Brewers' offense finally comes to play, scores 9 in finale vs. Cleveland
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CLEVELAND -- Sal Frelick circled the bases after his tying home run cleared the center-field wall Wednesday afternoon, then he chucked his helmet in the dugout while letting out a yell.
It wasn’t out of anger. It was an emotional release meant to fire up the ballclub.
And in a 9-5 win over the Guardians at Progressive Field to avoid a three-game sweep, with Rhys Hoskins leading the way with four hits and five RBIs, Frelick’s helmet toss was just the sort of fire the Brewers’ brain trust has been hoping to see from some of the budding hitters who hold the keys to Milwaukee’s offensive successes or failures this season.
“I’m trying to be a spark plug, get some energy,” Frelick said. “It just happened.”
It had the desired effect.
“That’s what he brings to this team,” Hoskins said. “Flying all over the place, playing with his hair on fire. … That’s a big moment in the game to get us back to even.”
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Frelick has the personality, he has the pedigree as a first-round Draft pick from 2021 and he has the skill set to deliver big moments, and it was his fifth-inning home run that proved the spark for the Brewers to finish a trying road trip with a win. Frelick’s second homer this season -- already matching his total from last year’s regular season, when he played 145 games and won the NL Gold Glove Award in right field -- tied Wednesday’s game at 2-2 before the Brewers pulled away with three runs in the sixth inning, two in the seventh and two more in the ninth.
Milwaukee’s veteran hitters provided much of the rest, with Jake Bauers, William Contreras and Hoskins all tallying multiple hits -- led by Hoskins reaching safely five times, including a two-run homer in the seventh inning and a huge two-run single for insurance in the ninth. Bauers delivered a pair of run-scoring hits of his own and Contreras scored four runs to back rookie starter Logan Henderson, who struck out seven and held Cleveland to two runs over five excellent innings in his second Major League start.
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“That’s a big one for us,” Hoskins said. “Rough stretch. Rough month, let’s call it. That’s not going to charge our mentality at least [as far as] how we prepare every day and show up to compete. Talking about it as a group last night put us in a good position to go compete today.”
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It was the kind of collective response that manager Pat Murphy and associate manager Rickie Weeks were looking for after closing the clubhouse for a team meeting in the wake of a second consecutive shutout loss on Tuesday night. Weeks was part of plenty of those gatherings during his long tenure as a Brewers player, since even the potent lineups of the late 2000s and early '10s -- with Weeks at the top and Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder lurking below -- went through funks.
“We have Rhys, and we have [Christian] Yelich to say things that need to be said,” Weeks said. “But I think with the next wave of guys coming up, it’s like, ‘It’s OK to speak up. It’s OK to own the moment if you play the game the right way.’
"And we have those guys.”
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The most encouraging aspect of Wednesday’s win was seeing the Brewers hit for extra bases. Only the Pirates and White Sox went into the day with lower slugging percentages than the Brewers’ .349, which would be their lowest mark since 1976.
But that number climbed to .355 with doubles for Bauers, Contreras and Hoskins, and homers for Frelick and Hoskins, whose two-run shot in the seventh inning was initially called a double with Contreras called out at home plate.
After the umpires reviewed the video and saw the baseball clear the home run line, Hoskins circled the bases and the Brewers were on their way to a win.
“It’s nice to hit with two legs,” said Hoskins, who lost the 2023 season to left knee surgery and spent ‘24 with the Brewers rounding back into form.
It’s also nice to score some runs in bunches.
“Just the mindset headed into the game was a little more important today,” Frelick said. “Obviously, you don’t want to get swept. I think when we got to the field today, I knew we were going to put a full nine [innings] together.
“It was a good reset after the game yesterday. Guys showed up today ready to go, reemphasizing how we’re supposed to play baseball. I think we did it today.”