Brewers 6, Tigers 5: Just out of reach

The Detroit Tigers, despite a shining performance from their relief corps, were downed by powerful Milwaukee Brewers bats and an unfortunate defensive timing error, falling by a score of 6-5.

TheThe Tigers managed a few quick runs off of Brewers’ starter Zach Davies, with RBI singles from Niko Goodrum, Jim Adduci, and James McCann in the top of the first. The Brewers would quickly answer back, with a Christian Yelich two-run home run and a Ryan Braun solo shot off of Jordan Zimmermann in the bottom of the inning. An RBI single from Mike Moustakas would give the Brewers a 4-3 lead in the bottom of the third inning, expanding to a 5-3 advantage on a Domingo Santana RBI single in the fourth.

The Brewers’ bullpen would tame the Tigers’ bats until the eighth inning, when a pinch hit two-run home run from Dawel Lugo evened the score at five runs apiece. This would be short-lived, as Braun would launch his second home run of the night, an opposite field shot off of the glove of Castellanos, off of the top of the wall to give the Brewers a 6-5 lead. Jeremy Jeffress, despite hitting the leadoff batter, would subsequently slam the door in the ninth to keep the Brewers’ division title hopes alive.

Sweet relief

After a rocky outing from Zimmermann (five earned runs on eight hits over four innings), the Tigers’ bullpen managed to keep the Brewers’ bats at bay, with Blaine Hardy and Alex Wilson combining for three scoreless innings. Wilson was particularly impressive striking out four batters over two perfect innings.

A game of firsts

Lugo’s eighth inning home run marks the first of his career. And it was no cheap shot, traveling 404 feet to left-center field with an exit velocity of 102.1 miles per hour at a launch angle of 23 degrees.

On deck

The Tigers continue their final series of 2018 with game two of their tangle with the Brewers. Daniel Norris is set to make his last start of the season against Wade Miley as the Brewers look to secure their final position in the postseason. First pitch is slated for 7:10 p.m. You can watch on Fox Sports 1 or tune in to your local affiliate of the Detroit Tigers radio network.