ST. LOUIS – If you breathed a big sigh of relief after Randy Wolf worked a perfect first inning, you weren't alone.
In fact, the biggest sigh may have come from the visitor's dugout at Busch Stadium.
Wolf's perfect first was the first for the Brewers in the NLCS and just the third in the last six games. In all, Milwaukee pitchers have surrendered 14 first-inning runs during the postseason, a whopping 14.00 earned run average for those who like math.
It's not hard to see why the Brewers needed five games to dispatch the Diamondbacks in the NLDS and why they entered Game 4 of the NLCS trailing the Cardinals, 2-1. Recognizing the problem is one thing. Getting to the bottom of it is another.
Brewers manager Ron Roenicke wishes he had the answer.
"I can't pinpoint it, but that number is way bigger than I thought it would be," Roenicke said. "I know trouble happens in the first inning or two usually with a starter, but yeah, that number's huge."
During the regular season, Brewers pitchers allowed 86 first inning runs in 162 games, posting an ERA of 4.33.
Wolf, who surrendered five runs in his last outing in Game 4 at Arizona, said the key is not to panic after suffering through a bad start.
"I think the biggest thing you can do is not make it a big deal," Wolf said. "If you go in there consciously thinking, 'Oh, God, I have to get through this first inning,' you're kind of making a monster out of sometimes nothing."
The Brewers are 1-4 during the postseason when the opponent scores in the first inning and 0-3 when they do so on the road.
Walk, don't run: Throughout his first season as manager, Roenicke has been firm in his opposition to the intentional walk. During the regular season, Milwaukee tied for last in the National League, issuing just 16 intentional passes.
Brewers pitchers walked just one in the NLDS while the other three all came Wednesday night in Game 3. The results have been mixed.
The intentional walk at Arizona backfired badly. Miguel Montero was walked to load the bases with two outs in the fifth inning. Paul Goldschmidt was up next, and he hit a grand slam of Shaun Marcum to break open a 3-1 game which became an 8-1 Diamondbacks victory.
The Brewers walked Albert Pujols twice in Game 3 and it worked both times as Matt Holliday struck out in the fourth and sixth innings.
Roenicke consults with pitching coach Rick Kranitz and bench coach Jerry Narron on potential walk situations and is comfortable doing so when the consensus is that the situation warrants. Still, Roenicke isn't convinced that the intentional walk is always the right solution.
"It does eat you up at times," Roenicke said. "It eats you up more when you see the results, a guy driving one in the gap. We had a grand slam against us earlier in the playoffs against Arizona. Sometimes it's definitely the right move.
"The more times you do it, it's going to get you."
Just another game: The Brewers send right-hander Zack Greinke to the mound Friday in Game 5 with the chance to take a 3-2 lead before the series moves back to Milwaukee.
Greinke brings a 1-0 record but an 8.18 ERA into the game and says that he's not overly concerned with the situation, and doesn't feel a lot of pressure.
"In all honesty, it's just another game, kind of," Greinke said. "I thought it might be a lot different, but it's really just a normal game, and you just get as ready as you can and do what you can.
"The first two games I've given up some runs, but I've been really happy with how I've pitched. So I'm just going to do what I can do, and if I throw good, I'll be happy."
