodriguez was looking to redeem himself after an awful outing on Tuesday in which he allowed back-to-back game-clinching home runs to Casey McGehee and Marcell Ozuna. He got two quick flyouts, but allowed a 2-out single to Adeiny Hechavarria. In a two-strike count, Lucroy gestured very emphatically to Rodriguez to get the breaking ball in the dirt. Don't hang it. K-rod hung it. Watch Lucroy's reaction to the contact:

Look, I don't know exactly what was running through Lucroy's head in that instant reaction. It could very well have been a case of the line drive being blocked by the batter and a resulting trained reaction to think popup, look up. But Lucroy's eyes are guessing. Guessing based on what they believe to be the ball's most probable trajectory. To me, this looks like Jesus Christ I told you to get it down now look what happened that thing is probably going 700 feet.

This one little moment will be one of my several lasting memories from the season, and even if the Brewers had collapsed and lost I wouldn't feel any differently. It is a wonderful snapshot of a series of colliding forces culminating in a brilliant moment of honesty and comedy that other forms of entertainment rarely manage to capture.

Every winter I count the days until pitchers and catchers report. I count because I miss the feeling I get in the summer when the sun starts to descend westward and I remember there is a game tonight. A game featuring dozens upon dozens of unique, independent battles of will between pitcher and hitter. Incredible individual talents pushed to their limits by their peers. Even the bad ones are likely better at it than I am at anything I will ever do in my life. Scenarios so unlikely they often border on unprecedented.

As I'm typing this, I am witnessing one strikeout in which two different batters swung and missed at a pitch despite being hit by them. Unreal. You can't make it up.

There are so many reasons to stick with the struggling Brewers, even from the narrow perspective of a frustrated Brewers fan. This could be the final season for Rickie Weeks and Yovani Gallardo as Brewers. Whatever you think of them as they are now, they will go down as two of the better Brewers players in the team's history. We are likely witnessing the prime years of Carlos Gomez and Jonathan Lucroy. Aramis Ramirez could be a Hall of Famer. Jeremy Jeffress and Zach Duke are dramatically reversing their disappointing careers. Mike Fiers, Khris Davis, Scooter Gennett, and Martin Maldonado are all non-prospects completely outperforming expectations. Who knows - maybe Matt Clark is about to join that list. Reasons to watch, yes - but how about listening? Is there anything more entertaining than listen to Bob Uecker talk for three hours a night? For how many more years will we be so fortunate?

And, of course, they are still chasing a playoff spot.

But perhaps the most important reason to watch is the most practical; today, I'm watching baseball - in a few weeks, I'll be searching youtube or Netflix in vain searching to fill the void. On Sundays I will watch football and I will sporadically tune in to a basketball game during the week. While those sports certainly have their merits, they do not engage me quite like baseball.

I'm not expecting to inspire a renewed sense of optimism, but I hope I can convince the disenfranchised through sheer volume of letters, words, and series separated by commas to stick it out and appreciate baseball with all its virtues no matter how the home team fares. Because, as we all well know, it can surprise you. Every night.

Giancarlo Stanton was hit in the face by a fastball on Thursday night, and reportedly has several facial fractures. Here are some reactions from around the league.

-Hit by Pitch, Marlins’ Stanton Is Taken to Hospital - NYTimes.com

The Miami Marlins slugger Giancarlo Stanton was hit under the left eye by a fastball and was bleeding from the face as he was taken off the field in an ambulance during Thursday night’s game against the host Milwaukee Brewers. The Marlins said Stanton, the major league leader in runs batted in, was being treated at a hospital for a facial cut. He was also undergoing X-rays and a CT scan.

-Miami Marlins vs. Milwaukee Brewers - Recap - September 11, 2014 - ESPN

Yet the only topic anyone was talking about was the beaning of Miami Marlins star Giancarlo Stanton, hospitalized after getting hit by a fastball from Mike Fiers. Stanton sustained multiple facial fractures, dental damage and cuts that needed stitches after being struck in a 4-2 loss to the Brewers. Marlins manager Mike Redmond said Stanton, the major league RBI leader and a top candidate for the NL MVP award, likely was done for the season.

-Marlins' Stanton hit in face by pitch, suffers multiple fractures, dental damage - Sun Sentinel

The Miami Marlins’ pursuit of a playoff spot evaporated to more serious concerns about the well-being of their best player after Giancarlo Stanton was hit in the face by a pitch Thursday night at Miller Park. Stanton suffered a facial laceration requiring stitches, multiple facial fractures and dental damage. The Marlins’ star right fielder was taken off the field on an ambulance cart.

Please join the me &@Marlins family in sayn a few prayers for @Giancarlo818 tonight, #mvp#brother#GetWellGiancarlo

— Aj Ramos (@theajramos) September 12, 2014

UPDATE: Giancarlo suffered facial lacerations requiring stitches, multiple facial fractures & dental damage after being hit by a pitch.

— Miami Marlins (@Marlins) September 12, 2014

I don't blame the Marlins for being angry. I don't even blame the Brewers since Fiers didn't hit them on purpose. But the umps...awful.

— Adam Kuperstein (@AKuperstein) September 12, 2014

Redmond on Stanton injury: "We've lost our MVP." #marlins

— clarkspencer (@clarkspencer) September 12, 2014

Scary. Just scary. The Giancarlo moment that may define the 2014 Marlins season. pic.twitter.com/tnX8YhdPRP

— Tim Reynolds (@ByTimReynolds) September 12, 2014

Marlins play by play guy Rich Waltz signs off telecast by saying this is "one of the most devastating nights in Marlins history." #Stanton

— Scott Miller (@ScottMillerBbl) September 12, 2014

prayers for giancarlo, a terrific young man and player #marlins

— Jon Heyman (@JonHeymanCBS) September 12, 2014

Marlins announcer Tommy Hutton on umpires handling of Giancarlo Stanton getting drilled in the face with a pitch:"This is an absolute joke!"

— Adam Kuperstein (@AKuperstein) September 12, 2014

Good for the Marlins to defend their star player. Fiers is full of it.

— Will Manso (@WillManso) September 12, 2014

Stanton's injury comes one-year after #MarlinsJose Fernandez made his last start of '13, when he hit HR and benches cleared vs #Braves

— Joe Frisaro (@JoeFrisaro) September 12, 2014

Redmond on the Stanton play: "For the first-base ump to say he swung at that pitch, he's coughing up blood, what a joke."

— Tim Reynolds (@ByTimReynolds) September 12, 2014

Redmond said it "doesn't look good" as far as Stanton returning this season.

— clarkspencer (@clarkspencer) September 12, 2014

Quite a newsy Friday afternoon, it appears.

The Cincinnati Reds make a few announcements on Friday afternoon, all of which were concisely summed up in less than 140 characters:

Corcino starting tonight instead of Latos (bone bruise, right elbow). Schumaker has successful surgery (torn labrum, left shoulder).

— Cincinnati Reds (@Reds) September 12, 2014

There hasn't been any word on how long we can expect the Reds to be without Mat Latos, but with just three potentially scheduled starts remaining for him this season there's reason to think they might put him on the 2014 shelf for good.  Considering the trade winds that have been a-blowing, you can now officially wonder if you've seen Latos on the mound in a Cincinnati jersey for the last time.  Damnit, why did I write that.

However, given that the above tweet also contains evidence that the Reds used an injured player - Skip Schumaker - for much of the entire season, there's no way to really be certain of that.  Skip, you'll remember, injured his shoulder in Spring Training and missed the first month of the season, yet he still managed to garner 271 PA, a .235/.287/.308 batting line, and -1.1 bWAR to his name before being sent back under the knife.  Since they're still giving playing time to Jack Hannahan (who cannot healthily throw a baseball right now) and refuse to rule out Joey Votto's return in 2014, there's no real read in any direction on the injury front, frankly.

Either way, we wish each of the injured Reds well, and hope that the team makes sure they're 100% before putting them back on the field.

Daniel Corcino will get a chance to show his mettle as a starting pitcher in the big leagues for the first time in Latos' stead this evening against the Milwaukee Brewers, and for that we should be moderately excited.  Corcino, of course, was ranked by Baseball America as the 94th best prospect in the minors prior to the 2013 season before struggling through much of the last two seasons at Double-A Pensacola and Triple-A Louisville.  He's made a pair of appearances for the Reds since being called up this September (the last being September 5th, so he's fresh), and he's made 26 starts across two levels in the minors this season (tallying 148.2 innings in the process).  Here's to hoping his second half surge was no mirage and that the righty can be effective on very short notice.

2014 strikes again, folks.

via 30.media.tumblr.com

The aftermath of the game between the Miami Marlins and Milwaukee Brewers Thursday night extends beyond All-Star outfielder Giancarlo Stanton being hospitalized after suffering numerous injuries from a hit by pitch to the face. Major League Baseball announced on Friday a pair of punishments stemming from a bench-clearing incident shortly after Stanton was hit by the pitch.

Marlins pitcher Anthony DeSclafani was suspended three games and fined an undisclosed amount for intentionally throwing at Brewers outfielder Carlos Gomez in the bottom of the sixth inning on Thursday. Brewers pitcher Mike Fiers, who hit Stanton with a fastball to the face, was fined an undisclosed amount for his actions, which contributed to the benches clearing.

DeScalafani will appeal the suspension.

Stanton was hit in the fifth inning on Thursday, but was ruled to have swung at the pitch. After Stanton was carted off on a stretcher, pinch-hitter Reed Johnson inherited an 0-2 count, then was hit on the hand by the first pitch from Fiers. But Johnson was ruled to have swung as well, completing the strikeout.

The Marlins bench, most notably Casey McGehee, was upset after seeing two players hit with only an out to show for it, and began yelling from the dugout. Fiers yelled right back, and both benches emptied, though nothing much happened after that.

Both benches were warned by the umpires. One inning later, DeSclafani was ejected after hitting Gomez

"We had a guy hit in the mouth. We had a guy hit in the hand," Marlins manager Mike Redmond said after the game. "Then Gomez gets hit and our guy gets thrown out."

Mike Fiers received an undisclosed fine for his role in the benches clearing in Thursday night's Brewers-Marlins game. Anthony DeSclafani received a three-game suspension and is appealing. Casey McGehee and Garrett Jones received no punishment.

MLB just announced the fines and suspensions from Thursday night's game. Adam McCalvy has the details on both of the punishments:

MLB announces an undisclosed fine for Mike Fiers "for his actions which contributed to the benches clearing" last night.

— Adam McCalvy (@AdamMcCalvy) September 12, 2014

In addition, Marlins P DeSclafani suspended three games for throwing at Carlos Gomez.

— Adam McCalvy (@AdamMcCalvy) September 12, 2014

The punishments are a little bizarre considering what happened in the game. Mike Fiers receiving a fine is the strangest one. He did hit Reed Johnson with a hit following the one to Giancarlo Stanton, and was visibly angry afterwards at the Marlins' reaction. However, it was clear he was rattled after hitting Stanton, and he wasn't the main instigator in the fight. We don't know what the amount he was fined was, so maybe it's just a token amount.

Only one suspension was handed out in the fight, and that went to Marlins reliever Anthony DeSclafani. He received a three-game suspension for hitting Carlos Gomez with a pitch in the sixth inning. DeSclafani was ejected after hitting Gomez, though it also looked like there was no intention behind his pitch. Andrew Gruman adds on Twitter that the suspension happened because a warning was in place at the time. DeSclafani plans to appeal the suspension.

The most surprising part of this is actually not the punishments that were handed out, but the ones that weren't made. Both Casey McGehee and Garrett Jones, two of the main perpetrators in the fight, received no punishment for their roles. Casey McGehee was ejected from the game and was visibly angry after Reed Johnson was hit by the pitch, and had to be restrained by some of the Marlins players. Meanwhile, Garrett Jones was seen on video bumping an umpire as the benches cleared, and contact with an umpire is normally an automatic suspension. Since Mike Fiers got a fine, it would have made sense for those two to at least get fined as well for their role in the fight, if not more.

Meanwhile, on a more positive note, Giancarlo Stanton is doing much better today and is expected to be discharged from the hospital and return to Miami. Surgery is not expected, though the medical staff in Miami will further evaluate Stanton when he returns. He will probably miss the rest of the season as he recovers.

Major League Baseball suspended Anthony DeSclafani for three games on Friday afternoon after he hit Carlos Gomez in with a warning in effect on Thursday night. DeSclafani is appealing the suspension.

Anthony DeSclafani may or may not have intentionally hit Carlos Gomez on the elbow on Thursday night after both Giancarlo Stanton and Reed Johnson were hit by Mike Fiers. Regardless, Major League Baseball is taking action.

According to FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal, Major League Baseball has suspended DeSclafani for three games as a result of hitting Gomez. DeSclafani is appealing the suspension.

MLB suspends #Marlins’ DeSclafani for three games for intentionally hitting #Brewers’ Gomez with warning in effect.

— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) September 12, 2014

#Marlins’ DeSclafani is appealing his suspension.

— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) September 12, 2014

In terms of the roster, DeSclafani served as the long relief option out of the bullpen. He has posted a 7.14 ERA and 4.12 FIP in 29 innings with the Marlins in 2014, and could be a candidate to be slotted into the rotation moving forward.

After Nathan Eovaldi struggled and Stanton and Johnson were both hit, DeSclafani was called upon to settle things down. Instead, after getting ahead of Gomez, he hit him on the elbow after missing on a pitch that was intended to be on the inside corner.

Fox Sports Florida announcers Rich Waltz and Tommy Hutton did not believe DeSclafani intentionally hit Gomez, but rather that he truly missed on a pitch inside. With the warning in effect, DeSclafani and acting manager Rob Leary were both ejected. The umpires made the decision to eject DeSclafani-a pitcher who hits a batter with a warning in effect is not automatically tossed.

While there was not necessarily clear intent initially, Major League Baseball may have considered the context of the game and postgame comments when deciding how to handle the DeSclafani situation. Marlins pitching prospect Justin Nicolino tweeted he was "proud" of DeSclafani's actions after watching the series of events in Milwaukee on Thursday night.

DeSclafani was not likely throwing at Gomez, but Major League Baseball felt differently.

After reporting the DeSclafani news, Rosenthal also noted that Mike Fiers, who was not ejected after hitting both Stanton and Johnson and speaking aggressively to the Marlins' dugout, will be fined.

#Brewers’ Fiers fined an undisclosed amount for "his actions, which contributed to the bench clearing."

— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) September 12, 2014

Reds lose in walk off style to open the series at Milwaukee

The Joe Nuxhall Memorial Honorary Star of the Game

With Mat Latos being a late scratch due to injury, tonight was Daniel Corcino’s first ever MLB start, and he rose to the occasion in fine fashion.He pitched six innings, allowing two earned runs on just two hits, one walk and four strikeouts.He even added his first career hit, a single in his first ever major league at bat, to the cause.Congratulations, Daniel.

Honorable mentions are due to Kristopher Negron for his first inning home run and eighth inning double, and to Zack Cozart for reaching base three times on a hit and two walks.  Also a tip of the hat is also due to Logan Ondrusek for striking out three Brewers after a Jay Bruce misplay put Ryan Braun on second base to lead off the seventh inning.

Key Plays

• The Reds wasted no time getting the scoring started.In the top of the first inning, after a quick out by Billy Hamilton, Kristopher Negron hit his fifth season/career home run to dead center field to give the Reds an early 1-0 lead.

• Daniel Corcino did an excellent job keeping the Brewers off the basepaths the first time through the lineup.In the fourth inning, however, leadoff batter Carlos Gomez reached on third strike that got past Brayan Pena and advanced to second on Pena’s throwing error on the same play.He later scored on Jonathan Lucroy’s RBI single, the first hit Corcino allowed in the game.Lucroy then advanced on a wild pitch, and scored on Ryan Braun’s RBI single.Brewers lead 2-1.

• The game remained a pitcher’s duel until the top of the seventh, when Jay Bruce led off with a single and Brandon Phillips followed with a walk.After both runners advanced on a Chris Heisey fly ball to deep center, Pena hit a sacrifice fly to right field to score Bruce to tie the game at 2-2.

• In the bottom of the ninth with Jumbo Diaz pitching, Billy Hamilton came within inches of making an incredible catch.Instead, Lucroy led the inning off with a double to center.Lucroy advanced to third on a groundout by Aramis Ramirez, and after intentional walks to Braun and Gerardo Parra, Lyle Overbay singled to score Lucroy and give the Breweres a walk-off 3-2 win.
  

Fangraph:

Source: FanGraphs

Other Notes:

• Per John Fay, with his steal of second base in the first inning, Todd Frazier became the third Reds third baseman to hit 20 home runs and steal 20 bases in the same season.He follows Aaron Boone who did it in 2002, and Chris Sabo who did it in 1990.

• Tonight’s game was the first time the Reds faced Jonathan Broxton since 2010.

• Jack Hannahan was ejected from the game for arguing balls and strikes after his pinch hit at bat in the top of the ninth inning.Not that it mattered.

• Pitching wins don't matter and all that, but the Reds bullpen still has not earned a win since the All Star Break.  That was kind of a long time ago.
• TUNE

MLB news from the past week.

Giancarlo Stanton hit in the face; benches clear in Milwaukee

Thursday's game in Milwaukee featured a scary sight. Giancarlo Stanton took a fastball in the face under the left eye in the fifth inning from Mike Fiers. Stanton required stitches for his facial lacerations, but may not require surgery. Losing Stanton hurts the Marlins' already slim playoff chances; he's played in every game and was putting up an MVP-caliber year. Fiers stayed in the game and pinch-hitter Reed Johnson (since Stanton was ruled to have swung at the pitch that hit him) was hit on the hand, and he too was ruled to have swung. The situation degenerated into a benches-clearing fracas with Casey McGehee and Mike Redmond losing their cool with the umpires and getting ejected (video here). In the sixth inning, Anthony DeSclafani plunked Carlos Gomez and was immediately ejected and subsequently fined and suspended; he plans to appeal. Initially, one might say it was retaliation, but Buster Olney and others on Twitter say the pitcher's actions suggest otherwise.

Watch Desclafani in last night's game: http://t.co/pBiVfRbory Nothing he or teammates did suggests the HBP of Gomez was intentional.

— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) September 12, 2014

Fish Stripes posted numerous reactions to the incident.

If that wasn't bad enough, Chase Headley also got hit in the face against the Rays.

Jeff Wilpon faces lawsuit from former Mets employee

The suit alleges that COO Wilpon fired the team's head of marketing for being pregnant outside of marriage. Leigh Castergine, the plaintiff, says Wilpon was "morally opposed" to her being a single mother; she was terminated after reporting Wilpon's behavior to HR. The WSJ elaborates further.

Link to lawsuit here.

Cuban slugger Yasmany Tomas closer to MLB eligibility

Tomas is 6'4", 240 pounds and has all the power in the world, as the video in the link will show, but is prone to big swings and misses. He is known as a high-risk, high-reward player and has been unblocked by the U.S. Department of Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control. A showcase is expected late next week.

Dodgers throw the ball all over the place

When was the last time you saw something like this, especially from the Dodgers? Naturally, Yasiel Puig is the center of it all.

Chris Davis suspended for amphetamine use

Davis tested positive for Adderall, the stimulant that got teammate Troy Patton suspended. Adderall is used to treat symptoms of ADD, but Davis didn't have a Therapeutic Use Exemption like other major-leaguers did. He will miss the rest of the season and any playoff games.

Today's lessons include more from Thursday's Marlins-Brewers game as well as notes from a winning weekend.

This Weekend's Results

Brewers 3, Reds 2

Kyle Lohse allowed an early home run, but settled down after it to pitch 6 2/3 innings and allowed only two runs on five hits. The Brewers took a 2-1 lead in fourth thanks to RBI singles from Jonathan Lucroy and Ryan Braun. However, the Reds tied it in the seventh and the tie held until the ninth. In the bottom of the ninth, Jonathan Lucroy doubled to start the inning, and advanced to third on an Aramis Ramirez groundout. The Reds then decided to intentionally walk back-to-back hitters, bringing up Lyle Overbay. He sent a base hit into the outfield to give the Brewers a walkoff victory.

Reds 5, Brewers 1

The Pirates had lost earlier in the day and the Brewers were facing an inexperienced MLB pitcher. It seemed like a perfect opportunity to gain some ground in the wild card race. Instead, the Brewers couldn't take advantage. They managed only one run in the game on an Aramis Ramirez home run. Yovani Gallardo pitched six strong innings to keep the Brewers in the game, but Zach Duke allowed two runs and Jimmy Nelson allowed another as the Reds pulled away and won.

Brewers 9, Reds 2

A strong performance by the offense helped keep the Brewers on track yesterday. They took the lead in the second on a Carlos Gomez sacrifice fly, extended it to 3-0 on an RBI single from Jonathan Lucroy, and then blew it wide open with a five-run seventh, led by Matt Clark's third home run in three starts. Matt Garza pitched six innings and allowed only one run to keep the Reds in check and get the Brewers the win.

On Friday, we looked back at everything that happened in Thursday's Marlins-Brewers game.

Following the Marlins-Brewers game on Thursday of last week, there was a lot to talk about and sort through. We covered much of that on Friday, if you missed it. Here's a quick recap of what was discussed.

• On Friday morning, we released a compilation of videos from Thursday's Marlins-Brewers broadcast. This included the pitch that hit Giancarlo Stanton in the face, the benches clearing (along with some questionable broadcasting from the Marlins booth), and reactions following the game from players & coaches.
• During and after the game on Thursday, Jon Heyman on Twitter made several comments about Mike Fiers, as well as responded to several people about what happened. Derek put these tweets together in one post and asked if what Heyman was saying was really appropriate.
• Friday afternoon, MLB announced the punishments they were handing out as a result of Thursday's game. Mike Fiers received an undisclosed fine, and Marlins pitcher Anthony DeSclafani was suspended three games. Missing from the list were Casey McGehee and Garrett Jones, who both had bigger roles in the benches clearing but received no fine or suspension.

In addition, here are a few highlights from other media sources:

• Enrique Bakemeyer of The Brewers Bar asked what MLB can do to better protect players, and if the additional measures would be worth it.
• David Brown of Big League Stew mentioned that Mike Fiers postgame interview and apology is a must-see, and wonders if this incident will hurt Fiers' career.

Cram Session

More from BCB

• There's only twelve more games in the regular season for the Brewers. Fred says that you should enjoy it while it's here, since any baseball is better than no baseball.

Other Notes

• On Disciples of Uecker, Nicholas Zettel has a quick look at the last two weeks of the season in the division race.
• Is Francisco Rodriguez worse in non-save situations? Bill Berg of Reviewing the Brew looked at the stats behind Rodriguez in both save and non-save situations.
• Paul Swydan of FanGraphs looked at some of the less obvious NL MVP candidates that could make their case with a hot finish, which includes Carlos Gomez.
• Over on MLB Daily Dish, Jasper Scherer has a breakdown of the 10 best MLB contracts, which includes two Brewers.
• Saturday's Brewers game was delayed 15 minutes as the Brewers tested new security measures for implementation in the postseason & full-time next year. Mark Townsend of Big League Stew looked at what happened on Saturday evening and what other teams can learn.

Minor League Notes

• Brad Krause of Miller Park Prospects reviewed the 2014 DSL Brewers season.
• Over on Reviewing the Brew, Michael Trzinski continued their series of the top farm teams in Brewers history with the 1991 El Paso Diablos.

Division Update

• Rockies @ Cardinals
  Friday:Cardinals 5, Rockies 1
  Saturday:Cardinals 5, Rockies 4
  Sunday:Cardinals 4, Rockies 1
• Cubs @ Pirates
  Friday:Pirates 7, Cubs 3
  Saturday:Cubs 6, Pirates 4
  Sunday:Pirates 7, Cubs 3

Today's Division Games

• Reds (Alfredo Simon) @ Cubs (Travis Wood) - 7:05 pm
• Cardinals and Pirates have the day off.

Today's Action

After playing seventeen in a row, the Brewers have a day off today. They begin a nine-game road trip tomorrow, starting off with a critical series in St. Louis.