MILWAUKEE — Four months ago Youth Dion Phaneuf Jersey , Milwaukee Brewers manager Craig Counsell was trying to figure out how to fit Jesus Aguilar onto his roster. Now, Counsell is having a hard time taking the hard-hitting first baseman out of his starting lineup.

Aguilar has been Milwaukee’s hottest hitter over the last month, batting .283 with 12 home runs, 34 RBIs and a .964 OPS. Five of those home runs along with 12 RBIs have come over his last five games and he’s driven in multiple runs in five straight starts, tying a franchise record.

“He’s certainly been one of the most pleasant surprises (this year),” Counsell said. “He was last year, as well and he’s taken it up a notch this year. You need those kind of performances you weren’t expecting. You need that kind of stuff.”

All that from a player who came to spring training not sure if he’d have a job when the regular season opened.

Acquired off waivers ahead of the 2017 season, Aguilar split time at first with Eric Thames last year, forming a potent right-left platoon combo. But after the Brewers acquired outfielders Christian Yelich and Lorenzo Cain over the winter, the team planned to transition outfielder Ryan Braun as an occasional right-handed option at first, which seemingly diminished Aguilar’s role.

He played his way onto the roster with another strong spring training and established himself as a dangerous pinch-hitting threat before taking over first base on a more regular basis when Thames was lost to a thumb injury on April 25.

“I’m confident in myself. When I get a chance to go Dustin Brown Jersey , I’m going to give my 100 percent. That’s how I think.”

Thames, who’s spent the majority of his playing time in the outfield since returning June 11, is still adjusting to the position but is happy for his teammate.

“I mean, hey, the team is winning,” Thames said. “It was the same thing for him the first half of last year when I was going off. It’s great because we’re winning and today, he pretty much did it himself and it was awesome. I’m happy for him. He works hard. He’s such a smart hitter, smart player. He’s a great team guy so you can’t help but root for him.”

His bat — as well as his defensive ability — have been a source of comfort for Brewers pitchers this season and will be Saturday for Chase Anderson, who takes the mound for Game 2 of the Brewers’ four-game series with the Cardinals at Miller Park.

Anderson has yet to find the consistency that led to his breakout season a year ago. He’s 5-6 with a 4.54 ERA through his first 15 starts and has struggled keeping the ball inside the park.

He’s allowed 15 home runs this season — one more than he gave up in all of 2017 — with 13 of those coming at Miller Park, where he’s 3-3 with a 5.70 ERA this season.

He gave up two home runs in the opening inning his last time out, upping his first-inning ERA this season to 8.36.

“It’s just one of those deals Jonathan Quick Jersey ,” Anderson said. “That’s kind of been my thing since I was a kid. Obviously, I need to correct it and work on it and get better at getting guys out quicker. Something to work on.”

The Cardinals answer with right-hander Miles Mikolas, who’s 1-0 with a 6.00 ERA in two career starts against the Brewers, both of which came this season.

He allowed four runs over 5 2/3 innings but took the victory on April 2 at Miller Park but didn’t factor in the decision after giving up another four runs, this time over 6 1/3 innings, in a 5-4 Cardinals loss on April 9 in St. Louis.

“He pounds the strike zone and uses multiple pitches,” Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said. “It’s just not every day you come across starters who can do that … and then to have durability and consistency to stay in the game as long as he has.”

A victory Saturday would mark Milwaukee’s second series victory over the Cardinals in three tries this season.

The New York Yankees are trying to make the most of a rare trip to Citizens Bank Park. The Philadelphia Phillies are trying to prove they can keep hanging with some of the best teams in baseball.

The Yankees, making their first trip to Philadelphia since the 2009 World Series, will go for their second straight win over the Phillies on Tuesday night. It could turn out to be a pitcher’s duel between Yankees ace Luis Severino against former Cy Young Award winner Jake Arrieta.

New York took the first game of the series 4-2 on Monday night and held Philadelphia to three hits. The Phillies (41-35) need to win the last two games in the set for their fifth consecutive series victory.

Three of those series wins have come against the Milwaukee Brewers, St. Louis Cardinals and Washington Nationals — who are all above .500.

Phillies manager Gabe Kapler said his team is embracing the tough stretch on the schedule.

“It shows we’re not scared of any situation. We don’t back down from any opponent,” Kapler told NBC Sports Philadelphia ahead of Monday’s series opener. “We’re resilient. When we have a loss like (Sunday) we bounce back the next day. We come prepared. We’re working in that clubhouse like animals Tobias Rieder Jersey , and we know this is not going to be an easy matchup by any stretch. But we’re prepared for it.”

The Yankees (51-25) have the best record in the majors, and they ended a season-worst three-game losing streak on Monday. The team did so with a healthy amount of New York fans among the 44,136 in attendance.

Severino (11-2, 2.24 ERA) will try to give Yankees fans more to cheer about Tuesday.

Severino tied a season high by allowing eight hits in his last start. The Seattle Mariners scored three runs against the 24-year-old righty, but the Yankees still picked up a 4-3 win last Thursday.

“Every time they give me the ball, I want to go out there and have a good game,” Severino told reporters after the game. “Today, I wasn’t the best. Wasn’t feeling that good, wasn’t feeling that comfortable. I was missing some pitches and getting deep in counts. But we got a great team and got some runs.”

Severino, who has never faced the Phillies, has allowed more than three earned runs in just one of his 16 starts in 2018. The Yankees are 14-2 when he pitches.

The Phillies Daniel Winnik Jersey , on the other hand, are just 6-8 in Arrieta’s 14 starts this year.

Arrieta (5-5, 3.42) has a 6.97 ERA in four starts this month. Arrieta did have his best start of June in his last outing, however. He struck out five and gave up three runs and four hits in six innings against the Cardinals last Wednesday.

Arrieta, who spent parts of four seasons with the Baltimore Orioles, has faced the Yankees eight times in his career. He is 3-1 with a 3.83 ERA and 1.213 WHIP in those games.

Outfielder Giancarlo Stanton and infielder Neil Walker are the Yankees with the most experience against Arrieta. Stanton is 2-for-11 with a solo home run, and Walker has a .243 average in 37 at-bats.