MILWAUKEE -- Denied on the basepaths, Garrett Mitchell came through with the bat instead.
The Brewers center fielder capped his first career four-hit game Wednesday with a go-ahead triple in the seventh inning that sent his club to a 4-2 win over the Reds at American Family Field.
Reliever Aaron Ashby picked up victory No. 12 to remain Major League Baseball’s surprise wins leader and Milwaukee moved a season-high 22 games over .500 by extending its recent domination over a division foe. Including the first three games of this series and six games over the past week and a half, the Brewers have won 51 of the last 70 matchups against the Reds.
Mitchell finished a home run shy of the cycle, including his tie-breaking triple off Reds reliever Brock Burke in the seventh, which erased whatever frustration lingered from a close play at home plate four innings earlier. With the teams tied, 2-2, and Mitchell at third base with one out, Brewers rookie Cooper Pratt dropped a bunt toward Reds first baseman Spencer Steer, who shoveled the baseball home to catcher Tyler Stephenson.
Mitchell was called out on the field but the Brewers challenged, meaning MLB’s replay center would look at both the out call and whether Stephenson was blocking home plate. Following a lengthy review, crew chief Dan Bellino relayed the ruling.
“Due to the fact that it was a quickly-developing play, there is no violation of blocking home plate,” Bellino said. “As far as the out call, the ruling on the field stands. The runner is out.”
That call loomed large as the teams remained tied for four more innings, with starter Shane Drohan and Ashby combining to hold the Reds scoreless aside from Noelvi Marte’s two-run homer off the foul pole in the second. In the bottom of the seventh, Andrew Vaughn extended the inning with a two-out double before Mitchell delivered his winning hit. Then he scored an insurance run on a wild pitch.
For Mitchell, a former first-round pick who has been productive when healthy but dogged by injuries during a Brewers career that began in 2022, the best thing about his season so far is that he’s stayed on the field. He played his 74th game on Wednesday night, five more than his previous single-season high.