The Milwaukee Brewers had another chance to win the NLDS and put away the Cubs at Wrigley Field on Thursday night, but for the second consecutive night, they were unable to do so as the offense went quiet and the Cubs piled on late.
After getting to Cubs starter Matthew Boyd early in this past Saturday’s Game 1, things once again got off to a good start for the Brewers tonight, as Christian Yelich drew a leadoff walk. The baserunner went for naught, however, as Jackson Chourio struck out,
William Contreras hit into a force out, and Brice Turang flew out to give Boyd a quiet first inning.
Freddy Peralta started the bottom of the frame with a strikeout of Michael Busch, but things immediately went downhill from there. Nico Hoerner hit a single into left, and Kyle Tucker followed with a walk. After Peralta was able to get another strikeout, Ian Happ came through with a two-out, three-run homer, his second homer of the series, giving Chicago an early 3-0 lead.
Things went quiet for a bit from there.
Andrew Vaughn drew a leadoff walk in the second but was stranded at third. The Cubs got a couple of two-out baserunners in the second but couldn’t cash them in, and Chourio picked up a two-out single in the third but Contreras followed with a strikeout.
The first 1-2-3 inning of the night went to Peralta, as he set the Cubs down in order in the third. Boyd then returned the favor in the top of the fourth, and Peralta did the same in the bottom of the inning.
Sal Frelick finally put the Brewers in a position to score in the fifth, leading off with a line drive double down the right field line. Blake Perkins followed with a walk, and after Joey Ortiz bunted to move both runners up, the Brewers had a real chance to close the deficit.
Instead, Yelich struck out — with the help of a very high called strike one — and Chourio popped out on the first pitch from reliever Daniel Palencia, who he had homered off of on Monday night.
Trevor Megill took over from Peralta in the fifth, and after allowing a leadoff walk and a one-out single, he was pulled in favor of Aaron Ashby. The Cubs perfectly executed a double steal, and after Tucker walked, the bases were loaded and Chicago had an opportunity to blow things open.
Suzuki fell behind 1-2 before getting back to 3-2. The 3-2 pitch was in the dirt, but Suzuki couldn’t check his swing, and Ashby had a way out of the inning. Happ followed with another strong hit off the bat, but it was right at Perkins in center, and the inning was over.
Vaughn got a two-out single against Palencia in the sixth, but he would be left standing there. In the bottom of the inning, Ashby remained in, getting a ground ball from Carson Kelly to Caleb Durbin at third. Durbin, however, was unable to come up with it cleanly, and Kelly reached.
That would come back to bite Milwaukee.
Pete Crow-Armstrong moved Kelly to second with a sac bunt, and Dansby Swanson then walked to put runners at first and second. After pulling ahead of Shaw 0-2, Ashby tried to bury a curveball in the dirt, but Shaw somehow golfed it into center for an RBI single just before it hit the ground. That was all they’d get, though, as Vaughn saved another run (possibly two) on a diving play at first before Hoerner grounded out against Chad Patrick to end the inning.
Now facing a 4-0 deficit, the Brewers looked like they’d all but given up in the seventh against Drew Pomeranz, who set them down in order with a pair of strikeouts — once again with the help of a called strike on a pitch outside of the zone (this time against Frelick).
Robert Gasser entered in the bottom of the frame for his postseason debut, looking to keep the margin at four runs. Instead, he allowed a leadoff homer to Tucker, his first of the postseason. Suzuki followed with an infield single to third before Happ gave one a ride to deep center, though Perkins had just enough room to catch it against the wall.
Kelly was up with Suzuki still at first and one out, and he demolished a 2-1 pitch down the left field line. With plenty of distance, the only question was whether it was fair or foul. Mike Estabrook — Monday night’s home plate umpire — made the call as the left field ump for a fair ball, but after Kelly rounded the bases and the scoreboard flipped to 7-0, Pat Murphy asked for a review. Upon review, the ball was clearly outside of the foul pole, with Suzuki returning to first and Kelly returning to the batter’s box.
Kelly then grounded out on a close play at first, resulting in another challenge, this time from the Cubs. After review, the call was upheld. Gasser then walked PCA to put runners at first and second, but Swanson was unable to capitalize, grounding out to end the inning.
A long inning, but only one run added to Chicago’s lead.
Hoping for any sign of life, the top of Milwaukee’s order faced off against Brad Keller in the eighth. Yelich got another leadoff walk, but after Chourio got ahead 3-0 himself, he flew out to right on a 3-1 pitch, and Contreras then grounded into an inning-ending double play.
Gasser remained in for the eighth, and after getting Shaw to fly out, he allowed another solo homer, this time to Busch, his third homer of the series and fourth of the postseason in just seven games. Hoerner and Tucker followed with a pair of singles, and it was painfully clear at this point that Gasser just didn’t have it. Luckily, he was able to get out of the inning without any further damage, inducing a flyout and a groundout.
With one last chance for some offense, the Brewers quickly went down in order against Caleb Thielbar in the ninth.
This was another one to forget, as the Brewers failed to come through with any big hits, and the entire pitching staff didn’t play all that well.
Peralta went four innings, allowing three runs on three hits and a pair of walks, striking out six. Megill and Patrick both recorded one out in relief, while Ashby allowed an unearned run, and Gasser was hit hard across the final two innings.
Offensively, Yelich and Vaughn were the only players to reach multiple times; Yelich on a pair of walks and Vaughn on a single and a walk. Frelick had the only extra-base hit (a double), and the Brewers as a team went 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position, leaving six runners on base. Not ideal.
After holding a 2-0 lead in the NLDS heading into Wednesday, the Brewers are suddenly tied 2-2 in the best-of-five series with the Cubs, and they’ll face elimination in a winner-take-all game on Saturday night in Milwaukee. While the Brewers have made the postseason in seven of the last eight years, they’ve failed to win a playoff series since the first of those seasons, all the way back in 2018.
They’ll look to end that streak this weekend.
First pitch on Saturday is scheduled for 7:08 p.m. CT, once again on HBO Max, TBS, and the Brewers Radio Network. Neither team has yet announced a starter.
