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Brewers bash their way past Lilly, Cubs

Jun 6, 2007 - 5:20 AM MILWAUKEE (Ticker) -- Prince Fielder did not homer for the sixth time in nine games, but plenty of his teammates did.

Fielder drove in a run and scored another and the Milwaukee Brewers clubbed three homers off Chicago Cubs starter Ted Lilly en route to a 7-5 victory.

Rookie third baseman Ryan Braun had three hits - including a solo homer - and drove in a pair in support of right-hander Claudio Vargas (4-1), who held the Cubs down just long enough to earn his first win since May 4.

"I've been getting some good pitches and have been missing them, I'm happy I finally centered on one and could contribute," Braun said.

Fielder, who currently leads the National League with 20 homers, got the Brewers on the board in the first with a sacrifice fly.

The philosophy is simple according to Fielder.

"You always want to get runs in when you have the opportunity," Fielder said. "We're swinging the bat well, hopefully we can keep it up."

The Brewers have been one of the most reliant teams in the major leagues on home runs. The Brewers have scored 43.4 percent (115-of-265) of their runs via the home run and Tuesday was no different.

The homer show began in the second frame when much-maligned second baseman Tony Graffanino clubbed a solo blast to deep left. Graffanino began the year in a largely ineffective third base platoon with fellow light-hitting middle infielder Craig Counsell before losing the job to Braun.

"He's (Graffanino) been in here hitting early every single day and the home run was a nice, easy swing. Graf (is) getting back in the groove a little bit," Brewers manager Ned Yost said.

Graffanino was batting just .199 when he took Lilly (4-4) out of the ballpark. Leadoff hitter Corey Hart homered off Lilly two batters later to push Milwaukee's advantage to 3-0.

The Brewers added two more runs in the following frame when Kevin Mench's two-out double brought Fielder in from second and Damian Miller followed with an RBI single.

Lilly turned in a 1-2-3 fourth inning before Braun led off the fifth with his homer. Chicago's lefthander lasted just three more outs before being replaced in the sixth by lefthander Scott Eyre.

Lilly yielded six runs and eight hits in five frames. It was his third poor outing in a row after beginning the season by yielding three runs or less in eight out of nine starts.

"His command has not been as good as it had been," said Cubs bench coach Alan Trammell, who is subbing for suspended manager Lou Piniella. "He's getting behind in counts and it's hard to be successful when you're doing that."

Over his last three starts, Lilly, who signed a four-year, $40 million deal with the Cubs in the offseason, is 0-2 with an 8.82 ERA.

Chicago scored a run in the fourth on an RBI double by Cliff Floyd and added two more in the sixth on Floyd's third homer of the season and Ryan Theriot's RBI double, which chased Vargas.

"We've been putting rallies together toward the end of games and that's a great trait for a team to have," Theriot said.

Milwaukee's night got a little bit sticky in the eighth when righthander Derrick Turnbow allowed a pair of runs to pull the Cubs within 7-5, but closer Francisco Cordero came on with runners at the corners and two outs and struck out All-Star Alfonso Soriano to end the threat.

"It feels great, just an unbelievable feeling that no one can describe right now," Cordero said.

Cordero tacked on his league-leading 22nd save with a scoreless ninth inning.