The Milwaukee Brewers pulled off a thrilling 4-3 comeback win against the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday night, and it was a game packed with drama right to the end. It all started when Willy Adames hit a clutch sacrifice fly to tie the game in the ninth inning, and Rhys Hoskins, feeling the pressure with the bases loaded, got hit by a pitch to walk in the winning run. Talk about a nail-biter!
Brenton Doyle was the standout for the Rockies, continuing his hot streak with a homer and an RBI double. He's been on fire, smashing three home runs in just two games. And how about Colorado's left fielder, Nolan Jones? This guy's got a cannon for an arm. In the seventh inning, he fired a scorching 100.8 mph throw to the plate, cutting down a Brewers runner and keeping the game tied at 2. What a play!
Fast forward to the ninth inning, and the tension was palpable. The Brewers loaded the bases with one out, putting Nick Mears (1-4) under the gun. Adames then launched a deep fly ball to center field, bringing home the tying run and making it 3-3. Mears' night was done after he re-loaded the bases with a walk, and Justin Lawrence came in to try and save the day for the Rockies. But on a 3-2 count, Lawrence's pitch got away from him and clipped Hoskins, handing the Brewers a walk-off win.
Hoskins had some insightful comments post-game: “You’ve got to make guys throw the ball over the plate," he said. “Stuff is so good now that if you’re helping guys, you’re going to fall behind pretty quick. We did a great job of that tonight, put pressure on the other team. I got to face a guy coming in with the bases loaded. I like that for the hitter every time because the pressure is on the pitcher there.”
Lawrence reflected on his pitch to Hoskins: “I went away a few times in a row with the slider,” he said. “If I locate a good pitch down and in, it might freeze him right there and we’re not having this conversation but, you know, it just got away from me and it got him.” Ouch. You can feel his frustration, but that’s baseball for you.
This loss marked the seventh time this season the Rockies have let a lead slip away in the ninth inning, the most in the majors. On the flip side, the Brewers recorded their 26th come-from-behind victory of the season, also the most in the majors. Their resilience is something to behold, with their last six wins all coming from behind.
Pat Murphy, the Brewers' manager, acknowledged the difficulty of pulling off a win at Colorado: “That last inning, we were fortunate, too, but give our guys credit. This has been a tough place for us to pull off a victory. We didn’t get the big hit offensively, but we pecked away and came up with enough.”
The win was sealed thanks to some solid bullpen work. Rob Zastryzny (1-0) got the last two outs in the eighth inning, and Trevor Megill closed it out in the ninth for his 18th save in 19 opportunities. That’s the kind of reliability you need in tight games.
The Rockies briefly took a 3-2 lead in the eighth inning on Doyle's RBI double, continuing his impressive form. Doyle had earlier homered in the second inning, building on his two-homer performance in Monday's 8-7, 10-inning victory over the Brewers.
There were some tense moments in the seventh inning when Milwaukee's Brice Turang hit a high flyball that turned into an RBI double after right fielder Hunter Goodman lost it in the lights. Turang then tried to score on Adames' two-out single but was thrown out at the plate by Jones. Jones has been showing off his arm strength, making the two fastest outfield assists in the majors this season, including a 101.3 mph throw the night before.
On the pitching side, Dallas Keuchel, in his second start for the Brewers after being acquired from Seattle, delivered a solid performance, allowing two runs over 5 1/3 innings. The 2015 AL Cy Young Award winner had been pitching for the Mariners' Triple-A affiliate before the trade.
For the Rockies, Ryan Feltner put in a decent shift, allowing one run over five innings. Meanwhile, Rockies' right-hander Antonio Senzatela is on the comeback trail, throwing breaking pitches in a bullpen session as he continues his rehab from Tommy John surgery. He's expected to face live hitters in about a week to ten days, aiming for a September return.
All in all, it was a game that had everything: tension, clutch hits, stellar defensive plays, and a dramatic finish. The Brewers showed their grit and determination, coming back to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat, while the Rockies, despite some standout individual performances, were left ruing another late-game collapse.
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