The Milwaukee Brewers began a three-game series with the Tigers in Detroit on Tuesday night, and things couldn’t have gone much better for the Crew. Even after a few close calls on the pitching side early, the Brewers pulled away late with some insurance in the seventh before a big eighth inning to win 12-4.
With Keider Montero on the mound for Detroit, he started things off with a harmless inning, working around a two-out single from Jake Bauers. Lefty Kyle Harrison, making his first start in 10
days, hit Gleyber Torres with a pitch before a passed ball by William Contreras allowed Torres to move to second. Harrison settled in from there, recording a lineout from rookie Kevin McGonigle before getting Matt Vierling to fly out.
The Brewers put together some offense in the second, as Garrett Mitchell reached on an infield single (he was initially called out, but the call was overturned upon review), Luis Rengifo walked, and Sal Frelick singled to bring Mitchell in. David Hamilton followed with a bunt single to load the bases. After Blake Perkins struck out, Brice Turang singled home two more.
Turang found himself caught in a rundown between first and second, and Hamilton was thrown out trying to score as Turang tried to get out of the pickle. Contreras flew out to end the inning, but Milwaukee was out to a 3-0 lead.
Harrison allowed a pair of singles in the second but got out of the jam with a strikeout and flyout before Montero bounced back for a 1-2-3 inning in the third.
Harrison once again dealt with traffic in the third. After Perkins very casually robbed what would have been a homer by Jahmai Jones, Harrison allowed a two-out double to McGonigle before walking Matt Vierling. With Dillon Dingler — Detroit’s home run leader — representing the tying run, Harrison set him down with a strikeout to hold the 3-0 lead.
For the fourth consecutive inning to begin the evening, Harrison dealt with traffic as he loaded the bases with a pair of walks and a single. That marked the end of the night for him, as he lasted just three-plus frames on 72 pitches, allowing four hits and three walks, striking out three. Grant Anderson took over from there and immediately got Javier Báez to roll over into a 6-4-3 double play, allowing a run to score but putting the Crew in a good position to escape with minimal damage. Kerry Carpenter pinch-hit for Jones and proceeded to strike out, as Anderson walked the tightrope to keep the lead at 3-1 through four.
Anderson also got the fifth inning, working around a single and recording another double play. Trevor Megill took over in the sixth and recorded a quick 1-2-3 inning as he’s looked much better in his last few outings after being demoted from the closer role last week.
You may have noticed I haven’t mentioned Milwaukee’s offense in a minute. That’s because while all of this was happening, they had four consecutive 1-2-3 innings in the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth innings. That would continue with two outs — both hard-hit flyouts to the warning track — to begin the seventh as they stretched to 15 consecutive at-bats without reaching base, but Hamilton brought the streak to an end with a single.
Perkins followed with a walk, and after an E1 by reliever Enmanuel De Jesus on a pickoff attempt at second, Turang made him pay and singled Hamilton in to extend the lead to 4-1. Contreras then hit another run-scoring single to make it 5-1 before the inning came to an end on a Bauers groundout.
Aaron Ashby took over for Megill in the bottom of the inning and worked around a pair of walks while recording two strikeouts.
Then things unraveled for Detroit.
Gary Sánchez started the eighth with a triple(!), just the fourth of his career and his first since 2024 (also with the Brewers). Not to be outdone, the rest of the inning went as follows:
- Mitchell triple (6-1 Brewers)
- Rengifo single (7-1 Brewers)
- Frelick walk
- Hamilton single
- Perkins hit by pitch (8-1 Brewers)
- Turang sac fly (9-1 Brewers)
- Contreras single (10-1 Brewers)
- Bauers double (11-1 Brewers)
- Sánchez groundout (12-1 Brewers)
- Mitchell groundout
With a 12-1 lead, Jake Woodford took over for Ashby to close things out. Joey Ortiz, in as a defensive replacement, had an error, but Woodford worked around it for a scoreless eighth.
Detroit’s backup catcher, Jake Rogers, took over on the mound in the ninth and — after striking out Rengifo on a 61.5-mph eephus — worked around two singles for a scoreless inning.
The Tigers finally found some life in the bottom of the ninth, but it was a case of too little, too late. With two outs and a runner on, Wenceel Pérez and McGonigle both singled, and Vierling doubled to cut the score to 12-4 before Dingler flew out to end the game.
It was a strange night for the Brewer offense, as they recorded 16 hits (no homers, just three extra-base hits) and three walks wrapped around 15 consecutive outs in the middle of the game. Hamilton had his best game as a Brewer, going 4-for-5 with two runs scored. Turang went 2-for-5 with a team-high four RBIs, and Contreras, Bauers, and Mitchell each had a pair of hits.
On the mound, Anderson picked up the win as he went two scoreless innings, allowing just one of three inherited runners to score. Megill and Ashby each had a scoreless inning in relief, while Woodford had a scoreless eighth before slipping up a bit in the ninth, allowing three runs on four hits.
The Brewers are back at it tomorrow as they’ll look to secure another series win. Chad Patrick gets the start, with former No. 1 overall pick Casey Mize starting for Detroit. First pitch is at 5:40 p.m. CT.
