Milwaukee Brewers manager Pat Murphy spoke out with a clear challenge to his players after the club dropped a 4-3 decision in 12 innings to the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday in Game 4 of the World Series.
“If you’re a competitor, you wake up tomorrow morning, come ready to play,” Murphy said after the game.
The loss snapped an eight-game winning streak for the Brewers and prevented them from sweeping the series. Milwaukee still leads the best-of-seven matchup 3-1 and needs one more victory to claim the first championship in franchise history.
Brewers Focus on Next Game After Extra-Inning Setback
Cooper Pratt gave Milwaukee a 3-2 lead with a home run in the top of the 12th, his fourth hit of the night. The Rays answered in the bottom half.
An error by third baseman Joey Ortiz on the leadoff batter opened the door. Singles by Jonny DeLuca and pinch-hitter Ben Williamson scored two runs and ended the game.
Reliever Shane Drohan, pressed into duty after the Brewers had already used several arms, faced four batters and allowed hits to all of them. Murphy said the club has no choice but to accept the outcome and move forward.
“When you’re achieving something like this, it’s going to have its adversity,” Murphy said. “We had some things go our way yesterday; they had some things go their way today. That’s what it is. You live with it.”
The Brewers finished the regular season with a 103-59 record, the best mark in the majors. They then swept the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League Championship Series, their first pennant since the 1982 season. That earlier team, then in the American League, lost the World Series in seven games to the St. Louis Cardinals.
This is Milwaukee’s second Fall Classic appearance overall. No Brewers club has ever won a title.
Misiorowski Takes the Mound in Bid to Close Series
Jacob Misiorowski is scheduled to start Game 5 on Wednesday night at Tropicana Field. The 24-year-old right-hander went 16-5 with a 1.80 ERA and 252 strikeouts during the regular season. He pitched five innings of one-run ball in the series opener, and his first pitch of that game reached 103.5 mph, the fastest recorded in World Series history.
Murphy confirmed the start after Tuesday’s loss and said Misiorowski was never an option to pitch in relief during the extra innings. The manager wanted to preserve him for Wednesday on four days of rest.
“It’s all hands on deck,” Murphy said. “You can write it up, and hope they perform like the back of their baseball card, but that doesn’t always happen. You go with what you believe is the deal. I trust our guys.”
Rays manager Kevin Cash has not named his Game 5 starter. Tampa Bay is also seeking its first championship. The club became only the fifth team in the last 26 seasons to force a Game 5 after trailing 3-0 in the World Series.
Brewers captain Christian Yelich said the setback fits the expected difficulty of a championship run.
“If you want to win a championship, you’ve got to survive some hard things,” Yelich said. “It’s supposed to be hard. It’s supposed to test you. We understand that.”
Murphy credited the Rays for putting balls in play when it mattered most and said both clubs have used a lot of pitching in the tight series.
Game 5 begins at 8 p.m. Eastern on Fox. The Brewers would clinch with a win. A loss would send the series back to Milwaukee for Game 6 on Friday.
Brewers’ Pat Murphy Issues Clear Challenge to Team After Game 4 Loss