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ARLINGTON, Texas -- The Milwaukee Brewers hoped they were getting a stolen base threat when they acquired infielder Jonathan Villar from the Houston Astros last November. It turns out they got a budding power hitter, too.Villar, the major leagues stolen base leader, hit his 17th and 18th home runs and had a career-high five RBI and Matt Garza beat his former team as the Brewers defeated the Texas Rangers 8-3 on Monday night.I dont think about that, Villar said of hitting homers. I need a base hit because I need more stolen bases.Villar has 59 steals, one more than the Cincinnati Reds Billy Hamilton. He would become the franchises third stolen base champion, joining Scott Podsednik in 2004 (70) and Tommy Harper in 1969 with the original expansion Seattle Pilots (a club-record 73).Villar said manager Craig Counsell has told him he could develop into a 30-homer hitter.Im surprised by how much weve already seen it, Counsell of Villars power. What hes doing is rare, for sure.Villar also doubled. He went into Mondays game having gone only 3 for 35 in his previous 11 games.The Brewers clinched fourth place in the NL Central.Garza (6-8) allowed three runs and six hits in six innings. He spent the second half of the 2013 season with Texas as a rental acquisition from the Chicago Cubs, going 4-5 with a 4.38 ERA. It was Garzas first appearance against Texas since 2010.I take it as this is our playoff right here, said Garza, who won a must-win Game 3 in the Division Series for the Tampa Bay Rays in his most recent appearance at Globe Life Park in 2010. Theyre a good team, and you want to go out there and perform.FAMILIAR FACES IN A DIFFERENT PLACEMondays game was a reunion for former Brewers Jonathan Lucroy and Jeremy Jeffress, who were traded to Texas on Aug. 1.Lucroy, who played 6 1/2 seasons for Milwaukee, went 1 for 4. Jeffress made his first appearance since being reinstated Friday from the restricted list. He was arrested on a drunken driving charge in Dallas on Aug. 26 and was sent to an inpatient rehab clinic. Jeffress retired all four batters he faced.Getting this one out of the way is going to be pretty good for the next one, Jeffress said.He deserves to enjoy whats going on here and deserves to be a part of it, Counsell said. And hes going to help them.IGNORE THE MAN IN THE LOUD JACKETCounsell (Notre Dame graduate) will pay off a friendly college football wager with pitcher Corey Knebel (University of Texas) on the teams final flight of the season, from Texas to Colorado late Wednesday night. Hell wear Knebels burnt-orange college letter jacket.Counsell said when his Irish beat the Longhorns in September 2015, Knebel and fellow Longhorn Taylor Jungmann had to wear one-piece Notre Dame pajamas on the team flight from Milwaukee to Miami.This is payback, Knebel said.SHORT HOPSThe Brewers scored in every inning in which their leadoff hitter reached and didnt score in innings in which the leadoff man failed to get on. . Milwaukee, an AL team from 1969 through 1997, is 11-7 against AL teams this season.TRAINERS ROOMBrewers: Jungmann wont pitch again this season after suffering a hip abductor during his start last Saturday night, which was his first in the majors since April.Rangers: OF Shin-Soo Choo (left forearm fracture) had three hits and two walks batting in all seven innings of an Instructional League game on Monday. Manager Jeff Banister said he hopes to get RHP Tony Barnette (strained oblique), who last pitched on Sept. 4, into Tuesday nights game.UP NEXTBrewers RHP Jimmy Nelson (8-15) leads the NL in losses after getting off to a 3-1 start. Rangers RHP A.J. Griffin (7-4) lasted only 1 2/3 innings last Tuesday in Anaheim, allowing three hits and four walks. If Texas elects to go with four starters in the Division Series, Griffin is a contender for the final slot. . Burris threw two TD passes, including a key 15-yard fourth-quarter strike to Bakari Grant that effectively countered a Toronto comeback bid and led Hamilton to a 33-19 victory. . Halladay signed a one-day contract with the Toronto Blue Jays on Monday that allowed the veteran right-hander to retire as a member of team with which he broke into the majors and spent the bulk of his distinguished 16-year career. .875,000, avoiding arbitration. Clippards deal Monday means all eight Nationals players who filed for arbitration wound up settling before a hearing. . Thats about all he can do right now, so hes trying not to think about when he might be able to play again for the Los Angeles Lakers. . Francis told several hundred members of the European Olympic Committees that when sport "is considered only in economic terms and consequently for victory at every cost . DFS golf heads to the scenic El Camaleón Golf Club in Playa del Carmen, Mexico, for the OHL Classic, an event that has witnessed only two champions under the age of 30 since its inception nine years ago.Our experts have put together the players they believe have the skills to succeed and provide big fantasy point totals. This weeks panel is comprised of Bob Harig, Jason Sobel, Jonathan Coachman and Michael Collins as well as FantasyGolfInsiders Jeff Bergerson, Zach Turcotte, Taras Pitra and Jason Rouslin.Note: Golfer salaries listed are for DraftKings.Bob Harig -- Jon Rahm ($10,700)The former Arizona State golfer has made the most of his short time as a professional, earning a spot on the PGA Tour this season by finishing among the top 125 in Fedex points despite not being a PGA Tour member. Hes started this season with ties for 15th in both of his starts, including last week in Las Vegas.Jason Sobel -- Keegan Bradley ($10,000)Not gonna lie: Id forgotten Graeme McDowell won this event last year until I checked recently. Im going to keep my pick along those lines, taking another former major champion and Ryder Cup player whose game had suffered a bit of a tailspin but is now enjoying a bit of an uptick. Bradley owns top-10 finishes in each of his past two starts and should have plenty of confidence at a tournament where he finished T-8 last year.Michael Collins -- Jason Bohn ($7,600)In the three years the tournament has been held at this venue, Bohn had finishes of T-2, T-7 and T-3. Id say hes pretty comfortable down there. If you remember, last year Bohn lost in a playoff at Mayakoba and then in February suffered a heart attack.Jonathan Coachman -- Russell Knox (DK $11,800)These days, and with this field, its hard to pick against Knox. He has really started to come into his own, and he should have been on the European Ryder Cup team. In a fall event where its easy to start looking towaard the holidays, Knox seems to play his best golf and I believe that he will win this week.ddddddddddddTaras Pitra -- Johnson Wagner (DK $8,400)Wagner has quietly performed well in hitting a high number of birdies this season. He has also been excellent with his midrange approach shots and historically plays the par-4 holes well. I say quietly because the only thing anyone ever notices about Johnson is his mustache, or lack thereof. Wagner makes for a strong cash play with GPP upside this week as he has made four of five cuts, including a win in 2011.Jeff Bergerson -- Ryan Blaum ($6,900)One of the quieter rookies so far on the Tour, Blaum has nevertheless established himself as a player to be on the lookout for during the rest of the season. Blaum has made the cut in all three events this season and finished no lower than 31st. As a bonus, Blaum finished 29th at Mayakoba a year ago, giving us a nice value his weekZach Turcotte -- Charles Howell III ($7,500)Following his 15th-place finish a week ago at The Shriners, it appears that CH III is back on board with being a solid cut-maker with upside. We are hoping to grab him this week at a little bit of a discount. Last season, Howell was a fixture of the top 25 and he is a strong candidate to do it again this week on a course where he has made six of seven cuts and finished in the top 20 in five of his last six starts.Jason Rouslin -- Aaron Wise ($6,400)The reining NCAA champion almost had his breakthrough last week in Sin City, even holding the lead at one point before finishing 10th, but nonetheless he earns another start because of the good play. A hot putter, good ball striking and a maintained level of emotions will all be big factors this weekend, but at this salary Wise is definitely worth a long look. ' ' '
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