Aaron Ashby has spent this October doing the kind of work that doesn’t always grab the spotlight - and on Tuesday night, he still found a way to make history while nearly pushing the Milwaukee Brewers to the finish line.
The Brewers lost 4-3 to the Tampa Bay Rays in 12 innings at Tropicana Field, a Game 4 defeat that stopped Milwaukee from completing a sweep and forced Game 5. But Ashby’s stretch in the late innings was the kind of run managers remember long after the box score fades.
With the game tied at 2-2 in the ninth, Ashby came in and retired seven straight batters over 31 pitches. That extended his postseason scoreless streak to 18 consecutive innings, an MLB record. He passed the previous mark of 16 straight shutout frames set by Andrew Miller for Cleveland in 2016.
Miller has been keeping an eye on the run. "It’s been a lot of fun to watch,” Miller told The Athletic's Johnny Flores Jr."
I think, obviously, he’s about as locked in as you can possibly be. … I selfishly enjoy watching middle relievers be, like, a glue guy, to really have the whole team lean on them.
But he’s just a dominant force right now, and it’s fun to watch (Brewers manager) Pat Murphy let him go, and him back it up."
Ashby has been more than a matchup piece in these playoffs. In all but one of his nine postseason appearances, he’s gone beyond three outs. He’s collected three saves, two holds and a win, while giving up only five hits and three walks.
Murphy has clearly trusted him in the World Series, too. Over three appearances against the Rays, Ashby has allowed just one hit across 5.2 innings and struck out nine.
Still, Tuesday was the first time Ashby took the ball in a postseason game the Brewers ended up losing. Milwaukee had grabbed a lead in the top of the 12th on a go-ahead home run from rookie shortstop Cooper Pratt, but Tampa Bay answered with two runs off Shane Drohan to keep the series going.
"It’s one of those cool things I guess," Ashby said of his record, per MLB.com's Anthony DiComo. "But more so, that loss stings."
Now Murphy has one more decision to make: whether Ashby can go again when the Brewers get another shot at the World Series on Wednesday. Game 5 is set for 8 p.m. ET on Fox.
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