Sal Frelick had hit four home runs in 339 regular season at bats, and none of them had prepared Milwaukee for what he did on Saturday night. His leadoff home run in the sixth inning of Game 2 tied the World Series game at 4-4, and the Brewers never trailed again, beating Tampa Bay 5-4 to take a 2-0 series lead.
Frelick’s home run travelled 408 feet to centre field, on a 3-2 fastball from Ian Seymour, and it arrived at the moment Milwaukee most needed it. The Brewers had trailed 4-0 in the first inning, cut the deficit to 4-3, and then watched the game stall. One swing changed the direction of the night, and perhaps of the series.
The at bat that changed the game
Frelick had battled a shoulder injury during the season and barely played against left handed pitching, according to reports of the game, yet manager Pat Murphy had spoken before Game 2 about the right fielder possessing an it factor in the manner of great clutch performers. Frelick lived up to that billing by battling through nine pitches before driving the ball out of the park.
The home run was his second career postseason homer according to one report of the game, though another described it as his first, a reminder that even the basic accounting of a postseason can differ between outlets. What is not in dispute is the score it produced: 4-4, with Milwaukee’s bullpen waiting to take over.
From tie to lead
An inning later, Brice Turang doubled and rookie Cooper Pratt singled him home for a 5-4 lead, and the Brewers bullpen threw six scoreless innings in total to close the game. Aaron Ashby finished for his third save, stranding the tying run at third in the ninth.
As Reuters reported, Frelick’s homer levelled the game after Milwaukee had fallen into a four run hole in the first inning. Teams remember World Series games by their turning points, and Game 2 now has one: a leadoff home run in the sixth, from a player whose regular season power numbers gave no warning of it, that turned a comeback into a series lead. Game 3 is on Monday in St. Petersburg.
