Brewers keep scoring in win over Rockies

DENVER -- Brewers manager Craig Counsell knows how quickly leads can evaporate at Coors Field, so his approach is essentially a mind trick.

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"No matter what's going on, you assume the tying run is going to come to the plate at some point in the game," Counsell said. "You have to keep scoring."

The Brewers did just that on Friday night. After plating three runs in the first, Milwaukee tacked on more insurance between the second and seventh innings to secure a 9-5 victory over the Rockies at Coors Field.

Ryan Braun's first-inning homer -- which was projected by Statcast™ to land 436 feet away -- awoke the Brewers offense with a jolt and handed them an instant 2-0 lead. The blast was Braun's first since June 6 and snapped a 1-for-22 skid. Aramis Ramirez tacked on a solo bomb two batters later, helping Milwaukee improve to 21-15 this season when it goes deep.

"It's nice," Jonathan Lucroy said. "Obviously, this is a hitter's park, and we were able to jump on their starter early."

But the damage against Rockies starter Jorge De La Rosa was far from over. Milwaukee reeled off single runs in the second, third and fourth -- with two of those RBIs coming on something other than a hit. Shane Peterson drew a third-inning walk with the bases loaded, and Lucroy delivered a fourth-inning sacrifice fly to hand the Brewers a 6-0 lead.

Just as Counsell predicted, though, the offensive tables flipped for a moment -- Colorado plated four and eventually brought the tying run to the plate in the sixth.

But the Rockies couldn't convert, and Milwaukee unloaded in the seventh, banging out five hits and three runs in the frame to snag a 9-4 advantage. Every Brewers position player finished with a base knock, and the team's 16 hits tied a season-high.

"Up and down the lineup, we did a good job," Counsell said. "The runs you add on are big runs."