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The Milwaukee Brewers were three outs away from completing one of the most impressive postseason runs. But they were unable to finish the job in Game 4, and they'll have to wait one more day before potentially celebrating a championship.
"When you're achieving something like this, it's going to have its adversity," said Brewers manager Pat Murphy, video courtesy of MLB on FOX. "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. And if you're a competitor, you wake up tomorrow morning and come ready to play."
Cooper Pratt's 12th-inning home run gave the Brewers a 3-2 lead. But without their top relievers, Shane Drohan couldn't get the final three outs necessary. All four batters he faced hit safely, handing Milwaukee their first heartbreaking loss of the postseason and extending the series one more game.
"Credit Tampa for what they did. They put it in play when they needed to."
Even though the Brewers failed to complete the four-game sweep, they are still in a good spot in this World Series. Milwaukee can still close out the World Series in Tampa Bay with a win in Game 5.
Murphy confirmed they'll start their ace, Jacob Misiorowski, in a closeout scenario for Game 5. It also marks the first time that the rotation has turned over in a postseason series.
It will be interesting to see if the right-hander gets a longer leash in Game 5. The Brewers had to cover nine-plus innings in Game 4, with their top relievers going more than one inning. For the first time this postseason, bullpen fatigue is now a factor for Milwaukee. If Misiorowski is recording outs as efficiently as he was in Game 1, it's possible the Brewers push him for six innings.
"It's all hands on deck," said Murphy. "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."
Both teams will have their bullpen on fumes entering Game 5. The more interesting factor is Nick Martinez threw a scoreless inning in Game 4. So it will be interesting to see how Tampa Bay puts together their pitching in Game 5 after having to cover 12 innings.
The Brewers have enjoyed a bullpen advantage for much of this postseason. Much of that is because they've ruthlessly closed out both the Dodgers and Padres. But if the series extends back to Milwaukee for a sixth game, the attrition of a long series can mitigate their advantage.