MILWAUKEE — Caleb Durbin electrified the crowd with a walk-off home run to lead off the ninth inning, steering the Milwaukee Brewers to a thrilling 4-3 victory against the San Diego Padres on Saturday night.
The remarkable finish came after the Brewers nearly lost their grip on the lead.
Earlier in the ninth, Luis Arraez’s two-run double with two outs brought San Diego level, just as Milwaukee appeared set to close it out. The tension quickly shifted back in favor of the home team, as rookie Caleb Durbin smashed the first pitch he faced from David Morgan into the left-center stands.
This marked only the second home run of Durbin’s major league career, the first since late April.
On the mound, Trevor Megill secured the win despite allowing Arraez to level scores in the ninth. Elias Díaz initiated the late Padres rally with a one-out single. Following a two-out walk drawn by Xander Bogaerts, both advancing on a double steal, Arraez capitalized, driving a 3-2 pitch into the left-field corner.
Prior to the late drama, Milwaukee clinched two crucial runs in the eighth inning. Rhys Hoskins sent Christian Yelich home on a sacrifice fly, and Isaac Collins extended the lead with an RBI single scoring William Contreras. Earlier, a sacrifice fly from Jake Bauers had tied the game at 1 in the seventh, scoring Collins on an unearned run.
San Diego took an initial lead in the fourth inning, with Jackson Merrill’s single setting the stage for a score following a walk by Jose Iglesias. Elias Díaz then drove Merrill home with a timely single.
Padres starter Stephen Kolek delivered 5 2/3 innings without conceding a run. In contrast, the Brewers’ José Quintana allowed one run over his five-inning stint.
In a key moment, after Arraez’s tying double in the ninth, he advanced to third through a steal. Megill, however, held firm to prevent further damage, inducing a groundball out from Manny Machado to shortstop Andruw Monasterio.
The Brewers had been held scoreless across the opening 15 innings of the series. However, they found their rhythm, aligning four crucial runs within the closing three innings of Saturday’s game.
Anticipation builds as the series finale on Sunday promises more excitement, with Ryan Bergert slated to pitch for the Padres against the Brewers’ Freddy Peralta.