Here’s a bit of free advice for Major League pitchers: don’t walk the batter in front of Domonic Brown right now, even when it’s Ryan Howard.
Mike Fiers learned the hard way on Sunday. After surrendering a two-out double to Jimmy Rollins then putting Howard on in the first inning, the right-hander fell behind to Brown, who made him pay. Dom Bomb.
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Anything that travels that far ought to have a stewardess on it, don’t you think?
John Mayberry, Erik Kratz, and Freddy Galvis would combine to tack on two more for a five-run first. Howard picked up an RBI on a sac fly in the second, followed by a Brown triple to give the slugger four for the day. Fiers was pulled after 1.2 innings in what wound up being the shortest start of his career.
Brown now has eight home runs over the Phillies’ last nine games, propelling him into sole possession first place in the National League with 16. He’s also fifth with 40 RBI, and sixth with a .574 slugging percentage. His batting average is on the rise as well, up to .282.
As for the game, the Phils held on to beat Milwaukee 7-5, with Cliff Lee earning his seventh win of the season, but it’s sort of an afterthought when they drop two of three to the Brewers. At least Dom is keeping things interesting.