Brewers stun Padres with wild walk-off off Mason Miller

San Diego arrived in the postseason looking like the most dangerous team in baseball. The Padres had dominated the Chicago Cubs in the wild card round, winning the two games by a combined 12-1 margin while pairing shutdown pitching with a deep, productive lineup. Fernando Tatis Jr. and Jackson Merrill led the way, while Dustin Harris, Luis Campusano and Ty France gave the offense added balance during an 18-6 September push that secured a playoff berth and home field for the opening series.

Two games into the division round, that momentum has been flipped by Milwaukee.

The Brewers followed a controversial 3-2 win in Game 1 with an even more dramatic finish Sunday, rallying past San Diego 4-3 on Jackson Chourio’s two-run walk-off liner in the ninth. The victory gave Milwaukee a 2-0 series lead and left the Padres searching for answers after another one-run loss.

Padres had control for most of the night

With the series already tilting toward Milwaukee, San Diego turned to ace Michael King against Logan Henderson and got exactly the kind of start it needed. King worked five innings, allowing three hits and one run, with no walks and six strikeouts. He kept the Brewers quiet long enough for the Padres to build a lead.

Ty France opened the scoring with an RBI single in the first inning. San Diego added another run in the sixth after a defensive mistake by Milwaukee. Brice Turang booted a routine double-play ball off the bat of Tatis, allowing him to reach while Campusano moved to third. Harris then hit into a force play that still brought Campusano home for a 2-0 edge.

Milwaukee answered with a run in the bottom half, but France delivered again to restore the two-run cushion. The Brewers cut it to 3-2 in the seventh when Jake Cronenworth committed an error on a David Hamilton grounder, allowing Garrett Mitchell to score. That set the stage for the tense final innings.

Miller escapes the eighth, then unravels in the ninth

Facing a must-win moment, San Diego handed the game to closer Mason Miller in the eighth. Given his regular-season dominance, the move made complete sense. Miller had posted a 1.67 ERA and rarely looked vulnerable, and he needed only 12 pitches to get through the eighth.

Things changed quickly in the ninth. After retiring Mitchell for the first out, Miller walked Christian Yelich and Sal Frelick. Andrew Vaughn then flew out to center, putting the Padres one out away from evening the series. But pinch-hitter Gary Sanchez drew another walk, loading the bases and bringing Chourio to the plate.

That decision point will be debated in San Diego. Miller had already thrown 34 pitches, far beyond his usual workload, and had walked three hitters in the inning. Manager Craig Stammen chose to stay with his elite closer rather than turn to another reliever.

Chourio made the Padres pay. On a 2-2 pitch, he ripped a 109.5 mph liner to center field, scoring Yelich and Frelick and sending American Family Field into celebration. It was a stunning finish and another huge moment for Milwaukee’s young star, who had already played a major role in the opener.

The Brewers have now taken back-to-back one-run games from a San Diego team that usually thrives in those spots. Just as notably, they solved Miller, something few clubs managed all season. The series now shifts to Petco Park, where the Padres will send Nick Pivetta to the mound Tuesday night in an effort to force a Game 4. Milwaukee is set to counter with Dustin May, needing one more win to complete the sweep and move on with extra rest before the NLCS.