Brewers capitalize on 2-out rally in 8th to beat Cards 4-1

MILWAUKEE (AP) — The Milwaukee Brewers were on the verge of going down in order in the eighth when a stroke of luck kept the inning going.

Given new life, the Brewers broke out of their collective hitting slump and snapped the St. Louis Cardinals’ four-game winning streak.

Travis Shaw hit a tiebreaking double and Avisaíl García added a two-run homer in the eighth as the Brewers defeated the Cardinals 4-1 on Wednesday night. That outburst was possible only because a wild pitch foiled Ryan Helsey's apparent inning-ending strikeout of Daniel Vogelbach.

“The rally started in a pretty strange way with the strikeout and just getting a base,” Brewers manager Craig Counsell said. “That was probably the big break. Then we put two great swings on baseballs — drove a ball in the gap and hit a ball over the fence. That was the good stuff.”

After Vogelbach reached first, Shaw hit a double to right center off Helsley (3-1) that brought home pinch-runner Pablo Reyes. García capped the outburst with a towering homer to left-center that was projected at 442 feet.

The Brewers gained a measure of revenge after losing 6-1 to the NL Central-leading Cardinals in 11 innings a night earlier. The Cardinals came from behind to win Tuesday despite getting just two hits in the first 10 innings.

“It seems like any time we play them, it's always close like this,” Shaw said. “There's going to be some back and forth. We're going to have nights that get away from us like last night. And then we're going to have our nights like we had tonight.”

The Cardinals had tied the game in the top of the eighth on Tyler O’Neill’s homer to right off Brandon Woodruff, who struck out 10 and gave up just three hits and one walk in 7 2/3 splendid innings.

Woodruff, who has a 1.19 ERA over his last seven starts,...

source https://www.chron.com/sports/article/Brewers-capitalize-on-2-out-rally-in-8th-to-beat-16173210.php