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IRISH IN THE PROS John Axford Keeps His Saves Streak Alive BY WES MORGAN J ball team while he recovered from Tommy John surgery. That his case was so bad, and his anatomy so dif- ferent than most pitchers before him to undergo the same procedure, is the reason his right arm is in such good shape now. Without as much available tendons ohn Axford missed all of the 2004 season for the Notre Dame base- in his arm compared to others, doc- tors used part of his hamstring to complete the job, interweaving the thicker donor tendon through a more prominent elbow bone four times. The Milwaukee Brewers closer has been told by doctors he'll never have an issue again, while others have had recurring problems, such as San Francisco's Brian Wilson who is pre- paring for a second surgery and will miss the 2012 campaign. "The elbow is such a tough thing," Axford told OnMilwaukee.com. "Throwing a baseball is the most un- natural thing you can do in sports, other than serving a tennis ball. So it's going to put a lot of strain on your elbow. You just have to take care of it. Certainly you have to under- stand and know your body." On April 23, Axford, who played at season, but has gotten the job done nonetheless. Axford has teamed up with Fran- ⁄3 Notre Dame from 2002-05, recorded his 46th consecutive save and third of the young season, which leads the majors and extended a franchise re- cord. He's made every appearance interesting with a 6.35 ERA, having allowed seven hits and four earned runs in 51 innings pitched so far this eighth and the ninth, it's like win- ning the game in seven innings," Brewers catcher Jonathan Lucroy told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. "You don't want to count your chick- ens before they hatch, but that's the feeling you have. "You just feel like you're not going to lose." "You hear guys talk about get- 56 MAY 2012 cisco Rodriguez to give the Brewers a potent one-two punch at the back end of their bullpen. "When you have them in the Axford picked up his third save of the 2012 season on April 23, extending his streak of consecutive saves to 46 dating back to last year. ting into a team's bullpen," Brewers pitching coach Rick Kranitz added. "That's everybody's goal — to get in the bullpen. Well, we feel pretty good when our bullpen is in there, especially the last two guys." Axford, who converted a franchise- record 46 saves in 48 chances while posting a 1.95 ERA, .212 opponents batting average and 86 strikeouts in 732 quisition of Rodriguez with stabiliz- ing a bullpen that played a large role in Milwaukee's run to a division title. "After getting Frankie, that was ⁄3 innings in 2011, credited the ac- huge," Axford said, "just knowing we made it a seven-inning game. It wasn't until we got Frankie that we really locked it down and things fell in place. … That's great to have that PHOTO BY SCOTT PAULUS/MILWAUKEE BREWERS runs, we could hold on and squeeze out a win." It also makes manager Ron Roe- nicke's job much easier. "You get through the seven innings confidence from the entire team. "They knew if they put up a few and have those two guys, it's a real nice thing. "Most setup guys and closers, you [look at matchups]. I never even look at the [opposing] lineup when I get to the eighth inning. I don't care. I know it's Frankie and I know it's 'Ax,' so I don't care. It's real nice." • John Axford (Played at Notre Dame from 2002-05), RHP, Milwaukee Brewers: Has appeared MLB PLAYER UPDATES Through April 23 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED