Recently traded Brewers face former team amid strong start with Kansas City

Ángel Zerpa's tenure with the Milwaukee Brewers is off to a strong start, as he's fired off three scoreless innings in the team's first six games following one of the more dominant reliever runs in World Baseball Classic history.

That's not to say that the Kansas City Royals are feeling any buyer's remorse, though. Both Isaac Collins and Nick Mears are off to strong starts in their new home, with the latter looking particularly filthy out of the bullpen.

As the schedule-making gods would have it, the Brewers will get to face both old friends this weekend during their first road series of the season.

Brewers gearing up for weekend clash with old friends Isaac Collins, Nick Mears

Few teams in baseball are off to as hot of a start as the Brewers, whose +28 run differential through six games leads the league. That being said, the Royals figure to be a step up in competition from facing the Chicago White Sox and Tampa Bay Rays, especially because the Crew will have to travel to the hostile environment of Kauffman Stadium.

Collins has been one of the Royals' most consistent contributors through the early going, hitting .200/.368/.467, good for a 145 wRC+. The best parts of his game remain the same (i.e., elite plate discipline), but he's also making much firmer contact this year, courtesy of a ridiculous 30% barrel rate. He's also swinging harder than ever before, hence why his overall numbers look so good despite a batting average hovering at the Mendoza Line.

A fun fact about the Royals heading into this series: Collins ranks third amongst regulars in OPS (.835). The leaders, Jac Caglianone (.844) and Kyle Isbel (1.333), sandwich him at the bottom of the lineup. Brewers pitchers should be wary of the 7-8-9 hitters this weekend, which historically has been a reprieve during the Bobby Witt Jr. era.

As for the pitching staff, Mears looks like a true weapon out of the bullpen, though small samples with relievers are notoriously fickle. He's struck out three batters and walked none across his two appearances (covering one inning each), and only one batter has managed to make contact off him and keep it off the ground. A high-strikeout, groundball-heavy pitcher is the perfect recipe for a dominant relief season, but the Brewers' scorching-hot lineup may cool Mears down.

Expect to see the right-hander at least once during the series; he's quickly earned the trust of manager Matt Quatraro and has only made one appearance since Tuesday.