Crew's freshman phenoms making it look easy

CHICAGO -- The Brewers weathered the elements at Wrigley Field. Now it’s time for Freddy and The Freshmen to get things going under the dome at home.

Freddy Peralta gets his first career start in a home opener and the Brewers get to introduce fans to rookies Brice Turang and Joey Wiemer along with 2022 holdover Garrett Mitchell when Milwaukee hosts the Mets on Monday afternoon at American Family Field. They’ll begin the day with a winning record thanks to a 9-5 win over the Cubs at Wrigley Field on Sunday in which the Brewers tallied 13 hits and scored in five of the first seven innings.

“If we do that,” said veteran newcomer Jesse Winker, who had two hits, a walk, a run scored and three RBIs, “I think we’re going to be pretty successful.”

They’ll be successful if they keep getting contributions from Mitchell, Turang and Wiemer, three members of what the Brewers dubbed “The Freshmen” in their docuseries chronicling the club’s top prospects. In Sunday’s series finale, Mitchell delivered a pair of run-scoring hits, including a go-ahead triple. Turang reached safely all four times up, scored twice, delivered a run-scoring double for his first career RBI and put the finishing touches on a weekend of elite defense. And Wiemer’s hustle highlighted the five-run sixth-inning rally in which the Brewers’ ability to make contact and take extra bases broke the game wide open.

“Those things, collectively, they start to add up,” manager Craig Counsell said. “They get you an extra out somewhere, they put you in a better position with runners on the bases, they make the pitcher have a little more pressure.

“That’s where speed shows up. It’s something that we just haven’t had: group team speed. We have a number of players who run really well and it made a big difference in the game today.”

Some of those moments were obvious, like Wiemer and Turang sprinting into foul ground and nearly colliding to help starter Eric Lauer get out of trouble in the second inning. Wiemer made the catch, nearly taking Turang’s head off in the process.

And some contributions were more subtle, like Turang ranging to his left on Yan Gomes’ groundout to start that second inning, or covering second base and snaring Willy Adames’ tricky backhand flip to snuff out a Cubs rally in the eighth -- difficult plays made to look easy. And Wiemer’s nicely executed baserunning in the Brewers’ big sixth, when, with Turang at third and Wiemer at second after they both advanced on a wild pitch that barely squirted away from the catcher, Wiemer perfectly read Winker’s two-run single to the gap in left-center and took off so fast that he nearly caught up to Turang scoring from third.

“So much talent,” said Winker, who added a nod to Gus Varland after the rookie right-hander finished the Cubs in the ninth inning. “All four of those guys add great elements to our team. They play extremely hard. They play right. It’s so much fun to watch. It injects energy to the team.”

Said Lauer: “You love to see when young guys come up and they work hard, they grind. That’s what they need until they show what they’ve got. Just play hard, that’s all we ask. They’re doing it to an extreme extent.”

With right-hander Carlos Carrasco scheduled to start Monday for the Mets, there’s a chance all of those young prospects will be in the lineup once again behind Peralta, who has known since January that he’s starting the Brewers’ home opener.

“Of course I was excited because I love to pitch in our stadium. Always,” said Peralta, who's has been nearly a run better at home (3.34 ERA) than on the road (4.37 ERA). “It’s my favorite one. I know the hitters feel comfortable hitting there because the ball can fly out, but I don’t know, I just feel comfortable there.”

“I think Freddy is great in these situations,” Counsell said. “This is a great reward for him.”

Monday begins a long stretch of fair-weather games for the Brewers, who host the Mets and Cardinals on the opening homestand at domed, climate-controlled American Family Field. Then the first long road trip takes them to Arizona (dome), San Diego and Seattle (dome).

The Brewers hope their rookies stay hot.

“Everyone here is trying to win and they’re going to be a huge part of it,” Winker said.