MILWAUKEE -- Max Scherzer was far from perfect in his return to Miller Park, burned by early walks and late home runs as the Brewers powered their way to a 5-3 win over Scherzer's slumping Nationals on Friday, pushing ahead on Kirk Nieuwenhuis' sixth-inning homer.
Washington's losing streak reached six behind Scherzer, the ace right-hander who settled for a one-hit shutout at Miller Park last June after carrying a perfect game into the seventh. Friday's outing was decidedly different. Scherzer walked three batters ahead of Aaron Hill's two-run single in the first, grooved a slider for Keon Broxton's first Major League home run in the fifth, and picked a bad time to take a little off a fastball to Nieuwenhuis, who hit it 427 feet (per Statcast™) for his go-ahead, two-run home run.