Domingo Santana clubbed two home runs to lead the Milwaukee Brewers to a 7-2 win over the Washington Nationals at Miller Park on Sunday.
Left-hander Brent Suter pitched three shutout innings and was followed out of the bullpen by Jeremy Jeffress, Jacob Barnes, Anthony Swarzak and Junior Guerra as the Brewers grabbed 3 of 4 in the series and finished their home stand with a 4-2 record.
Washington didn’t score until the ninth inning when Ryan Zimmerman clubbed a two-out, two-run homer off of Guerra.
Suter and company filled in for Matt Garza, who was passed over for his start on Sunday.
Santana’s home runs came in the second and fourth innings and gives him a career high 24. He hit just 11 last season. The Brewers now have 195 home runs for the season, surpassing last season’s total for eighth-most in franchise history.
The Brewers moved a game closer to the division leading Cubs, now 3 1/2 games back. But even more important, the Brewers are just a half-game behind Colorado for the 2nd and final National League wild card spot.
The Brewers now open a 3-game series in Cincinnati against the Reds this afternoon (12:10). Chase Anderson (8-3, 2.96) pitches for the Brewers. Homer Bailey (4-7, 7.51) gets the call for the Reds.