Milwaukee Brewers: Pat Murphy Explains Controversial 9th-Inning Choice to Pinch Hit for Caleb Durbin

Milwaukee Brewers’ matchup strategy failed to come through

To Seigler’s credit, he worked the count full and could have had a walk after ball three. The first pitch he saw, a sinker up and away, was a questionable strike call. He easily could have begun the at-bat with a 1-0 advantage, not an 0-1 hole.

It didn’t play out that way, of course, and removing Durbin for a fellow rookie batting .208 with zero extra base hits this season was bound to go over poorly if it didn’t work.

From a righty-lefty matchup, though, the move made sense. Seigler bats left-handed. Walker, a right-hander, fares better against righties like Durbin, who hits better against lefties on the mound. From that perspective, it was an obvious pinch-hitting scenario.

Walker’s pitching arsenal, featuring an upper 90’s sinker and slider combo, also factored into the decision. “Durbin is not a good matchup for that guy,” Murphy said. “The few weaknesses Durbin has, that’s not the best matchup.”

Still, Seigler’s weak profile and Durbin’s strong day justify second-guessing. Murphy must have known he would be fielding questions after the game.

Bad call or not, a good at-bat for Seigler

It’s at least a bonus for the optics that the pinch hitter didn’t go down 1-2-3. Although strike three was probably too close to take, Seigler ground out a decent at-bat versus a tough pitcher. His manager said as much.

“Seiger had a great at-bat. You look at that at-bat, the first pitch is a ball. They called it a strike. Umpires are not perfect, but it’s clearly a ball,” Murphy said. “It’s ball four. Seigler’s got a knack for getting on base in big situations.”

Drawing walks is something Seigler does undeniably well – he has seven this month in just 34 trips to the plate. Really, he could have had another one. In that case, Sal Frelick, on first after a two-out single, would have moved into scoring position with William Contreras coming up.

At the end of the day, though, the Brewers should not be griping about a bad strike call. They had a ninth-inning lead that, in his second straight outing , closer Trevor Megill just couldn’t hold. They’ll give it another go on Monday as they host the Diamondbacks (64-67). First pitch is scheduled for 6:40 PM CT.