MILWAUKEE -- Rowdy tellez claimed that he blacked at the moment of the greatest moment in his career but not long enough to be able to appreciate what he'd done.
The Milwaukee Brewers' first baseman, Tellez, was unloaded on a Charlie Morton seventh-inning fastball for a two-run homer. This broke up a tie and propelled Milwaukee to a 2-1 victory over Atlanta in their NLDS series.
Tellez stated that "they always talk about blackingout or being unconscious." That's exactly what it was. That was the moment I felt. It was gone. I knew it.
To that point, Morton had been dominating Milwaukee. In six innings, Morton held Milwaukee to just two hits, struck out nine and threw only 77 pitches. No Brewer had ever reached second base.
As is so often the case in the playoffs a sudden and crucial change in momentum changed everything.
First, Morton suffered a rare misstep in command. A 1-2 fastball that was up and in to Avisail Garcia escaped him and struck the Milwaukee right fielder on his forearm. He recovered and was ahead on the count 1-2 against Tellez. He got strike two on a fastball with a late swing that sent it slicing up the leftfield line and into foul territory.
Tellez thought his bat might have cracked on the foul ball and called it time to get another piece of wood. The anticipation built in the park was only amplified by the short delay.
Tellez stated, "I don’t know if that bat was broken." "I saw something fly off of it. "I was like, I need all of the help I can get right away."
Tellez was preparing his new bat for action as he was possibly getting help he couldn’t see. The television broadcast captured Willy Adames, the exuberant Milwaukee shortstop, on top of the dugout, touching and talking to his bat, then kissing it, perhaps for luck.
Just a moment later, Tellez smashed Morton's pitch 411ft, well beyond the right-center field fence. The yellow towel-waving crowd at American Family Field left the closed-roof baseballpark trembling with joy.
After making contact with Tellez, he took a few steps towards first base while holding the bat in his left hand. Then he tossed the bat toward the Milwaukee dugout, before circling the bases, as the stadium lights flashed during his trot.
Tellez stated, "It was cool." It's insane. It's an amazing feeling to get a standing ovation and have a full stadium chant your name.
The game felt like a contest with one decisive blow, thanks to the sterling effort of Morton and Corbin Burnes.
Morton lasted six innings and allowed three hits as well as two runs. Burnes was pitch-for-pitch equal to Morton, going six scoreless frames and allowing only two hits, three walks, and striking out six.
Manager Brian Snitker of Atlanta stated, "It was exactly how I expected it to be." "Somebody got an important hit. Many times, the biggest hits in the postseason are homers. We didn't, but they hit one. It was still a great game.
The Braves actually did hit a homer as pinch-hitter Joc Pederson made an opposite field solo shot against Adrian Houser in the eighth. This gives Pederson at least one homer over the six previous postseasons.
You get Snitker's point. Scoring in this series will be at a premium. This means tight ballgames where one error can cost you your game. But it also means that heroes may emerge when they are just right.
Friday was Tellez’s day. It was fitting for Milwaukee's team, which had so many players from Adames to Tellez, to Eduardo Escobar who started at third base in Game 1 for the Brewers.
Since Milwaukee acquired Tellez from Toronto in July, Tellez has become a fan favorite. He hit.272 with seven homers in 56 games and 28 RBIs in 56. This helped to shore up a positional weakness at the Brewers' first base early in the season.
Tellez was also at the heart of the most important defensive play in the game. After Burnes had walked the Braves' first two batters, the first time that he has done so in his major league career, and Jorge Soler reached third base on an error ruled a pass ball, Atlanta's Ozzie Alies threw a pitch to Tellez at first base.
Tellez reached the base, and then wheeled to throw home. Soler was heading in the opposite direction after taking off at the crackle of the bat. Although Tellez's throw was not perfect, Milwaukee catcher Omar Narvaez managed to catch it and make a quick tag to get Soler onto the 3-2 double play.
This is yet another example of how important fulcrum plays are in tight, low-scoring games like this.
Burnes stated that "Postseason is all a matter of momentum." "Rowdy's play there gave us momentum, but it also [also] stopped their momentum."
The momentum is now on the side for the Brewers, as the Braves lost the first game in a postseason series after dropping it 10 times in 11 attempts. If Game 1 is any indication, Tellez will have more opportunities to experience the hero's journey. At least for one game. Maybe Tellez can live out that dream again.
Tellez stated, "That's what we hope for." "Most of all, you imagine it's the bottom nine, bases loaded, most of the time when you practice. It's a great feeling.
"But it wouldn't have been possible without the way that we pitched tonight. This was the key to the victory. Pitching staff, good defensive plays. Everyone played well and everyone worked hard. It was playoff baseball.
