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Brewers stun Mets, force decisive Game 3 in wild-card round

Posted on by Vanessa
Brewers stun Mets, force decisive Game 3 in wild-card round

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And the youth should lead them.

Six outs away from another humiliating exit in the postseason, the Milwaukee Brewers hit a game-winning home run from Jackson Chourio and a go-ahead two-run home run from Garrett Mitchell to storm past the New York Mets by 5-3, Wednesday night in Game 2 of the National League Wild Card Series at American Family Field.

Chourio's home run was his second of the game; He led off the bottom of the first with an opposite-field shot against Mets starter Sean Manaea after three pitches.

Meanwhile, Mitchell came into the game as a pinch-runner in the sixth. The at-bat was his first of the game and came after Willy Adames hit a single to left with two outs and the score was 3-3.

Phil Maton threw a first-pitch curveball and Mitchell smacked it into right-center, electrifying the crowd as he gestured to fans as he rounded the bases.

Devin Williams retired the Mets in order in the ninth, putting the finishing touches to the Brewers' six-game losing streak in the playoffs that stretched into 2021.

Jackson Chourio has a short memory

“I think it will be a beautiful game,” Chourio told reporters early Tuesday afternoon.

Then, with three pitches to go in the first Wednesday, he hit an 0-2 sinker that Manaea had left over the plate to right to tie the Brewers at 1-1 against the Mets and the crowd of 40,350 to cause turmoil.

It was the second postseason leadoff home run in franchise history. Corey Hart led off Game 6 of the 2011 NLCS by going deep against the St. Louis Cardinals.

What a response from the 20-year-old Chourio to his fifth-inning fielding gaffe in Game 1, an error that opened the door for the Mets to a game-winning five-run rally in an 8-4 loss.

The first-inning home run was the second manaea allowed to the Brewers in five days. Rhys Hoskins hit a grand slam against him last Friday.

More fielding problems for Milwaukee pitchers

Three batters after Chourio misplayed Tyrone Taylor's fly ball into a double in Game 1, Joel Payamps failed to cover first base in time on a José Iglesias ground ball. That slight hesitation allowed Iglesias to slide headfirst into the bag just before Payamps touched him, and the dam broke shortly after.

A similarly bad mistake was made in the second inning on Wednesday, only this time by Frankie Montas and on a ground ball to right by Starling Marte.

Hoskins pitched the ball perfectly downfield and threw it perfectly to Montas, who got to the sack in time but somehow failed to catch the ball. Taylor and Francisco Alvarez followed with singles, and then Francisco Lindor hit a sacrifice fly to left to put New York back in the lead, 3-1.

It's the fourth postseason game Montas has appeared in in his nine-year career, and there probably haven't been many easier plays than the one he didn't make.

Another short leash for a Milwaukee starter

Freddy Peralta allowed three runs in the second inning in Game 1, but finally found his groove, retiring nine batters in a row before being retired by manager Pat Murphy with a pitch count of just 68.

There's certainly some truth to the “third time through the order” argument, but after seeing things immediately go wrong after Payamps moved in, that just added fuel to the fire for fans who believed Murphy's hook it happened too quickly for Peralta.

Montas had retired six of seven batters, including the last two via strikeouts, before being lifted by Murphy with a runner on second in the fourth and his pitch count at 60.

Trevor Megill came in and initiated a flyout to keep the score at 3-1 and the book with a six-hit, three-run (one earned), one-walk, three-strikeout start for Montas to complete.

The Brewers' veterans were (mostly) MIA

One of the series' most intriguing storylines was the way the Brewers' core of young and inexperienced players would perform under the brightest lights.

As it turned out, they were more than fine. Chourio shined, Brice Turang scored multiple goals in each game and Sal Frelick showed tremendous toughness by overcoming a painful left hip contusion and providing offense at the back of the lineup.

However, Milwaukee's veterans were a different story.

Adames was 0 for 3 with a walk in Game 1 and 1 for 4 with a run scored in Game 2. William Contreras was 1 for 4 with two RBI in Game 1 and 1 for 4 in Game 2. And Hoskins was 0 for 3 with an RBI and a walk in Game 1 and 0 for 4 in Game 2.

Needless to say, when the best and most consistent run producers are so blatantly failing to produce, it's difficult to win a game, let alone in the postseason.

The rookie comes through again

And right on cue, when the Brewers needed a boost and the crowd of 40,350 had deflated, Chourio delivered.

With New York leading 3-2 and only three outs away from Edwin Diaz clinching the game, the rookie faced right-hander Maton.

With the score tied at 1-1, Chourio shot a cutter high and over the plate and sent the ball to the right again, this time hitting it off the second deck panel to make it 3-3.

Talk about clutch performers. Do you think the Brewers are happy the kid is locked up long-term?

This story has been updated to add new information.

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