MILWAUKEE — No one is extra dissatisfied about Jesse Winker’s manufacturing for the Brewers than Winker himself, however on Monday, he discovered a method to contribute in a brand new position off the bench.
Blake Perkins took a four-pitch stroll earlier than Winker’s pinch-hit single pushed the profitable run into scoring place for Christian Yelich’s walk-off single, giving the Brewers a 3-2 win over the Reds at American Family Field on an evening Milwaukee’s pitching and protection shined as soon as once more, however the offense largely floundered.
No matter. With Joey Wiemer’s home-run-saving catch within the first inning and Sal Frelick’s first profession dwelling run within the sixth, the Brewers beat the Reds for the ninth time in 11 tries this season and moved 1 1/2 video games forward within the National League Central standings on an evening Milwaukee was 2-for-16 with runners in scoring place and got here up empty with a runner at third base and fewer than two outs in 4 totally different innings. As Yelich dug in in opposition to Reds All-Star nearer Alexis Díaz, Brewers hitters had come up empty in 14 consecutive at-bats with runners in scoring place.
A bouncer via the best aspect of the infield modified all the things.
“Baseball’s tough,” stated Yelich after his first walk-off hit since September 2019. “There’s numerous robust moments, and also you’ve simply received to maintain battling. Every day is a brand new day. You by no means know when it’s going to show.
“[Winker] has done a really good job. He’s stayed really positive all year and works really hard. It’s great to see him have success in that moment, and hopefully that gets him started, and he can build on that.”
“I’m not going to come in here and pout or mope or not be a good dude,” Winker stated. “Honestly, it’s been extremely fun for me to be here and be a part of this team. I wish I could be doing more to help, but there’s still a lot of ball left, and I want to be ready for it.”
The Brewers acquired Winker and infielder Abraham Toro from the Mariners within the winter for money and second baseman Kolten Wong, and for 2 of these gamers, it’s been a tough yr. Among the 289 gamers who had greater than 190 or extra plate appearances going into Monday night time Wong (.208) and Winker (.248) had baseball’s two lowest slugging percentages — although Wong boosted his with a pinch-hit, go-ahead dwelling run within the ninth inning for the Mariners in Minnesota.
For Winker, it’s a continuation of an influence outage that started final season as he handled neck and knee accidents. Winker and the Brewers hoped {that a} pair of surgical procedures, plus a change of surroundings, would unlock the participant who by no means produced an OPS beneath .830 in elements of 5 seasons with the Reds from 2017-21.
It has not, not less than not but. Winker did have one stint on the IL this season for a neck challenge, however he refused in charge his well being for his lack of manufacturing.
“Man, I hate making excuses,” Winker stated Monday afternoon. “I’m not harm like I used to be final yr, however I believe I underestimated how laborious it might be getting back from two surgical procedures. I actually suppose I underestimated that.
“But it’s too late for that. It’s too late to second guess. I’ve played like [crap]. It’s that simple. We could say it’s the surgeries, we could say it’s this or it’s that. Is there some truth to those things? Sure. But at the end of the day, if I can walk, it’s my job to walk in here and be able to help the team win. That’s how I look at it.”
His problem is that the probabilities to do this are rising sparse. With catcher William Contreras swinging a sizzling bat (.357/.387/.529 this month), he’s been the DH on days he’s not behind the plate. Manager Craig Counsell additionally intends to make use of Yelich because the DH extra typically within the weeks forward to maintain his common left fielder contemporary amid a resurgent season. Yelich is hitting .342 (54-for-158) with seven homers, 30 RBIs and 32 runs scored over his previous 40 video games.
“At this point, truthfully, we’ve just got to go with the guys who we think can produce more. We’re at that point of the season, for me,” Counsell earlier than Monday’s recreation.
Winker has had success off the bench, going 5-for-12 with two walks as a pinch-hitter. Counsell and bench coach Pat Murphy knowledgeable him lately that he’d have a extra restricted position.
“Managing a baseball team is probably the hardest thing to do in sports,” Winker stated Friday afternoon. “I’ve all the time stated it, if you’re accountable for a gaggle of individuals, you must consider the collective, not only one individual. I’m prepared for no matter.
“Obviously, you want to play every day. I’m still a competitor. But I’m not here to write the lineup, I’m here when my number is called to be ready, and I feel like I’ve done a really good job of staying ready. I’m excited to help our team win.”
Content Source: www.mlb.com