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Andrew Vaughn's eighth-inning single gives Brewers 4-3 win over Twins
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- Andrew Vaughn's eighth-inning single gives Brewers 4-3 win over Twins
Brandon Lockridge saw the field for the first time in a week, and it turned out to be the perfect moment.
The speedy outfielder, who spent a large chunk of the season on the injured list with a knee laceration, pinch ran in the eighth inning, stole second and then scored on an Andrew Vaughn single, the go-ahead run in the Milwaukee Brewers ' 4-3 win over the Minnesota Twins on Aug. 8.
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"The definition of being ready when called upon, that's who that kid is," Brewers manager Pat Murphy said of Lockridge. "That's a sneaky little acquisition last year. We got criticized for not getting much at the deadline [in 2025], but this kid's a ballplayer."
Lockridge is the microcosm of a win that fits the "gritty" mold, with just enough defense, baserunning, clutch hits and bullpen work to leave American Family Field with a victory and MLB-best record of 73-44.
Lockridge left a game May 8 when he slid into the outfield wall trying to make a catch, catching his knee on a corner of concrete that's now been padded over at American Family Field. He collected one at-bat Aug. 1 but hadn't been a game until Saturday night. William Contreras blooped a single leading off the eighth of a tie game, creating the perfect opportunity for one of the team's fastest players to step in.
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Lockridge immediately stole second, narrowly ahead of the throw from Twins catcher Ryan Jeffers . After Garrett Mitchell popped out to center, Vaughn lined a shot through the left side, and Lockridge raced home ahead of an errant throw.
"Just staying simple, just trying to get a pitch I could hit," Vaughn said of his at-bat. "Not trying to do too much, just trying to drive something to the outfield and get a knock.
"The bullpen and starting pitching … both ends have been doing that all year, keeping us in close games."
Robert Gasser struggles but lives up to challenge by Murphy
Robert Gasser struggled but was still left the game in the fifth with the score tied at 3-3, and the bullpen crew of Chad Patrick , Abner Uribe , Aaron Ashby and Trevor Megill (21st save) took it the rest of the way. Megill threw only four pitches to lock up the final three outs in the ninth.
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Ashby registered his 13th win of the season, tied for second in the National League.
"It's a gritty win," Megill said. "It's nice to have those. … Kind of just a little bit of Brewer baseball. Wins like that keep the season rolling in the right direction."
The Brewers gained a game on the Chicago Cubs in the National League Central standings and moved back to 5½ games ahead in first place.
The game started dubiously for the Brewers with Gasser allowing 11 baserunners in his 4⅔ innings, permitting three Twins runs in the second (all with two outs) and narrowly avoiding additional damage.
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"We talked to Gas after the second inning and said, 'Gas, the team needs you right now to give us five," Murphy said. "We're going with a six-man rotation to help the starters. Now, you have to help the club here to give us five. He did. It wasn't pretty. It was six free bases between walks and balks and hit by pitch and stolen bases. You can't give up that many free bases."
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Contreras helped out his pitcher in the third with a perfect seed to third base, catching Luke Keaschall trying to steal and converting him into the second out.
"That's on me, I've got to be better with my looks," Gasser said. "Luckily, he's got a great arm and good eye for it."
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Gasser said he relied on his cutters and sweepers as he battled the four-seam fastball, and he took notes from how the Twins attacked starter Shane Drohan the night before on how to avoid fastballs up in two-strike counts.
Brewers gets runs on at-bats from Turang , Contreras
Milwaukee Brewers second baseman Brice Turang (2) celebrates with first base coach Spencer Allen (67) after hitting an RBI single during the fourth inning against the Minnesota Twins at American Family Field on Aug. 8, 2026.
The Brewers had scored when Contreras was struck by a pitch with the bases loaded and nobody out in the first, but Milwaukee didn't add on from there.
Down 3-1 in the fourth, Brice Turang added his own two-out contribution with a bases-loaded single that plated two runs. Turang finished the night with three hits, a stolen base, run scored and two RBIs.
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Brewers batters struck out 14 times in the game, including seven times against starter Taj Bradley , who allowed three runs on five hits in five innings.
Joey Ortiz leaves game with back soreness
Third baseman Joey Ortiz left the game in the fourth with back stiffness. Murphy said after the game that he'd be getting some imaging.
"He had it before the game and there was some question about to his back, so he's getting an MRI right now as a precaution," Murphy said, adding that Ortiz aggravated the issue on a swing in his first at-bat.
Ortiz initially returned to the game and made the play on the Contreras throw to third. In Ortiz's place, David Hamilton worked an eight-pitch walk that loaded the bases with two outs and preceded Turang's two-run single in the fourth.
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What is the Brewers' record?
73-44
Brewers probable pitchers and schedule
Brewers vs. Twins, Aug. 9, 1:10 p.m.: Brewers RHP Jacob Misiorowski (11-5, 1.63) vs. Minnesota LHP Connor Prielipp (3-5, 4.75). TV – Brewers.TV. Radio – AM-620 WTMJ.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Andrew Vaughn's eighth-inning single gives Brewers 4-3 win over Twins
