Counsell's Brewers hope to win set with Dodgers

(SportsNetwork.com) - The Milwaukee Brewers will try to win their second straight series on Thursday afternoon as they wrap a four-game set with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The Brewers have won five of their past seven games and took two out of three from the Chicago Cubs last weekend. However, that series win improved the club to just 7-18 on the season and manager Ron Roenicke was fired on Monday.

Craig Counsell was moved from special assistant to general manager Doug Melvin to the manager role and won his debut on the bench Monday. Milwaukee was then handed an 8-2 loss by the Dodgers the following day before using an early burst to record last night's 6-3 victory.

Scooter Gennett and Adam Lind highlighted a five-run first inning with a two- run homer each, while Martin Maldonado drove in a run in the frame and Jean Segura drew a bases-loaded walk in the fifth inning.

Wily Peralta gave up three runs -- two earned -- on seven hits with six strikeouts over eight innings of work for Milwaukee.

"To me it was just easy, effortless, and great life in the zone," Counsell said of Peralta's outing. "He just did it with ease tonight, and that's what was very encouraging to me."

Joc Pederson hit a pair of homers in the loss, while Joe Wieland was touched up for six runs on six hits and four walks in 4 2/3 innings in his Dodger debut.

"Going in I thought that this was going to be a good day. I fell behind in the first and when that happens and you don't make a pitch, you get into trouble," Wieland said.

The Dodgers lost for just the second time in seven games. They'll try to earn a split of this series today behind Carlos Frias, who will make his second start of the season in place of the injured Brandon McCarthy and has yet to allow a run over three appearances this season.

The right-hander logged 1 1/3 innings of scoreless relief in two games during late April, then held the Arizona Diamondbacks off the board for 5 1/3 frames to win an 8-0 start on Friday. He worked around four hits and a walk while striking out three.

Frias was also helped by the fact he was handed a 5-0 lead by the end of the second inning.

"Carlos was really good. His slider was good, he threw a lot of strikes but he ran out of gas in the sixth," Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said.

Frias has made 18 career appearances in the major leagues, including three starts, and has allowed five runs over six innings in three games against Milwaukee.

Milwaukee's Mike Fiers will try to build off his first victory today and stay unbeaten in his career versus Los Angeles.

The right-hander had gone 0-3 with a 5.79 earned run average through his first four starts before a 6-1 road win over the Chicago Cubs on Saturday. Fiers allowed just one run on a solo homer and scattered two other hits and a pair of walks while striking out 12.

"It's great to get a great start like this, and get a good team win," said Fiers. "The next start, I'll have in the back of my mind that I can still do this."

Fiers is a perfect 3-0 with a 1.08 ERA in three career meetings with the Dodgers, a span that includes two starts and a total of 16 2/3 innings.

The Brewers took five of six the meetings with LA last season.