CLEVELAND -- For most of June, Willy Adames has been stuck in neutral.

From June 7 (the day he returned from the concussion list after being struck in the head by a liner) to the start of Friday’s game, Adames tallied an unsightly .196 (10-for-51) batting average. Only one ball he hit left the yard (in his debut). He had five multi-strikeout games and only two multi-hit games.

He just needed one swing Friday to make all that a distant memory, as Adames broke open the Brewers’ 7-1 win over the Guardians with a three-run home run in the fifth inning off Guardians ace Shane Bieber.

“That was a huge night, obviously. It’s just a big night for your confidence more than anything,” Brewers manager Craig Counsell said. “It’s a great start to the road trip for him and great for your confidence.”

Along with the home run going 423 feet (his second-longest home run of the year), it had an exit velocity of 109.2 (his second hardest-hit ball this season).

But he wasn’t done.

Three innings later, Adames went yard again, this time by taking a fastball from Xzavion Curry 397 feet to right-center field for his second home run of the game. The home run gave Adames the third multi-homer game of his career, and his first since May 5, 2022. It also marked his first four-hit game of the season, which ties his career high.

Adames said the big night came down to him staying disciplined at the plate and in control of his body, two parts of his game that he felt he’s lost during his slump.

“[Tonight] was amazing,” Adames said. “I had a really good feeling at the plate.”

Adames’ first home run set the tone for what became a five-run inning off Bieber and reliever Tim Herrin. After Adames' homer chased Bieber, pinch-hitter Blake Perkins reached on a single off Herrin and advanced to second when Herrin nailed Luis Urías with a 95 mph fastball.

The duo came in to score on RBI singles from Joey Weimer and Christian Yelich to close out the Brewers’ first five-run inning since June 3rd.

“It’s great for the momentum, and it’s great to have that in the first game of a long road trip,” Adames said. “We put up some runs and had some good at-bats, so hopefully we can carry that into the rest of the trip.”

Adames opened the scoring in the first inning with an RBI single, and added a double in the seventh inning to finish a single shy of the cycle. It was Adames’ first multi-RBI game since May 24, and his first three-hit game since the end of April.

"You hear what I say about our guys where as cold as they get, [they'll get as hot],” Guardians manager Terry Francona said of Adames. “That's the last thing you want to see is someone get hot the first day in. We’ve got to keep an eye on him now."

Two years after he authored a no-hitter at Progressive Field, starter Wade Miley put together another gem on the mound by scattering three hits over six scoreless innings. His outing could have gone longer, but he was removed for precautionary reasons after he felt some cramping after he threw his last pitch of the sixth inning.

While the no-hit drama ended early (he allowed a single to Amed Rosario in the first inning), the 36-year-old still spent most of the night perplexing Cleveland hitters with his cutter and fastball, with 13 of his 14 called strikes coming on those two pitches. 

Miley also broke out a new-look sinker that was inspired by LSU’s Paul Skenes, the No. 2 prospect in this year’s MLB Draft. After only throwing the pitch eight times all season coming into the start, Miley threw it four times against the Guardians and was able to generate one called strike and one whiff.

“Shoutout to [Skenes],” Miley said with a smile.

The Guardians’ best chance against Miley came in the second inning when Josh Naylor led the inning off and advanced to third with one out, but Miley was able to escape the jam unscathed. After missing a month due to a lat strain, Miley has now authored two straight scoreless starts where he’s combined to allow seven total baserunners over 11 innings.

“Any time you go out and throw zeros and give your team a chance to win is good,” he said.