The Milwaukee Brewers score two runs on a pair of fielder's choice grounders in 11th inning to eke out win over Cincinnati Reds
CINCINNATI – The Milwaukee Brewers won’t be getting a five-star guest rating after their trip as visitors to Great American Ball Park Friday night.
First, they played a role in delaying a postgame concert by the Zac Brown Band, the famous country music group, for the largest regular-season crowd in stadium history by sending the contest to extra innings.
Then they worked some late-game magic to steal a win.
After Elvis Peguero came through with arguably the most pivotal inning of the night with a scoreless bottom of the 10th, stranding the winning run at third with a pair of flyouts and a strikeout when the score was knotted at 3-3, the Brewers scratched across a pair of runs in the 11th.
An Andruw Monasterio single and Joey Wiemer walk loaded the bases with nobody out, a spot that has given Milwaukee nightmares recently. Not only were the Brewers 0 for their last 12 with the bases loaded overall, but were 2 for 20 with runners on base on the evening and have been largely unable to muster up a key hit with men in scoring position for the last month.
It wasn’t pretty, but a pair of fielder’s choices got the job done as Victor Caratini and Brice Turang gave the Brewers a 5-3 lead entering the bottom of the 11th.
There, Bryse Wilson shut the door for the save. He allowed the inherited extra-inning runner to score on a two-out double by Curt Casali but got Spencer Steer to ground out to secure the win.
Starting for the Brewers was Corbin Burnes, who pieced together an up-and-down start that featured some of his better swing and miss stuff of the year paired with shaky command that led to a two-run third.
Burnes struck out seven, his fifth time posting a strikeout total that high this year, over six innings, but was burned by a pair of leadoff walks.
The first came in the second to Reds cleanup hitter Jake Fraley, who then stole second, moved to third on a grounder and beat a throw home from second baseman Owen Miller on a grounder despite the Brewers having the infield in.
In the following inning, Burnes walked No. 9 hitter Luke Maile and it came back to burn him when Jonathan India sent a first-pitch cutter out to right with two outs.
The blast gave the Reds a 3-2 lead, which lasted not even a half-inning as Victor Caratini knotted the score up with a run-scoring groundout in the top of the fourth, but that was all Milwaukee got after loading the bases with one out against Williamson.
The Reds rookie went 6 2/3 innings allowing only two earned runs on five hits while striking out five, marking the 13th time in 17 starts by a lefty starter – excluding “openers” who only work an inning or two by design – that the Brewers were held to two or fewer earned runs.
The Brewers bullpen didn't allow an earned run over five innings as Joel Payamps, Peter Strzelecki, Devin Williams, Peguero and Wilson combined to do yeoman's work.
Peguero picked up his first big-league win with a shutdown 10th after the Brewers offense stranded the bases loaded in the top half. Peguero got two fly outs and a strikeout to strand the go-ahead runner at third base.
For as much as Milwaukee struggled with men on base, Cincinnati was worse, going just 1 for 17 with runners in scoring position.
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Brewers scratch across two runs in top of 11th inning to top Reds
