San Diego sunk by another Brewers rally, Miller can’t nail down two-inning save

The Padres were a strike away from leveling the NL Division series, but Jackson Chourio cracked a game-winning two-RBI single up the middle with the bases loaded off Mason Miller, as San Diego dropped the second game in heartbreaking fashion, 4-3 to the Milwaukee Brewers.

Ty France had a pair of RBI and Michael King retired the first 14 batters he faced, as the Padres scored two of their three runs unearned. The Brewers never led until the final swing of the bat, as Chourio came up with a clutch two-RBI hit for the second consecutive game, and the defense survived making three errors.

After Yuki Matsui and Bradgley Rodriguez followed King’s five-plus innings, Miller retired the Brewers in order in the eighth by striking out the first two he faced and getting William Contreras to pop out.

Then in the ninth after a ground out, Christian Yelich walked and stole second. Then Frelick walked as well. Facing pinch-hitter Andrew Vaughn, Miller got a fly-out to shallow center, and then another pinch-hitter in Gary Sánchez walked to load the bases. Then Chourio slapped a full-count fastball back up the middle for the game-winning hit.

Miller was trying for the second six-out save of his career, as he threw a career-high 40 pitches.

Milwaukee made their third error of the day in the seventh inning, as third baseman David Hamilton allowed Fernando Tatis Jr. to reach with one out. A two out walk to Manny Machado set up France against reliever Abner Uribe, with France winning a first-pitch ABS challenge to reverse a strike call, then shooting his second RBI single of the game to right field. But Machado got thrown out trying to stretch it to third as he was cut down by Frelick.

But the two-run lead was short lived, as after reliever Matsui pitched a clean sixth, he allowed a hit and a walk around Jackson Merrill making a leaping catch at the wall in left-center to rob Yelich. Rodriguez came on and got a ground-out that moved the runners up a base.

Then David Hamilton reached on a throwing error by Jake Cronenworth, allowing a run to come home. Rodriguez then got Jackson Chourio to ground out to short and keep the lead.

The eighth started promisingly, with Merrill singling off reliever Aaron Ashby, then with Samad Taylor pinch-hitting and dropping a bunt down that the Brewers didn’t cover first on. However, a strikeout and then Freddy Fermin, who replaced Luis Campusano in the seventh, grounded into a double play to end the inning.

After seeing the top two in the order struck out by Brewers starter Logan Henderson, Machado was patient at the plate and battled back from an 0-2 count to work a seven-pitch walk. A wild pitch put him into scoring position for first baseman France, who went with an outside fastball and ripped it to right-center field for an RBI single.

The Padres went 1-for-12 in RISP situations on Saturday, France shook off the weird end to game one by collecting his sixth hit of the postseason and first RBI. An inning later designated hitter Gavin Sheets drew a leadoff walk and catcher Campusano won an ABS challenge for a one-out free pass, but that would be all as consecutive fly outs to left ended the threat.

King was on point his first time through the order, retiring the Brewers in order behind four strikeouts and getting a strong bare-hand play from Machado to get shortstop Cooper Pratt on a soft ground-out. Milwaukee did not hit a ball out of the infield until Chourio got robbed on a sliding catch by Tatis to start the fourth inning.

In the fifth inning Campusano led off with a single, snapping a string of eight retired in a row by Henderson. Then with one down, Tatis hit it back up the middle and through second baseman Brice Turang for a fielder’s choice and an error.

Dustin Harris followed up by hitting an outside changeup on a two-hopper to Turang, who got Tatis at second and then Pratt’s attempted turn for a double play got thrown away to bring home Campusano. A ground out would end the inning with the Padres ahead 2-0 on the unearned run.

The Brewers finally got their first base runner with two out in the fifth when Yelich pulled a low changeup down the right field line for a double. It opened the flood gates as Frelick followed up by going the other way with an RBI single to left field, then Pratt hit a sinker through the right field side. After a mound visit, a pop out in foul territory to left field stopped the push.

Henderson’s night ended after hitting France with a pitch to start the sixth, finishing with five-plus innings pitched with two hits, two runs (one earned), three walks and four strikeouts. Reliever JoJo Romero got a pair of strikeouts, including one against Austin Hays replacing Sheets as DH, then walked Xander Bogaerts to bring in Uribe from the pen to get the final out of the inning.

The Brewer fifth started the exact same way, as King had a second-pitch sinker catch Chourio on the shoulder. King’s night ended with five-plus innings pitched, three hits allowed, one run with no walks and six strikeouts. Matsui came on and promptly got a pair of flyouts and a ground out to keep nothing coming of it.

For game three the Padres will turn to Nick Pivetta (3-2, 2.86 ERA) for the second time this postseason. Milwaukee will counter with righty Dustin May (7-9, 4.70 ERA), who will be making his third career first postseason start and first appearance since appearing in relief with the Los Angeles Dodgers during the 2020 World Series.

May went 1-1 against the Padres this season, pitching a complete game shutout as a member of the St. Louis Cardinals on June 15, then taking a loss with St. Louis at Petco Park on May 9 and a no-decision with the Brewers in a seven-inning effort in San Diego on Aug. 12. His cumulative numbers for the year against the Brown and Gold were 22 innings pitched with eight hits, four runs (three earned), five walks and 22 strikeouts plus two home runs allowed — both long balls came at Petco Park.

After an off day for travel, first pitch for game three is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. PT on Tuesday, Oct. 6 from Petco Park, with FS1 providing the television coverage and KWFN 97.3 FM airing the Padres Radio Network broadcast.

This story will be updated.