Milwaukee is two wins from its first World Series championship after erasing a four-run deficit to beat Tampa Bay 5-4 in Game 2 on Saturday.
Sal Frelick tied the game with a sixth-inning homer, and Cooper Pratt delivered the go-ahead single in the seventh as the Brewers took a 2-0 series lead.
The comeback followed a difficult opening inning for rookie Logan Henderson, who allowed four runs before Milwaukee’s bullpen took over, Sportsnet reported.
Liam Hicks’ two-run homer helped Tampa Bay establish its early advantage. The Brewers answered with two runs in the bottom half, immediately cutting the deficit in half.
William Contreras and Garrett Mitchell supplied RBI singles in that response, according to FOX Sports’ game analysis. Milwaukee kept generating traffic against Drew Rasmussen after the first inning.
The Game 2 pitching matchup had given Tampa Bay its ace on extra rest. Rasmussen lasted only 3⅔ innings as Milwaukee repeatedly extended counts and created pressure.
David Hamilton’s run-scoring grounder cut the lead to 4-3 in the fourth, before Frelick’s ninth-pitch homer against Ian Seymour tied it, The Associated Press reported.
Frelick had not homered since July 11. His drive gave the Brewers a timely power contribution before Pratt’s seventh-inning single brought Brice Turang home from second.
Pratt’s hit also offered redemption after his first-inning throwing error helped the Rays get started. Milwaukee’s offense eventually erased the damage from that early mistake.
Aaron Ashby’s 15⅔ scoreless postseason innings leave him one out short of Andrew Miller’s mark to begin a postseason, MLB.com noted in Sunday’s takeaways.
Ashby secured the final five outs and stranded the potential tying run at third in the ninth, finishing another strong night for Milwaukee’s relief staff.
JoJo Romero, Dustin May, DL Hall, Abner Uribe and Ashby combined for six scoreless innings. That coverage allowed the Brewers to recover from Henderson’s short start.
Milwaukee is 9-1 this postseason after winning an MLB-best 103 games during the regular season. Both World Series victories have come by a single run.
The series moves to Tropicana Field for Game 3 on Monday at 8 p.m. Eastern, with Robert Gasser scheduled to face former Brewers teammate Freddy Peralta.
The lead changes the pressure. Milwaukee can finish the series in Florida, while Tampa Bay needs two home wins to force a return.
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