Milwaukee Brewers: Where does the second Wild Card race stand now?

The good news? The Milwaukee Brewers won on Friday night. The bad news? So did the Colorado Rockies. The Brewers are still two games out of the second Wild Card. Where does the race stand now?

The Colorado Rockies will do no worse than tie for the Wild Card at this point. The Milwaukee Brewers elimination number stands at one for the second Wild Card with two games remaining. The Brew Crew can’t lose another game and the Rockies can’t win another game. If either situation occurs, the Brewers playoff hopes are over.

What’s on tap for Saturday?

The Milwaukee Brewers face off again with the St. Louis Cardinals. Junior Guerra is scheduled to start for the Brew Crew, and Luke Weaver will take the mound for the Cardinals. The Brewers Opening Day starter, Guerra will make his first start since July 29th. This could very well end up as another ‘bullpen game’ for the Brewers, as Guerra hasn’t thrown more than an inning in any appearance since his return on September 3rd.

Weaver enters this game with a 3.23 in 55 2/3 innings of work at the Major League level. He is coming off his worst start of the season in his last outing. The Chicago Cubs battered Weaver for eight runs on seven hits and two walks in three innings of work.

As for the Rockies, they get to face off against Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw in Coors Field. It’s unlikely that Kershaw will work very deep into this game. This is viewed as his final tune up for the playoffs, and the Dodgers are expected to limit him to three or four innings.

German Marquez gets the start for the Rockies and he hasn’t been good in Coors Field or in September. Marquez owns a 5.47 ERA with a 1-2 record in five September starts. He’s made 12 starts in Coors Field this year and owns a 4.60 ERA in 74 1/3 innings. He’s been tagged for 24 homers on the season with 14 occurring at home.

Next: How did Craig Counsell come to manage the Brewers?

The Milwaukee Brewers face an uphill battle to manage a tie for the second Wild Card, but they are still mathematically in the race. Another win in St. Louis and a Rockies loss to the Dodgers, and Sunday gets a lot more interesting.