The riveting ending to Sunday's 5-4 Milwaukee Brewers win over Cincinnati followed a blueprint that the Brewers haven't seen since 1997, when an outfielder's throw to home plate accounted for the final out of the game.
Blake Perkins grabbed a bloop single off the bat of Santiago Espinal and fired to the plate, catching Stuart Fairchild trying to score the tying run. Catcher William Contreras absorbed a shot to the head in making the tag up the line for the 27th out.
It's the first time an outfielder has thrown directly to the plate for the 27th out since Jeromy Burnitz nabbed Scott Brosius from right field to lock down a 1-0 win over Oakland at Milwaukee County Stadium on May 7, 1997. It's a game that made another kind of history, far less fan-friendly than the thrill of the final play.
Despite the score, the contest lasted 3 hours and 20 minutes, the longest 1-0 nine-inning game in Major League history. It was well past the 3:07 game played by the New York Mets and San Diego Padres in 1988.
"Who the hell keeps track of that?"Burnitz asked after the game.
Burnitz uncorked a one-hop throw from medium right field to catch Brosius trying to score from second base on Matt Stairs' single for the final out of the game.
The Athletics begged to differ with home plate umpire Dale Ford, however, with Brosius and Oakland manager Art Howe given postgame ejections. Unlike in 2024, there was no replay to take a second look.
In dispute was whether Brosius was tagged by catcher Jesse Levis before touching the plate by reaching back with his right hand as he went by with a wide slide.
"I don't know if he was out or not, but I tagged him," said Levis, who had entered the game as a pinch hitter in the seventh.
Brosius and Howe later suggested that Ford fudged the call merely to end what had become an increasingly tedious contest.
"He blew the call. It was a chance to get out of there," Howe said. "I don't know how he could miss that call."
Ford said Howe accused him of getting the game over so he could make a flight out of town.
"I told him I'm staying (overnight). I'm in no hurry," said Ford, conveniently forgetting to mention that two of his crew members did have pending flights to catch.
"(Brosius) started jumping around before I ever called him out. That gives you a good indication he knew he was out. I've had tougher calls."
Said Brosius: "I haven't seen the replay yet, but I'd bet my salary that I was safe."
The Brewers put runners on third base three times with less than two out, but failed to deliver any of them. TheBrewersfinally pushed across a run with two down in the seventh on Jeff Cirillo's RBI single. Burnitz, who walked and stole second, barely made it home ahead of Jose Canseco's throw.
The teams combined for 11 hits and 14 walks, plus another batter hit by pitch. They combined to go 3-for-20 with runners in scoring position, but one of those hits just moved a runner to third base (where he'd be stranded) and another hit resulted in the out at home.
Other 27th outs at home plate in Brewers history
On July 8, 2022, in Milwaukee, the Brewers defeated the Pirates, 4-3, when Kevin Newman was thrown out at home by a mile trying to score for the final out of the game. Shortstop Willy Adames had that throw, taking a relay from former Pirates star Andrew McCutchen. Former Brewer Daniel Vogelbach had singled in a run against Josh Hader, but Newman tried scoring all the way from first and was dead meat, tagged out by Victor Caratini.
On April 30, 1992, Doug Henry was saved of a blown save thanks to a throw by Darryl Hamilton to catcher B.J. Surhoff for the final out of a 4-3 victory at County Stadium against Toronto. Candy Maldonado had singled with the bases loaded to plate Joe Carter, but Dave Winfield was out at home. The Brewers had been down 1-0 heading into the eighth but scored three times, with Franklin Stubbs stealing home on a double steal for what became the winning run.
Maldonado had spent part of the 1991 season with the Brewers. The Blue Jays argued this call, too.
"All I know is I got a piece of him with the glove as he went by," said Surhoff, whose second- inning throwing error allowed Winfield to score Toronto's first run. "I don't know what I tagged, but I felt something."
"I had a good view," said Henry, who was backing up the play. "He was out."
Winfield, of course, begged to differ. "I beat the throw," he said. "I think if (umpire Larry Barnett) saw the replay he'd make a different call."
Crazy enough, the Brewers had another 27th out involving the catcher on May 12, 1992, roughly two weeks later, with Henry again on the mound, though this one wasn't quite as exciting in locking up a 6-2 win over the Chicago White Sox.
Tim Raines singled to right field, but Dante Bichette got the final out with a throw home that resulted in Craig Grebeck tagged out following a rundown that involved catcher Andy Allanson, third baseman Kevin Setizer, shortstop Pat Listach and second baseman Scott Fletcher.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Last Brewers game to end with out at the plate featured ejections
