PHILADELPHIA -- The Phillies intentionally loaded the bases in the eighth inning of a one-run game -- and it worked, thanks to a quirky play to end the frame.
The Brewers won, 4-1, but not before watching a promising rally fizzle in the eighth. After the Phillies opted to intentionally walk Jonathan Lucroy, reliever Hector Neris retired Chris Carter on a swinging strikeout, Alex Presley on a fielder's choice grounder (with the out at home) and Aaron Hill on a check-swing called strike three.
Hill immediately protested to plate umpire Jim Reynolds, saying he had fouled off the baseball. Slow-motion replays appeared to show Hill had a case, and Brewers manager Craig Counsell joined the argument.
To no avail. The umpires conferred briefly on the infield before declaring the inning over.
"It's not reviewable," Reynolds said. "It's not under the guidelines for plays that are reviewable. Foul balls, any of that stuff is not reviewable." 
So what was Counsell's argument?
"He wanted us to check," Reynolds said. "I didn't have a foul ball. I didn't hear, I didn't see anything. He wanted us to check, and we did. Nobody else on the crew had a foul ball on that." 

The Brewers still held on for their seventh victory in 10 games. Tyler Thornburg and Jeremy Jeffress each pitched a scoreless inning, with a Jonathan Villar two-run home run in the ninth giving Jeffress some breathing room.
"We kind of squandered a big opportunity there to get some insurance runs," Counsell said. "But our bullpen pitched pretty well, regardless."