Crew can't get going at home against Nats

MILWAUKEE -- The noise reverberated through American Family Field when Willy Adames grounded out to end the sixth inning and smashed his helmet in the dirt.

After a terrific road trip, the Brewers returned home with a thud.

Avisaíl García padded his team lead with home run No. 24 to finally chase Nationals left-hander Patrick Corbin, but the Brewers did little else against a slumping pitcher in a 4-1 loss on Friday night in which they mustered three hits.

“Tip your cap to Corbin,” said Brewers starter Brett Anderson, who lamented one misplaced changeup but otherwise was a ground-ball machine while pitching into the sixth inning. “He pitched phenomenally. He pitched like the All-Star he has been in the past.

“You knew kind of coming into the day it was going to be a little tough. It was such a long road trip, we played so well, and then getting in late a little bit last night, it was going to be a grind today. And that's kind of how it played out.”

That 8-2 road trip was followed by Milwaukee’s third consecutive home loss, resurfacing a nagging question for much of this season: Why are the Brewers so much better on the road than at home? Traditionally, it’s been the opposite, but this club owns a Major League-best 42-21 road record compared to a relatively pedestrian 32-28 at home.

Entering the homestand, the Brewers’ batting average was 20 points better on the road and their OPS was 61 points better.

It’s one of those statistical questions that manager Craig Counsell calls “fun with numbers,” since home-road splits tend to waffle from season to season. Reliever Devin Williams is the only one who has come up with a theory so far; he was asked about it Saturday night in St. Louis after the Brewers came from behind to beat the Cardinals.

"We got a bunch of guys that embrace the boos they hear on the road,” Williams said. “It doesn't faze us, obviously."

Now, if only they get going at home. Coming into this weekend, the Brewers have an 8-9-2 series record at American Family Field.

“It's just one of those weird anomalies,” Anderson said. “We play so well on the road, but don't seem to play as well at home, or have those consistent games where all three facets click. But we're still a good ballclub.”

Anderson clicked for most of his start, but he’d take a mulligan on one pitch. With two outs and two aboard in the fourth inning, Anderson threw a changeup away to Washington left fielder Lane Thomas that was supposed to be down. It was up, and Thomas punched it to right field for a two-run triple.

The start of that inning was delayed by, of all things, a monologue from late-night talk show host Stephen Colbert. He took the field with a microphone to complete his apology tour for a bit about Milwaukee that aired last year. It landed flat for Anderson and the players who stood around waiting to resume play.

“Along with [Brent] Suter, we're probably the two wrong guys to have on the mound in that situation just because of the pace I like to work,” said Anderson, who wasn’t making excuses. “Stuff like that happens. If you pitch in the playoffs or pitch in big games, you're going to have ceremonies like that so you just have to take it in stride.”

As for the offense, a three-hit showing was all the more frustrating given Corbin’s recent struggles. He entered the series opener 0-5 with a 7.83 ERA and a .301 opponents’ average over his previous six starts, all Nationals losses, and was charged with at least four earned runs in all of them. Against the Brewers, Corbin pitched 6 1/3 innings and allowed one run on three hits with no walks and seven strikeouts.

Milwaukee finally got to him in the seventh after Eduardo Escobar opened the inning with an 11-pitch battle that included one near home run and several other near hits, all of which hooked foul down the left-field line before Escobar finally flied out to center field.

The next batter was García, who pummeled a first-pitch sinker to the second deck in right field for his fourth home run in six games.

“I think compared to when we faced him in May in Washington, the velocity is significantly up,” Counsell said. “His velocity’s kind of been trending up, but the first inning was 94-95 [mph], some 96s.”