Hunter Brown allowed seven hits and five runs – four earned – with seven strikeouts and zero walks across five innings in a no-decision against the Phillies on Wednesday.
This was a frustrating start by Brown. As far as the first three earned runs he gave up, they all came in the third inning and it was a lot of timely hitting and well-placed knocks by the Phillies with an error mixed in by right fielder Cam Smith. Then, Trea Turner took him deep in the fifth. That was his last frame and reliever Bryan King immediately blew the game in the sixth after Brown left with a lead. Regardless, he struggled to command his breaking balls consistently as has been a trend lately. Turner’s home run came on a hanging slider as did an RBI single from Luis Arraez. That’s been a huge hindrance in Brown trying to find his groove over the last month and will likely keep less reliable than we’d hope start-by-start to close the season. Next up, he’s scheduled for a two-start week against the Royals and Braves with both coming at home.
