WASHINGTON -- Brewers manager Craig Counsell was looking for something, anything, to put a positive spin on a very bad day at Nationals Park.
"It ended on a good note. Hernan threw a scoreless inning," Counsell joked.
Hernan Perez, the Brewers' super-utility man, became the first Milwaukee position player to pitch in more than three years when he spun a scoreless eighth inning of an otherwise dreary 15-2 loss to the Nationals on Thursday. It left catcher as the only position Perez has yet to man in the Major Leagues.
And yes, he would like to complete the circuit.
"I really wish to catch," Perez said.
Unwilling to throw his three best relievers -- Corey Knebel, Jacob Barnes and newcomer Anthony Swarzak -- in a blowout game, it became clear to Counsell when Wily Peralta was unable to halt the stampeding Nationals in relief of Michael Blazek that he might have to use a position player to pitch. Perez became the first Brewer to do it since Lyle Overbay recorded the final out of the eighth inning in Atlanta on May 19, 2014.
Perez worked around a walk and an Andrew Stevenson single -- a memorable first Major League hit for the No. 7 ranked Nationals prospect -- while topping out at 83.1 mph, according to Statcast™.
How did the rookie describe Perez's stuff?
"Slow and slower," Stevenson said.
Perez threw two curveballs and a changeup, but he mostly stuck with the heater. Did he check the radar gun?
"Once," Perez said. "I threw a fastball, it said slider. That was fun."