The Milwaukee Brewers got a vintage performance from Freddy Peralta on Friday night, as the ace carved through the Toronto Blue Jays lineup in a 7-2 victory. In doing so, Peralta reached a milestone no Brewers pitcher had accomplished since 2017.
Peralta improved to 16-5, becoming the first Milwaukee starter to record 16 or more victories in a season since Zach Davies’ 17-win campaign eight years ago. The right-hander tossed six shutout innings, striking out eight while allowing only one hit, a two-out double to Alejandro Kirk in the second inning.
He walked just one batter and hit another, extending his streak to four consecutive scoreless starts dating back to August 5 against Atlanta. Over those outings, Peralta has been nearly untouchable, lowering his season ERA to 2.58, second-best in the National League behind Pittsburgh’s Paul Skenes.
The third inning tested Peralta, as he hit George Springer and walked Addison Barger, but he escaped the threat by striking out Vladimir Guerrero Jr. With his pitch count at 60 through three frames, Peralta recalibrated, needing only 20 pitches combined to retire the side in order in both the fourth and fifth. He closed his night with a perfect sixth, finishing at 95 pitches.
Peralta’s victory kept him at the top of the majors in wins and closed the book on an impressive August in which he went 4-0 with a 0.32 ERA across five starts, helping the Brewers post a 20-8 record during the month. Friday’s win improved the Brewers to 84-52, the best mark in the National League, while also giving them a league-leading 39-28 road record.
The game itself was a pitchers’ duel through five innings, with Toronto’s Shane Bieber nearly matching Peralta. Bieber struck out six without a walk, allowing only three hits before the sixth. But after throwing 92 pitches, he was lifted following Andruw Monasterio’s leadoff home run, his fourth of the season, which led a decisive five-run frame for the Brewers.
Brice Turang followed with a single to extend his hit streak to 12 games, and Andrew Vaughn delivered an RBI single against reliever Brendon Little. Caleb Durbin added another run-scoring single before Isaac Collins broke the game open with a two-run double into the right-field corner. Milwaukee batted around in the inning, seizing a 5-0 lead.
The Brewers added two more in the seventh when Turang singled, William Contreras doubled, and Yelich plated one run on a groundout before Vaughn notched his third hit of the night, an RBI single.
The Blue Jays' only offense came in the bottom half of that inning when Aaron Ashby allowed a single to Bo Bichette and hit Daulton Varsho on the hand with a 97 mph fastball. X-rays later showed no fracture, though Varsho exited the game. Davis Schneider cut into the deficit with a two-run single, but a double play ended the rally.
From there, Milwaukee’s bullpen closed the door. Shelby Miller and Abner Uribe combined for two scoreless innings, locking in the Brewers’ 84th win of the season.
