Closer John Axford made it interesting in the ninth, allowing the game to get tied up on a squeeze, but Nyjer Morgan delivered a walkoff single in the bottom of the tenth to send Milwaukee to their first NLCS with a 3-2 victory.
Axford’s problems began in the ninth, when Gerardo Parra, who didn’t have a hit all series, doubled to right center field to start the inning off. Pinch hitter Sean Burroughs singled to put men on the corners for Willie Bloomquist. Bloomquist laid down a perfect bunt between Axford and Prince Fielder and Parra scored when the two Brewers collided. Axford would get out of the inning with a strikeout and a pair of fielders choices to get out of the inning.
Milwaukee would win it in the tenth. After a Craig Counsell lineout to begin the inning, Carlos Gomez singled in his first at bat of the game. With Morgan squaring around to bunt, Arizona closer JJ Putz threw the ball away from catcher Henry Blanco, and Gomez moved up to second. Morgan worked the count to 2-2, and singled up the middle. The speedy Gomez easily scored, and the Brewers bench mobbed the two players who platooned in center field for a majority of the season. It seems appropriate that Morgan, the loudmouthed player who gained a lot of fan support in Milwaukee this season, doing things like dressing the team up in cowboy hats, creating the popular Tony Plush character, and the infamous BEAST MODE catchphrase that is driving people on Twitter insane.
Morgan actually scored the first Brewers run of the game on a sac fly behind second base by Jerry Hairston Jr. Milwaukee took the lead in the sixth inning on a RBI single by Yuniesky Betancout to drive in Ryan Braun. Braun kept doing what he did tonight, getting on base three times for the Brewers. The Brewers only had seven hits: two each by Braun and Morgan helped power them to a victory. But it wasn’t just them: starter Yovani Gallardo threw six innings of one run ball, walking two and striking out five. His one run came via a first inning Justin Upton home run.
As for the Diamondbacks, an awesome season comes to a close. Many publications picked the Diamondbacks to finish last in the NL West, and yet they won the division. Starter Ian Kennedy’s magical year finishes with another high note: he pitched six innings tonight, allowing just two runs, while walking two and striking out five. Rookie Paul Goldschmidt had a pair of hits tonight for Arizona, and you have to wonder if he could have made a difference if he started game one instead of Lyle Overbay.
The Brewers will now wait to face the winner of the Cardinals-Phillies series, which is down to its final game tonight. The Cardinals currently lead 1-0 in the bottom of the second inning. Either team’s ace, Chris Carpenter and Roy Halladay, as well as Gallardo, will be unavailable for the first game of the NLCS.
And just for the hell of it, because the staff of the Outside Corner loves you….here’s a clip of Nyjer Morgan’s game winning single, and his postgame interview on TBS, where he blurted out the F-bomb a couple of times, courtesy of Awful Announcing.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=xGNjO3_BXzo
The best part about Milwaukee’s win? ONE MORE WEEK OF FRONT ROW AMY. Celebrate, Wisconsin.
