The Milwaukee Brewers, at least for two series, appeared as the team of old, sweeping the lowly Pittsburgh Pirates and then taking two out of three from divisional foe Houston Astros, coached by former Brewer Cecil Cooper.

The lone loss in the six games came on Labor Day, as the Beer Makers’ bullpen surrendered four runs in the eighth inning to the light hitting Astros, culminating in a two out, two-run double by rookie sensation Hunter Pence off recently recalled Milwaukee reliever/space waster Greg Aquino.

So essentially, throw out a horrific inning and realistically the Brew Crew could have, and really should have, completed back-to-back sweeps. Pulling within a half game of the free-spending Cubs, the victories came at a much needed time, but closer inspection reveals much more than timely wins; it reveals optimistic trends.

First, in the two games Yovani Gallardo pitched. He allowed only two runs in 14 innings, at least providing some assurance his arm can hold up for a pennant run. This becomes incredibly important down the final stretch of games as some teams, like the Brewers, will modify their rotation as only four starters, rather than the normal five, will pitch.

If Ben Sheets can stay healthy, always a big “if,” and YoGa can sustain this high level of performance, Yost’s Youngin’s have two ace pitchers to rely on.

As an interesting side note, Gallardo also possesses a nifty .281 batting average with two long balls.

Another positive trend coming from these six games is seeing the Brewers consistently beating teams that, at least statically, remain inferior to them. After getting swept by the pathetic Giants on the last weekend of August and also by the Cardinals on the last weekend in July, it proved reassuring that the team’s raw talent can manifest itself in expected victories.

No one labeled the Pirates or Astros playoff-caliber teams, but the Brew Crew only has two other series with teams that remain above .500, so if they can continue this dominance against lesser competition, the division banner will grace Miller Park.

Finally, do not forget the importance of momentum in baseball and finishing off the home stand with a resounding 14-2 victory provides a young and talented team with renewed and sustained confidence.

This team can score runs in bunches. With Jeff Suppan beginning to look like the pitcher he demonstrated he can be last year, combining with a healthy Ben Sheets and the rookie phenom Yovani Gallardo together to form a formidable rotation, perhaps these six games provided the necessary push in what will sure to be an interesting and very exciting end of summer.

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