As expected, righthander Dave Bush was named to start for the Milwaukee Brewers in Game 3 against the Phillies Saturday at Miller Park.
The former Conestoga High star was 9-10 with a 4.18 ERA this season.
Dale Sveum, the Brewers' interim manager, said that since the all-star break, Bush had been Milwaukee's second-best pitcher, behind last night's starter, CC Sabathia.
"He has been one of the top pitchers numbers-wise in the game over the last two months," Sveum said of Bush.
In his last 18 appearances, Bush was 7-3 with a 3.23 ERA.
Bush did not find it ironic that his first career postseason start would be against a team he followed as a youngster.
"As far as actually playing against a team I rooted for, once I get on the field, it makes no difference at all to me," he said.
Bush was 0-0 with a 5.25 ERA in two games against the Phillies this season. He is 0-0 with a 5.88 ERA in six career appearances against the Phils.
He should be well-rested. Bush last pitched Saturday in three innings of relief; he made his most recent start Sept. 23, going five innings in a 7-5 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates.
The Brewers chose Bush over righthander Jeff Suppan, whom they signed to a four-year, $42 million contract before the 2007 season. Milwaukee had signed Suppan for games like this one, but he has gone 0-3 with an 8.44 ERA in his last five starts.
He said the culprit was Phillies lefthander Cole Hamels, who allowed just two hits and struck out nine in eight shutout innings.
"Jittery or not, I don't care who was out there swinging off Cole Hamels - it was going to be a tough day for the best offense in all of baseball to hit him," Sveum said.
Brewers first baseman Prince Fielder said he and his teammates get a little tired of hearing about the '82 team.
"They were a good team, so we respect that," Fielder said. ". . . Hopefully, people will start talking about the new Brewers now."
"If the weather's cold, which it's supposed to be, I think when we get back and the roof is closed, that place will be electric, obviously," he said. "So it's a fun place to play. There will be 44,000 people obviously waving their white towels, and it will be louder than, obviously, an outdoor stadium."
