The Milwaukee Brewers needed only a win to lock up a playoff spot, and they turned that assignment into a full-blown rout.
Milwaukee battered Cincinnati from the first inning on, ripped through Andrew Abbott and every reliever who followed him, and rode six shutout innings from Dustin May to a 20-0 victory that officially punched the Brewers’ postseason ticket.
It barely took any time for the game to get away from the Reds. Jackson Chourio opened the first with a double to left, Brice Turang dropped down a bunt single, and William Contreras brought home the first run with a sacrifice fly to center. Andrew Vaughn then jumped on a 92 mph fastball and doubled to left, scoring Turang and making it 2-0.
The second inning was even uglier for Cincinnati. Cooper Pratt and Garrett Mitchell started it with back-to-back singles, Joey Ortiz flied out, and then Chourio launched a ball into the right-field gap that bounced off the warning track and went over the wall for a two-run homer.
Turang followed by driving a changeup into the Reds’ bullpen, stretching the lead to 6-0. Vaughn added another single, and Jake Bauers finished the inning with a two-run homer to center for an 8-0 Brewers lead after two.
Abbott was gone after two innings, and Milwaukee never let off the gas. May kept cruising on the mound, rolling through the third with another 1-2-3 frame, and the Brewers kept piling on in the fourth and fifth.
In the fourth, Turang walked, Contreras and Christian Yelich each hit hard balls that were turned into outs, and Bauers singled before sloppy Reds defense let Turang score from first. In the fifth, Luis Lara made his mark in center field by robbing Eugenio Suárez of a home run, then Milwaukee broke the game wide open at the plate.
Mitchell, Ortiz and Chourio opened the inning with three straight singles. Turang followed with an RBI double and was replaced by David Hamilton as a pinch-runner.
Contreras then lined a two-run single to center, and after Luis Mey struck out Yelich and Bauers, Lara singled and Pratt walked to load the bases. Mitchell then unloaded on the first grand slam of the Brewers’ season.
By the time five innings were in the books, Milwaukee led 17-0 and had 20 hits. The game was long since over.
May’s night was just as important as the offensive explosion. He allowed only two hits and a walk, struck out six, and worked six shutout innings on 84 pitches.
His only real trouble came in the sixth, when he walked Elly De La Cruz with two outs and Pratt was charged with an error on a hard grounder from Stewart, but JJ Bleday grounded out to end the inning. May’s night also included the benefit of Lara’s home-run robbery.
After May, Garrett Stallings took over and kept the Reds quiet. Brock Burke worked the sixth for Cincinnati and got the first 1-2-3 inning of the night for the Reds despite a 106 mph, 349-foot line drive from Contreras. Stallings then allowed only a walk to Suárez in the seventh and was perfect in the eighth and ninth.
The late innings brought some unusual sights. Jose Trevino, Cincinnati’s backup catcher, threw a 1-3 inning in the seventh.
In the eighth, Bo Naylor appeared at first base, the first time in his 347 career big-league games that he had played anywhere other than catcher. Milwaukee then added one more burst, as Ortiz and Chourio singled before Contreras crushed a three-run homer to make it 20-0.
The numbers told the story everywhere you looked. Chourio finished with four hits, including two doubles, in his fourth four-hit game since August 27th.
Turang went 3-for-3 with a double and a homer before coming out for a pinch-runner. Vaughn was 2-for-2 with a double and an RBI.
Bauers had two hits, including a two-run homer. Contreras went 2-for-5 with a homer and six RBI.
Lara had two hits and the robbery in center. Mitchell went 3-for-5 with a grand slam and three runs scored.
Ortiz matched Chourio with four hits, all singles.
The win gave Milwaukee its eighth playoff berth in the last nine years. The Brewers are still in the hunt for a bye and home-field advantage, and they have not yet clinched the division, though that could happen as soon as Sunday if they sweep the Reds and the Pirates take the next two from the Cubs.
The series continues tomorrow with Brady Singer starting for the Reds. Milwaukee has not announced its starter.
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